Rocky IV

Nostalgia’s a bitch. I loved this movie when I was little; an irresistibly naive echo of the Cold War. It's impossible not to root for an American who has to lift a log and run across a snowy landscape to train, as opposed to a Russian who is groomed by a team of physiotherapists in top-notch conditions. I almost felt like pulling out the American flag and cheering Sly on at the top of my lungs :) (28/09/2003)

When I look back on the match in the USSR or even just reading some of the reviews here quoting lines directly from the movie, a chill runs down my spine, and it's the right moment to forget words like "propaganda". The long flashback while driving the car, the training in the snow, Drago destroying equipment in the gym, and somewhere in the back of my head a voice telling me that cheering like this is something I should perhaps do at the age of twelve, not in my thirties. The most bombastic and deservedly the best installment of the series. (13/05/2006)

Seeing this film again after several years is an experience that can’t be forgotten. Rocky IV is the epitome of everything that we loved about the action movies of the 1980s. Good man of steel vs. bad man of steel, good America vs. bad Russia and, if you like, the power of the pure spirit of nature vs. the power of modern technology. There’s revenge for the friend who had been killed, intensive training and a final fight that is so packed with energy that you you want to get up and start throwing punches. Dozens of films at that time offered all of this, but few could serve it all up with such scope and showmanship, and in such a dynamic music-video-style package as Rocky IV. (20/05/2002)

One of the best Rocky movies, primarily because it features five fights like in the third installment, but this time they are brilliantly balanced with human stories. The change in Rocky's relationship with Apollo reached its peak here, but the star of this film is simply the great Dolph Lundgren, who begins his career with a truly significant role. An unforgettable installment with a great finale and a message that might sound silly today but had its justification at the time. (18/03/2014)

Rocky IV concentrates, dramatically and explosively, almost everything that adorned and defined the 80s B-movies. Although this fairy tale with its classic "good vs. evil" boxing structure (or the Cold War is far from over) reeks of over-the-top platitudes and superhuman heroism, everything is put together in just the right way to entertain generations far beyond the Italian Stallion. After all, good looks so likeable, honest and humble, while evil is cold, heartless and greedy, and the final battle is so emotionally gripping that every time I watch it I stand by the screen cursing at the vile comrades who sent that doped-up beast after poor Rocky, which was likely the intent... :)) 80% (18/03/2014)