Heroes: LOTR vs Rocky Balboa

I can see some comparisons between Balboa & Frodo (other than their height!) in each of the films, particulary in Rocky V where Rocky is meant to have been inflicted with permanent brain trauma & Frodo has been left to recover from his Morgul Knife wound & scarred memories for the rest of his life at the end of the LOTR. Both bow out of each film leaving an unforgotten legacy as heroes for the free people.

[Tuor in Gondolin]

Perhaps of some interest here: Today (Sep., 8th) the
Rocky statue is being put back at the Philadelphia
Art Museum (permanently) at the bottom of the
steps. And the anti-Soviet Rocky film is rather
embarassing to watch now---with the blatant
propaganda.

[narfforc]

Yes Mansun, there is a similarity in the height, Rocky as an heavyweight was a non-starter, he would have been lucky to fight at Light-heavy 3 weights down. As for retiring, Tolkien got it right, there is no The Return of Frodo, at 150yrs old to fight of a new menace, I wish they had done the same for Rocky. I think if he had died, after fighting Tommy Gun, and gone to The Big Gym in the Sky, then the parallel would have been a little closer.

P.S Rocky/Stallone may have made Heavywieght around the 1900s, the smallest Champion was Tommy Burns a Canadian, real name Noah Brusso who stood at 5ft 7inches and weighed around 180pounds. He is famous for being the smallest and losing his title to the great Jack Johnson, the first black Heavyweight Champion of the World.

Originally Posted by narfforc

Yes Mansun, there is a similarity in the height, Rocky as an heavyweight was a non-starter, he would have been lucky to fight at Light-heavy 3 weights down. As for retiring, Tolkien got it right, there is no The Return of Frodo, at 150yrs old to fight of a new menace, I wish they had done the same for Rocky. I think if he had died, after fighting Tommy Gun, and gone to The Big Gym in the Sky, then the parallel would have been a little closer.

P.S Rocky/Stallone may have made Heavywieght around the 1900s, the smallest Champion was Tommy Burns a Canadian, real name Noah Brusso who stood at 5ft 7inches and weighed around 180pounds. He is famous for being the smallest and losing his title to the great Jack Johnson, the first black Heavyweight Champion of the World.

I think Rocky V was a disaster personally, although I can see what Stallone was trying to do by going back to how the Rocky character was in the beginning. What is the point of devalueing a character by killing him off? Tolkein did not exactly do this with Frodo, rather he ended his time in ME peacefully & happily, & probably getting his dream wish in sailing towards the undying lands with the Elves. With Rocky, he just ends up back to square one after fighting so hard to get where he was & then blowing it through Paulie signing a piece of paper on his behalf that ruined them financially - pathetic quite frankly. A good ending would have been for Rocky to have fought Gunn for the title again, so as to get back what he deserved & go out as a winner & back in the $$$s.