Rocky and the American Dream

I’m taking a bit of a different approach to this blog than I had originally thought I would. Rather than discussing the content of the film as an example of the American Dream, I’m using the film itself.

Before starting to write, I decided to read the Wikipedia page for the film and for Sylvester Stallone (I tend to do this after watching movies or TV shows because I like learning stuff about the production and little trivial things). There, I learned that the budget for Rocky was only $950,000, and that Stallone is the child of an immigrant father. This coupled with the huge success of the film seems to me like an almost-perfect embodiment of the “rags to riches” aspect of the American Dream.

After its release, Rocky went on to make $117 million dollars, be nominated for ten and win three Oscars (including best picture), and spawn five sequels. The franchise also jump-started Stallone’s career, making him arguably one of the most recognizable actors in Hollywood. The fact that a film with a such low budget in comparison to most others and with a not-yet-so-famous-at-the-time actor/writer has become such a successful and memorable franchise that has permeated American culture (in a way, because you’d probably be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t at least heard of Rocky) seems like the epitome of the American Dream.

 

Caitlin McHale

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Mr. Smith = Rocky

I couldn’t help but notice that Rocky and Mr. Smith have many similarities.  They’re both sort of quirky, down to earth characters associated with the “people” and they are both offered a one in a million chance to do something big.  Both characters are firm believers in the American Dream and regardless of all the terrible things that go on around them, they never stop believing.  In both cases there is still the possibility that things can be fixed and get better.  The images of Mr. Smith goes to Washington were a bit more cliche (that’s really saying something because Rocky can be pretty cliche as well), but one has to keep in mind that what is cliche to us now was perhaps not so much in 1939.  Mr. Smith is a lot more blatant in portraying it’s ideas.  I tried to figure out the definition of a Great American in the film.  Clearly Mr. Smith is the embodiment and I came up with these descriptions:
-Knowledgeable of American History
– A Hero (save lives!)
-Takes advantage of freedom of speech (he has his own paper)
-Interest in the youth
-Fight for lost causes
-Poor (AKA uncorrupted)
-Simple (small town/working class)
-Manly/Justified Agression

Also, I noticed that one of the major differences between Mr. Smith and the corrupt politicians was their physical builds.  All of the politicians are short and fat and rather unhealthy looking.  Mr. Smith is tall and strong and healthy looking.  Then there’s Senator Paine, who is kind of in the middle of these two physiques and likewise is corrupt, but he wasn’t always.

I took out a few quotes that I thought were particularly powerful about some of the ideas in the movie:
Mr. Smith to Saunders, “For a woman you’ve done awfully well.”  I think that the movie supports the traditional female role in some ways, but also it breaks it.  Mr. Smith’s success is mainly due to Saunders.  She was really the one who manipulated the senate to achieve justice.

Sen. Paine to  Taylor, “He’s honest, not stupid.”  It’s striking how often these seem to get confused…

“You’re half-way decent.  You don’t belong here.”  I think this was Saunders to Mr. Smith, but regardless the message is clear that America (that is the government) is losing sight of the original American ideals.

-Katie G.

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Rocky Balboa: The Italian Stallion

Like many Philadelphians, watching Rocky is a past-time. We’ve all seen it (I assume) a hundred times, but have never really seen it. I never watched Rocky with a scholarly mindset. I had always watched Rocky (1-6) mindlessly, simply for entertainment because everyone in my family loves those films to pieces. So, this time around, I watched the film, I tried to keep an eye out for how Rocky, Philadelphia, masculinity, femininity, race relations and strength (in the face of adversity) are portrayed. To my surprise, the film had a lot more to offer than I ever thought before now. Professor Simon was right, there is virtually no fighting in the film: it’s a love story through and through. Love between man and his city, man and woman and, of course, man and himself. 1976 was a big year indeed for Philadelphia and this film encapsulates what it must have meant to be a winner when you were once a no-name, slightly older boxer desperate for fights, money and opportunity (not to mention without love). Rocky has it all in the end: strength, love and victory (kind-of). Of course, being someone who was born and raised in the city, the film tugs at my heart strings more than most. Rocky brings a sense of pride to Philadelphians. I’ve lived in all areas of the city now and I’ve grown to love it very deeply. When out-of-town friends who come to visit, the Rocky steps and statue are a must-see. The walk down Kelley drive, the tour of the Art Museum and the classic picture with both arms up high in front of Rocky? Now that’s Philly tourism at it’s finest. Watching Rocky this time around made me think more deeply about Rocky, the icon, not just Rocky, the fighter.

