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With: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Burgess Meredith, Tony Burton, Sylvia Meals, Joe Spinell, Paul J. Micale
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Written by: Sylvester Stallone
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Directed by: Sylvester Stallone
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MPAA Rating: PG
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Running Time: 119
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Date: 06/15/1979
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Apollo Mission
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
Sylvester Stallone directed this inevitable sequel to the Oscar-winning hit 1976 original, and he does as good a job, or better, than Best Director winner John G. Avildsen. It contains fine performances, character nuance, suspense, and a thrilling story. (Many fans prefer this to the original, since Rocky gets to win.) In it, Rocky (Stallone) decides to retire from boxing, mainly to prevent permanently losing his eyesight (this subplot is completely forgotten in future sequels). He loses his wealth and winds up scrambling for work, even emptying spit buckets at the gym. Adrian (Talia Shire) is pregnant, and a furious Apollo (Carl Weathers) is demanding a rematch. Adrian falls into a coma, and there's a lengthy hospital scene before Rocky steps into the ring again and goes the full fifteen with Apollo. Stallone captures much of the same look and feel of the original, and it works, even if it lacks the original's underdog appeal.
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