Rocky Iv Apollo and Rocky We Cant Be Born Again
If He Dies, He Dies: The Glorious Abundance Of Christ Imagery In 'Rocky IV'
Photos: MGM/UA Entertainment Company, Shutterstock; Photo Illustration: Jaclyn Kessel
When watching the seminal '80s Cold War propaganda film Rocky IV, it's easy to get blindsided by the jingoism and totally miss some of the other heavy-handed imagery weighing down this flimsy yet gloriously audacious cash grab of a sequel. You don't have to be a lapsed Catholic from South Philly to catch all the subtle-as-an-uppercut-to-the-jaw nods to religious iconography and Christ-as-hero imagery in this movie, but damn if it doesn't help.
Of course, theological allegory tends to fall by the wayside when confronted with an ideological clash on the Luke Skywalker/Darth Vader scales of good and evil. In this case, that cartoonish pairing was meant to represent the real life geopolitical tensions between the United States and Soviet Union at the height of the nuclear arms race in the '80s. What Reagan infamously dubbed "The Evil Empire" was represented by Ivan Drago as played by Dolph Lundgren, a roided up amoral killing machine that was practically grown in a lab. Given the fact that Drago is the size of a modest skyscraper, and Sylvester Stallone's Rocky, the stand-in for American exceptionalism, is dwarfed by comparison, this sets up a hilariously disingenuous David and Goliath scenario where the country with the largest economy and military in human history is poised as a scrappy underdog and the country teetering on the edge of collapse presents the looming threat of invasion, colonization, or flat out nuclear annihilation. In one of these countries, it was standard practice to wait hours in line for bread, and that damn well wasn't us. However, the way Rocky IV presents history, we were all one boxing match away from eating borscht and calling each other "comrade."
As if the overt political themes weren't heavy handed enough, writer/director Sylvester Stallone then went and threw in a bunch of Rocky and Apollo as Christ-like martyr images to to bolster the false underdog narrative. In fairness, it's a common trope. How many times have you seen the hero of a movie throw his or her (but usually his) arms out in a giant T during a moment of great sacrifice? Hell, even a shoot-em up action film like Robocop serves as a Christ allegory with its themes of rebirth and resurrection.
Plus, it's not like Catholic images are anything new for this film series. Jesus' face is literally the opening shot of the first Rocky film before the camera pans down to him in a bout in a church.
But back to Rocky IV. Let's start out with Apollo Creed hanging out in his pool clearly not fearing electrocution as he watched a TV perched on a rickety little stand inches away from a large body of water. Apollo is submerged in water as he learns of Russian amateur fight Ivan Drago's designs to enter the professional boxing circuit in America. Just try and tell me Apollo Creed splashing around the pool with his dogs isn't some baptism imagery.
This brings us to our villain, Ivan Drago. The last name kind of sounds like dragon, right? And let's not forget that the color red symbolizes the Soviet Union. During his training scenes, Drago is often bathed in red light. In the ring, he wears red shorts. With that in mind, Twitter's @eastwes brought a Book of Revelations verse to my attention. Hannibal fans will appreciate this:
Revelation 12:3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems.
Drago? Dragon? The Great Red Dragon? A great red dragon that's supposed to bring about armageddon? A great muscular threat to freedom and liberty straight out of the red menace? The pieces fit!
Right before stepping into the exhibition match at Vegas, as James Brown is wrapping up his glittery fever dream of a performance, and Drago is trying not to go all King Kong over his first exposure to Western decadence, Apollo, while decked out in his star-spangled get-up tells Rocky "God, I feel born again."
BORN AGAIN!
However, that feeling doesn't last long. In what was supposed to be just a publicity stunt, Drago punches Apollo straight into the afterlife and Rocky is left holding his friend's corpse in a pose ripped from pietàs, aka the religious iconography depicting Mary holding the corpse of Jesus after he was taken down from the cross. Probably the most recognized example of this is the sculpture by Michelangelo although the pose is pretty omnipresent throughout Western art. Plus, we've seen it a million times in movies where the hero is holding the limp body of his murdered partner and is shouting a slow-motion "NOOOOOOO!!!" at the heavens, sometimes while shaking a fist.
Oh, and in case you ever forget that anyone in this movie going up against Drago and his flattop of doom embodies a Christlike penchant for martyrdom, this shot from Apollo's funeral serves as a reminder:
It's not subtle, but then again, nothing in this movie is.
The movie's first sacrificial lamb is out of the picture, leaving a guilt-ridden Rocky to avenge his friend's death, but mainly, to protect the glory of our great nation from falling to Communism. To do so, Rocky must vacate his title and fight Drago on his home turf. It's up to Rocky to pick the date of the fight and what date does he choose? December 25! Christmas! Of course!
However, before Rocky steps into the ring, he has to train. Like a good martyr, he does so on the harsh, unforgiving Russian terrain, without the conveniences and comforts of home.
Unlike Drago, who has more scientists tending to him than are currently on staff at MIT, Rocky's approach to training is decidedly low tech. It mainly involves running on slow, pulling plows, and lifting logs. Sometimes he carries the logs across his back, as if maintaining America's place as the world's premier superpower is his sole cross to bear.
During training, Rocky also grows a pretty sweet Jesus beard.
When our hero is finally ready to step into the ring with Drago, he lets us know by climbing an icy damn mountain and shouting his adversary's name into the void.
Once Rocky is atop the mountain with his arms in the air, does he not resemble the Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks Rio de Janeiro from the top of Corcovado mountain?
And just in case that didn't drive the point home, here's a closer shot from behind.
And with that divine righteousness, Rocky brought down the Soviet Union with his fists. When it comes to preserving the sanctity of the American way of life, Sylvester Stallone is the one true savior.
Amen.
Where to stream Rocky IV
Maggie Serota is a Staff Editor at Death and Taxes and a freelance writer who loves TV more than life itself.
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Source: https://decider.com/2015/09/29/rocky-iv-christ-imagery/
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