12 Films At Christmas - 1

I've started early with my Christmas film viewing, having flicked onto the beginning of Rocky yesterday afternoon. Sylvester Stallone can be made out as ridiculous, particularly in the tiresome longeurs of the Rocky and Rambo franchises. However that analysis overlooks that both sequences started strongly with Rocky itself and the much underrated First Blood.

Rocky is a skilfully made film, scripted by Stallone himself and affectingly played by him and Talia Shire. It is of course not really a boxing movie but a love story and as such it works tidily. 7.5/10