I Play Rocky Review: This Syrupy But Loving Tribute To A Classic Boasts An Uncanny Lead Performance

Although not as often mentioned in the same breath as "Jaws" and "Star Wars," there was another movie released between 1975 and 1977 that became a cultural juggernaut and kickstarted its own long-running franchise. That would be 1976's "Rocky," directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. The film still holds up as a shining example of how a simple character-focused story can be as thrilling and resonant as an epic drama. As a sports film, "Rocky" has been massively influential, with movies ranging from "The Karate Kid," "Top Gun," and this year's "Beast" all adopting elements of its structure. For me personally, the film holds a particular significance. The character of Rocky Balboa gave me strength and inspiration to make it through various health issues in my past, including a liver transplant, and that helped lead to my current career as a film journalist.

On the eve of the 50th anniversary of "Rocky," director Peter Farrelly and writer Peter Gamble have made a movie about the making of "Rocky" entitled "I Play Rocky," referring to the mandate laid down by a then-unknown Stallone to star in the movie he penned. On paper, "I Play Rocky" is practically genetically engineered to appeal to me. Yet it's not an easy K.O.; for those of us "Rocky" fans who are already intimately familiar with the eventful behind the scenes story of the film, large chunks of "I Play Rocky" are rendered awkwardly redundant. That said, Farrelly and his incredible cast, led by the uncanny Anthony Ippolito as Stallone, manage to capture a little "Rocky" magic in the story's telling. They deliver a movie that is a paean to believing in yourself, allowing for that rare moment when an underdog comes out on top.

"I Play Rocky" smartly takes a cue from recent music biopics like "A Complete Unknown" and "Deliver Me From Nowhere," keeping a tight focus on a particular period in an artist's life. It begins in the early 1970s, where struggling actor Sylvester Stallone (Anthony Ippolito) is increasingly resorting to drastic measures to keep trying to make his dream a reality. He's taking parts in softcore films (yes, the movie chronicles the infamous "The Party at Kitty and Stud's"), sleeping on New York City streets with his beloved stray dog Butkus, taking grief from his problematic father, Frank (Matt Dillon), getting fired from a grueling fishery job and then getting hired to rip tickets at a small movie theater.

That last gig doesn't turn out to be all bad, however, as it introduces him to a woman, Sasha (AnnaSophia Robb), who raises his confidence. A few years into their marriage, the couple have moved to Los Angeles. Now parking cars at a restaurant, Stallone is inspired by Sasha to start writing his own material. After this manages to get him a meeting with producers Irwin Winkler (P.J. Byrne) and Robert Chartoff (Toby Kebbell), he wows them with "Rocky," only to insist on not selling the film to (fictional) studio boss Sandy (Tracy Letts) unless he's allowed to play the title role. 

Once Stallone eventually wins that fight, "I Play Rocky" launches into a dramatization of the making of "Rocky." While it's not, say, Truffaut's "Day For Night," it's an entertaining enough version of the real behind the scenes stories. Yet for folks already familiar with those, the recreations of scenes from "Rocky" feel more akin to fan service than vital drama in their own right.

The movie's first half, an underdog rags-to-sort-of-riches story, works incredibly well, as Peter Farrelly and company cleverly echo Rocky Balboa's arc inside this fictionalized version of Stallone. The trouble comes when "Rocky" manages to get made with Stallone in the lead, leaving the second half of the film a little bit too much of a fait accompli. Sure, "Rocky" was not a smooth shoot by any means, but it wasn't exactly "Fitzcarraldo," either. Then there's the issue of the lionization of Sylvester Stallone, which the film kinda has to indulge in order to work as a piece of drama. It's certainly not a hagiography like "Michael," but the "smol bean"-ification of the man can grate, especially when Farrelly deploys a score by composer Dave Palmer which utilizes and sits aside several new songs from singer-songwriter Andrew Bird. The music is lovely on its own, yet when applied to a couple of tender scenes between Stallone and Sasha, it feels jarringly treacly, especially compared to the period '70s needle drops which Farrelly makes great use of.

All of this is to say that "I Play Rocky," despite its charms and inspired moments, could fall apart. The reason it doesn't is primarily due to the incredible performance of Anthony Ippolito as Stallone. While Ippolito's vocal work, facial expressions and physical mannerisms are a pitch-perfect impression of the real Stallone, he's able to transcend all that and lend the character a soul that makes the magic trick complete. His combination of excellent character work with such an accurate recreation of the real-life actor makes Ippolito's performance stand as Exhibit A against Hollywood's lust for digital de-aging and necromancy. Actors can do this work so much better than AI. "I Play Rocky" is a must-see just for him.

Beyond Ippolito, Farrelly and casting director Rick Montgomery have put together a fabulous ensemble cast that makes "I Play Rocky" eminently enjoyable. There's a twinkle of exuberance seen in the eyes of everyone in the film, lifting it beyond pandering nostalgia. The movie's warm tone is undoubtedly thanks to Farrelly. The director may have branched out beyond his initial reputation as a director of broad comedies, but the film nonetheless highlights what a deft comedic touch he still has, one which is especially seen in a setpiece toward the middle of the movie that feels like classic screwball farce.

Where "I Play Rocky" really shines as a film is in the way it conflates the making of "Rocky" with the themes and character of that movie itself. This isn't even a co-opting of the "Rocky" character for Stallone's real-life story. Far from it, since Stallone always presented Balboa as a thinly-veiled alter ego for himself. Even if "I Play Rocky" glamorizes the true events behind the making of the film, it cleverly (and I believe appropriately) blurs the line between Stallone and Balboa to the point where the distinction is almost gone.

The "Rocky" films and the spinoff "Creed" series are great sports movies, character dramas, and the like. Yet their ultimate value lies in their ability to inspire others, whether it's merely for daily exercise or, in my case, to literally get back on my feet. In this way, "I Play Rocky" isn't just a story about how the film changed Sylvester Stallone's life. It's a movie about how movies have the power to change all our lives.

/Film Rating: 7 out of 10

"I Play Rocky" opens in theaters November 6, 2026.