Rocky IV (1985)

Rocky Balboa proudly holds the world heavyweight boxing championship, but a new challenger has stepped forward: Drago, a six-foot-four, 261-pound fighter who has the backing of the Soviet Union.

Director:

Sylvester Stallone

Writer:

Sylvester Stallone

Stars:

Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young

9 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sylvester Stallone	...	Rocky Balboa
Talia Shire	...	Adrian
Burt Young	...	Paulie
Carl Weathers	...	Apollo Creed
Brigitte Nielsen	...	Ludmilla
Tony Burton	...	Duke
Michael Pataki	...	Nicoli Koloff
Dolph Lundgren	...	Ivan Drago
Stu Nahan	...	Commentator #1
R.J. Adams	...	Sports Announcer
Al Bandiero	...	American Commentator #2
Dominic Barto	...	Russian Government Official
Danial Brown	...	Rocky Jr.'s Friend
James Brown	...	The Godfather of Soul
Rose Mary Campos	...	Maid

Storyline

Rocky Balboa accompanies his friend Apollo Creed to the ring in a boxing match against a Russian Boxer named Ivan Drago. Drago is too strong for Creed, and unfortunately kills him in his match. Balboa blames himself for Creed's death and is determined to defeat Drago in a boxing match. He gains the help of Creed's former manager, Duke and travels to U.S.S.R. to take on Drago.

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Plot Keywords:

boxing | training | russophobia | training montage | cold weather | 

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Taglines:

He Could Have Stopped The Fight. He Could Have Saved His Best Friend's Life. But Now, The Only Thing He Can't Do Is Walk Away...

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Genres:

Drama | Sport

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

During filming, Dolph Lundgren and Carl Weathers really did not get along and got into an altercation. Lundgren threw Weathers into a corner of the boxing ring. After that, Weathers shouted profanities at Lundgren while leaving the ring and announced that he was calling his agent and quitting the movie. Only after Sylvester Stallone forced the two actors to reconcile did the movie continue. This event caused a four-day work stoppage while Weathers was talked back into the part and Lundgren agreed to tone down his aggressiveness.

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Goofs

In a brief scene, while Rocky is training for the big fight with Drago, Rocky is punching the punch mitts that Tony Duke is holding in the air. In one shot, Rocky is punching the punch mitts with black boxing gloves, and in the very next shot, Rocky is punching the punch mitts with white tape, no gloves.

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Quotes

Paulie: [at Rocky's rented home in a snowy part of Russia] Are you planning to grow reindeer or something? How the heck are you supposed to train here? What a depressing vacation. What about the Rose Bowl game? I hope they have my comics here.
[he falls in the snow]

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Crazy Credits

Only Rocky film that doesn't start with the "scrolling Rocky" logo.

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Alternate Versions

Current AMC broadcasts in the US use the sped-up 25 fps PAL video from a 24 fps film source.

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Connections

Referenced in Nostalgia Critic: A.I: Artificial Intelligence (2013)

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Soundtracks

Heart's On Fire
Performed by John Cafferty
Written by Vince DiCola, Ed Fruge (as Ed Frugé) and Joe Esposito (as Joe 'Bean' Esposito)
Produced by Vince DiCola and Ed Fruge (as Ed Frugé)
John Cafferty appears courtesy of Scotti Brothers Records

User Reviews

This film will pump you up!

Rocky IV really stood out from the rest of the Rocky films to me, with the whole America versus Russia ordeal. Now it has been mentioned by other critics that this is inaccurate, but who really cares??? The point is that you really get to the point where you want Sly to kick Dragos butt in the ring. I enjoyed the training montage, and the boxing scene was so entertaining for me. And with the Russian leaders, and the Russian public standing up and cheering and clapping for Rocko.. a bit corny but so great.Talia shire in my opinion is at her best in this one out of all the other ones; she seems more confident and easier to get along with her character. And one of the most dramatic scenes to hit cinema was the death of Carl Weathers(Apollo Creed). The idea of fighting for the death of his friend, and for himself is just so inspirational. It just makes you want to jump up and get in the ring to help rocko. Out of a perfect score of 10, i gave this one a 7.

Details

Official Sites:

Instagram MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

27 November 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rocky IV

Filming Locations:

Wyoming, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$19,991,537, 1 December 1985

Gross USA:

$127,873,716

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$300,473,716

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists, Chartoff-Winkler Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1