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Return to Rocky

Sorry to backtrack to the Rocky discussion from that awesome Philly meme, but I haven’t yet posted my blog.

In the class discussion and in many blog posts, we pointed out the notion of Rocky as representative of Philadelphia. Stallone obviously worked to make his film  gritty and authentic, painting a picture of the underside of Philadelphia outside of the wealthy Center City neighborhoods (though Canby argues he totally failed in his task… but I digress). My grandfather was born and raised in Germantown, which we all know is a fairly seedy neighborhood now. However, when he grew up there, it was much like Rocky’s neighborhood- white ethnic,very blue-collar. I brought up our class discussion to my mom, whose first reaction was “Your grandfather couldn’t stand that movie.” Now, my grandfather was a bus driver until after he married my grandmother, at which point he opened up a string of bars that he owned for the rest of his life. But until his mid-twenties, he was a lot like the viewers that Leab thought would relate to the film. Instead, he hated the portrayal of the city he loved so much. Leab described the setting by saying: “The filmmakers had a feel for ethnic America. Somber authenticity marks the film’s settings indoors and out” (271). This notion of “somber authenticity” is what my grandfather resented. Life in Philadelphia in neighborhood’s like Rocky’s were not, he would argue, somber. His descriptions of his time growing up in Germantown, despite his family’s relatively low SES, sound content: the grayness of Rocky’s social strata was not, my grandfather would say, what represented Philly.Yes, his family wanted to make more money- but that was not what defined them as Philadelphians.

Kensington, a neighborhood that is featured quite a bit in the film, is a great example of this. Before this year, Kensington scared me: its poverty, high crime rates, and that whole “serial killer” thing were pretty intimidating. This year, however, I began teaching ESL there and my entire perception of the neighborhood has changed: yes, its people are poor, but they are not “somber”.The sense of community and neighborhood investment are obvious. Obviously this is a Kensington 30 years after the film, but I think Stallone’s struggle to make his film seem real missed the mark of the essence of Philly.

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Rocky as a Personification of Philadelphia

After re-watching Rocky, and listening to our class discussions, an element of the film that really sticks out to me is the contrast between Apollo Creed and Rocky. The portrayal of these to characters is very interesting to me.

If I had to describe Apollo in one word, I think I would use show. It all begins with his name: Apollo. He was named after a Greek god. This name sets up high expectations for the character who bears it and Apollo does not disappoint. He is smart, maybe even too smart to the point of being slick. I feel as if he represents those who take advantage of people like Rocky. We never see him training, only working on the business aspect, trying to squeeze out every last dollar.

Rocky is the complete opposite. I would use the word grit to describe him. The name Rocky immediately invokes a tough-guy image. Frankly, he isn’t the brightest, but what he lacks in brain power, he makes up for in hard work. He is the personification of Philadelphia’s ethnic neighborhoods, hard-working even if all the opportunities are not there. He gives hope to people who have none and inspires them, gives the dreams. It is almost as if he shows: If I can do it anyone can.

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Rocky- Mr. America

By: Davea L.

We were asked to watch the American classic Rocky for class on Tuesday. I was surprised because the film was nothing like I had imagined it would be. I had expected there would be a lot of violence. I did not expect it to be so sentimental and cliché. However overall I found it to be entertaining.  In the film Philadelphia is represented as a dirty impoverished city, populated mostly by blue-collar workers. People are hanging out on the street or are in the bars. They are not working just talking and singing. There is also a strong sense of community. Everyone knows each other. Rocky is the embodiment of this Philadelphia. It can even be argued that he personifies all of the ideas about the American dream and identity.  Rocky is a typical American in that he is from a blue-collar background and is apart of the white ethnic group, a group that represents a majority of Americans. Rocky also represents the underdog. In the United States, Americans uphold the idea of class mobility.  We believe that anyone has the opportunity to change their socioeconomic status as long as they are willing to work hard. This very idea was being challenged during the 1970s, because a large amount of blue-collar workers were losing their jobs. Also several social movements were occurring during this time period. These various movements were threatening the very morals and ideas that held American society together. This was a very difficult time for this particular group of Americans. As previously mentioned Rocky embodies these Americans. It was interesting to see how he dealt with issues such as race, gender and class. The film is set during 1975 to 1976, the year before and of the bicentennial. This film was not about questioning gender norms instead it actually enforced them. It also was not about reconciliation between African Americans and White Americans. The tension between the two groups remained relatively unexplored. This film, I felt was created for the white ethnic working class. It was a way to reach their sentimental side and in a way reassure them. It reminded me of the Reagan speech we read in class. This film was there to just show them that their views would prevail. The underdog could still rise through hard work and dedication.  Philadelphia is the city of the underdogs. It is not hard to see why Rocky would become an icon for the city. It represented the very people living there. Rocky, although fictional, can be seen as a beacon of hope for these people.

