![]() “How dare he be Russian?!” Apollo screams inside his heart, outwardly scowling with all of the power afforded him by his considerable mustache.ĭuring a press conference for their fight, Ludmilla refers to Drago as an “international sportsman and ambassador of goodwill,” and when asked if he’s ready to fight a professional boxer, she says, “…we hope he’s qualified to do so… Well, I know he is, but I don’t want to sound too confident.” Perfectly diplomatic and civil. ![]() ![]() The cool waters of his million-dollar swimming pool are no comfort to the blinding rage of seeing a younger athlete on television. And this is enough to make Apollo Creed furious. He just stands there, looking like a wax figure of Dolph Lundgren. Sure, there are some scenes later on in which Drago’s pompous trainer starts ranting about Soviet superiority, but Ludmilla remains extremely diplomatic, and Drago himself never says anything. The film was made during the height of the Cold War in the 1980s, and back then, villains didn’t really need to do anything outside of “being Russian” to be considered villains. But Apollo inexplicably takes that shit personally, and vows to punish Drago for having the absolute temerity to come to the United States and challenge Rocky Balboa to a fight. It is interesting to note that while having a TV propped up on a piece of patio furniture in your backyard would get you a citation from your homeowner’s association in 2020, it was a status symbol of extreme wealth in 1985.ĭuring that press conference, Drago’s wife Ludmilla ( Brigitte Nielson) is extremely cordial and professional when discussing her hopes for her husband’s boxing success. While joyously splashing around in said pool with aforementioned Good Boys, he looks over at his outdoor television and catches a press conference about Ivan Drago. Let’s examine.Īpollo is comfortably living in retirement in a giant mansion with a loving wife, a gigantic swimming pool, and two extremely good dogs. ![]() It is in this environment that Rocky IV is able to make Apollo Creed behave like an embarrassing dickhead without consciously realizing it. It should come as little surprise to learn that Rocky IV was released the same year as Rambo: First Blood Part Two, another Stallone sequel that completely abandons the serious, grounded drama of the original film in favor of recasting the main character as a cartoonishly larger-than-life American hero. The disconnect between Rocky and Rocky IV is absolutely hilarious. Rocky is now so far removed from his situation in the first film that he casually presents his brother-in-law with a sentient robot as a reward for not succumbing to massive heart failure as they celebrate his birthday in Rocky’s palatial mansion. It’s a powerful film that is firmly grounded in reality.įast-forward nine years to Rocky IV, which begins with an American boxing glove and a Russian boxing glove punching each other and exploding. Rocky takes the fight seriously, however, and shocks the world by going the distance with Apollo, ultimately losing the bout via split decision. Much like he does during his eventual fight against Drago, Apollo even wears an Uncle Sam costume to the ring, because that is his fetish. That film is a cinema verité style drama about a small-time fighter who gets a shot at the heavyweight title because the champ (Apollo Creed, forever an asshole) wants to fight some local chud and embarrass him. Rocky the Fourth is the third sequel to Rocky, the movie that earned Sylvester Stallone two Oscar nominations and made him an international movie star.
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