Film

Rocky IV

Name: Rocky IV
Genre: Drama, Action
Released: 1985
Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Carl Weathers, Talia Shire, Burt Young

Martial arts action

Rocky IV is pure 1980s Cold War spectacle wrapped around a boxing match. Stallone vs. Lundgren becomes America vs. the Soviet Union in a film that trades character depth for montages, propaganda, and the simple thrill of an underdog punching his way through geopolitical tension. It's earnest, absurd, and utterly of its moment—a time capsule that somehow still works as pure entertainment.

TMDb rating

3.5

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love sincere underdog-style sports sagas played as cartoon-bright melodrama, where a training montage can carry more feeling than the dialogue and the 1980s Cold War theatrics are part of the pleasure.

Skip it if you find earnest sincerity hard to take seriously, since the film leans on stiff, preachy speechifying and jingoistic politics that can feel more like a rally than a story.

What it asks of you: It runs barely ninety minutes, moves in brisk bursts between sparse dialogue and loud, bright set pieces, and asks you to accept its hokey sincerity without winking at it.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Rocky III1982

The template that works best. Stallone fighting Clubber Lang and Mr. T, with equally spectacular training montages and a tighter emotional core. This is Rocky at his most mythic before Cold War politics took over.

But If you've seen IV, III feels a little repetitive. The formula is already set, and it doesn't push quite as hard into spectacle.

First Blood1982

Another Stallone 1980s icon, but grounded and genuinely tense. Rambo is hunted in the Pacific Northwest with real stakes and genuine pathos beneath the action—shows what Stallone could do when the story wasn't about ideology.

But Rambo sequels got progressively more cartoonish, so you might expect action porn. This one's actually a character study with a tragic edge.

The Terminator1984

Same era, same muscle-bound certainty, but James Cameron makes the sci-fi premise genuinely scary. A relentless, efficient action film that proved spectacle didn't require geopolitical posturing to matter.

But It's lean and brutal rather than triumphalist—a very different mood. Some find it dated; the synth score and effects don't have IV's gaudy charm.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Rocky IV

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Red Dawn1984

Both films weaponize their era's Cold War mythology, but Red Dawn treats it as real threat while Rocky IV treats it as mythology worth celebrating. They're opposite sides of the same ideological coin.

The other side of Cold War American fantasy. Soviets invade Colorado, and teenagers become guerrilla fighters. Like Rocky IV, it's 1980s wish-fulfillment, but the paranoia is visceral and the violence actually hurts. Same era, same politics, completely different register.

But It's bleaker than IV and takes its invasion scenario seriously rather than making it a sports movie. The violence is presented as tragedy, not triumph. If you want the triumphalism, this will feel grim.

Commando1985

Arnold Schwarzenegger in the same year, same excess, same earnest commitment to the ridiculous. One man against an army—it's as dumb and fun as Rocky IV, just with more explosives and zero pretense.

But It knows exactly what it is. If you want your 1985 action film to believe it matters, this won't do it for you.

Rocky Balboa2006

Stallone returns to the character after 16 years and strips away everything but heart. A quiet, moving film about aging, loss, and the need to prove yourself one more time. Proves the franchise had genuine soul buried under the spectacle.

But It's the opposite of IV's bombast. If you're here for propaganda and Cold War fantasy, this introspection will feel like a letdown.

Creed2015

The Rocky legacy reimagined with real craft and craft behind it. Michael B. Jordan carries the torch beautifully, and the boxing feels visceral and earned. Respects the mythology while building something new.

But It's a serious film about identity and legacy, not a revenge fantasy. The tone is mature in ways IV deliberately avoids.

Rocky II1979

The sequel that proved lightning could strike twice. Another shot at Apollo, another training montage, but with genuine stakes this time—Adrian's pregnancy, Rocky's desperation, real consequences.

But Structurally it's almost identical to the first film. If you want novelty, you'll be disappointed by the repetition.

Over the Top1987

Stallone as a trucker who arm-wrestles for prize money. It's unhinged, sincere, and absolutely certain of its own logic. A spiritual cousin to IV's commitment to pure absurdity.

But It's genuinely one of the most bewildering films ever made. The logic doesn't hold; some people find it charmingly nuts, others just find it a slog.

Escape Plan2013

Stallone and Schwarzenegger finally in a film together. A simple action-thriller with charm and chemistry, the kind of movie that works because both leads commit fully to the scenario.

But It's competent without being memorable. It follows the action-movie playbook without trying to reinvent anything or give you a reason to remember it after.

Raging Bull1980

Both use boxing as their primary narrative engine, but Raging Bull sees boxing as a mirror for inner darkness. Rocky IV sees it as a stage for outer victory. They're the same sport told in opposite moral keys.

Scorsese's masterpiece about Jake LaMotta, a boxer destroying everyone around him including himself. It's the anti-Rocky—no montages, no triumph, just brutality and self-sabotage filmed in black and white with ferocious intimacy. Boxing as psychology, not patriotism.

But It's punishing and unpleasant. LaMotta is difficult and cruel. Scorsese gives you no comfort, and the black-and-white cinematography distances you from the viscera that makes boxing exciting.