I wrote this piece before reading the article by Leab and it is interesting how we both reached similar conclusions about the film. I definitely agreed with a lot of his comments about the film. He also made me examine how race and gender was portrayed in the film even more then I had originally done. I was not really comfortable with how Apollo and the reporter were portrayed. But then I reminded myself that the film was made for a particular audience and it was created during the 1970s.

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Rocky is one of us.

Over the years, Rocky has become Philadelphia’s signature film, with Rocky himself even becoming the heroic icon for many Philadelphians. When the film starts, Rocky lives alone in squalor, and seems to have no future. We consistently see drunks, bums, and poor idlers who line the streets of his rundown Philadelphia neighborhood. Despite these circumstances, we are meant to see that Rocky, who may be a bum, is a bum with heart. He is challenged by Apollo Creed on the basis that he is easily beatable, yet Rocky trains to win. Rocky expresses worry that by doing so, he is deceiving himself, but he comes to the conclusion that he has worth to prove: He can go the distance.  During the fight, Rocky even manages to knock down the champion several times. Although Rocky may not have officially “won” he won personally, as he proved his worth: He let everyone know that he is not “just another bum from the neighborhood.”

 The story of Rocky strikes a chord with many Philadelphians, as the city’s population reflects the blue collar ethnic narrative of the film’s protagonist. Philadelphians can feel as though Rocky is telling their own story, but culminating in a miraculous end, proving that the dream is possible. Sylvester Stallone commented on this matter when discussing the overwhelming audience response to the film, as he stated “when they’re cheering for Rocky, they’re cheering for themselves.” As Philadelphians, Rocky is one of us: he is apart of our brotherhood. We cheer Rocky, boo Creed, and at the end of the film, we may even have tears in our eyes as Rocky proves that we have merit worth fighting for.

Below is a video clip used during credits of the latest Rocky film: Rocky Balboa. It shows numerous people imitating Rocky’s trek up the steps of the Art Museum, and celebrating as they reach the top, symbolizing how Rocky inspires us to push ourselves and prove our worth as Philadelphians.

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Rocky Reaction

I watched Rocky for the first time when I was much younger and the only things I remembered from it were the most stereotypical and iconic:  Rocky drinking raw eggs, running up the Art Museum steps, the Rocky song, Rocky yelling “Yo Adrian,” and the fact that it was filmed in Philly.  When I watched it this time I picked up on more of the details of the plot and the subtleties.  Now that I have been living in Philly for a few years I can also relate more to the character of Philly and the visuals of the city.  Over the summer I was living in Philly and would occasionally run through Fairmount Park and up to the Art Museum.  Every time I went I would see people taking photos with the Rocky statue, running up the steps, taking photos at the top of the steps, and even several people selling Rocky T-shirts on benches.  I was asked several times to take photos for people at the statue and on the steps.  I did not necessarily like Rocky when I was a kid and I barely remembered anything from it, but I found myself running up the steps and looking out over the city every time I went and of course I thought of Rocky.  People like participating in this Philly ritual, even if they have never seen the movie or did not particularly like it, because it is a popular part of the Philadelphia tourist experience.

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Rocky

Growing up I never saw any of the Rocky movies so coming into class my knowledge about the film was very limited. So whenever Rocky was mentioned I immediately thought of an episode of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air. In this episode Will went back to his hometown, Philadelphia. While there he decided to train so that he could confront his old bully. I found it interesting how this iconic film/scene was reworked on the show. This proves to me that icons are not necessarily  images and people, they can also be scenes from films and videos.

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Talking about Rocky — and Thinking about Visuals

I hope you have had a chance to watch Rocky.  When you are looking at films, don’t just think about the story.  Think about the parts that go on behind the story — the editing, sound, and framing.  See the two images below.  The first one is rather typical of the film and portrayal of Philadelphia, especially in Acts One and Two.  What is the filmmaker trying to active here by positioning Rocky like this?

Sorry it is up side down, but again look at how Rocky is portrayed here.  Now compare this to a more famous — iconic? — image from the film.  How is Rocky framed here?

One last thing.  Check out this trailer for a recent ESPN film on the “Real Rocky.”

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