Keeping with the Rocky/Creed discussions from our recent article, let’s delve into a scintillating conversation about director’s cuts.

You see, a director’s cut is the aspiration of what the director strove for in delivering their product, depicting the central message and story as intended onscreen. In a somewhat off-putting notion, they can be bizarre beasts to come across, as sometimes they have a drastically different tone or characterization attached to them from what was distributed in the multiplex. However, they are intended to enhance or improve the finished product. Some of the more welcoming director’s cuts include Aliens, Daredevil (2003), Blade Runner, and Once Upon a Time in America. We must concede that Zack Snyder deserves a nod, as his intended cut of the original Justice League, which was preposterously bad (thanks in no small part to Joss Whedon’s inconsistent, dodgy approach), gains the ebullience and respect once he returned to complete the project in 2021. This version is balanced yet more nuanced, considering and exploring further consequences beyond the typical “run-of-the-mill” superhero film.

However, not all director’s cuts can fit the bill, and unfortunately, there’s little justification provided for why Sylvester Stallone needed to create a director’s cut of one of his most infamous films, Rocky IV. Now, we get it: the fourth installment in the boxing series is anything but perfect, as it is almost an aberration of sorts. It’s a gratuitous film, one beholden to endless montages while trying to preach to its time of the Cold War themes (to lukewarm results) and bland storytelling (a formulaic retread of its three predecessors). However, there’s a peculiar charm inherent in its existence, perhaps due in no small part to its status as a primitive tale of revenge and guilt, while incorporating some excellent soundtracks and a thrilling David vs. Goliath fight to top it off.

The director’s cut for Rocky IV…doesn’t have enough to warrant its existence.

First things first, the pacing for this feature is terribly atrocious. Some of the lines that were added and the original scenes cut off became very grating to follow. One example is Rocky and Apollo’s discussion where they rewatch their second televised bout. In the original, Rocky is asking a simple question: Is Apollo fighting for himself or fighting for his country with this foreigner stampeding in? In the director’s cut, the same question is asked, and yet, the answer from Apollo is very rapid and contrived due to some questionable editing choices. You see, there’s no sense of breathing room, especially when you cut out the exuberance and chemistry between the two, as conveyed in the dialogue. Would you rather get dialogue between two former opponents now turned friends that has some weight to it, or rush through it to move on to the next scenes?

Another scene that is flummoxing to get through is when Adrian meets with Rocky late at night to ask why he’s committing “suicide” to fight this goliath in Russia after watching his friend get bludgeoned to death. In the new cut, some of the framing of Rocky’s expressions in response to Adrian’s shouting comments becomes perplexing to follow, like a distorted child after being yelled at by parents. And then Rocky’s dialogue is vastly cut off when she shouts that he can’t win, and he says, “I don’t know,” before leaving the house. Huh? Where’s the spiel where Rocky (in the original cut) states that maybe he can’t win, but he’s got to take everything, and in order to beat Rocky, Drago has to have the guts to stand in front of him and take his heart?

There’s no sense of ebb and flow in the new cut, frustrating the direction that was proposed for more of a “warrior vs. warrior bout.” In all practicality, we don’t get much more info from Drago about him being a warrior other than “he didn’t come to lose” or why he wants to be the new superior face of boxing. The added scenes and angles in the montages don’t bring in further momentum, and cutting out much of the scenes from the original surprisingly hurts the characters/screen time for the supporting cast. Yes, the color grading (which consequently explains the new aspect ratio), the realistic punches, and some proper developments as to why Creed wants to come out of retirement to face Drago are great, but they are only silver linings in a cut that’s hampering its very existence.

So, why didn’t Stallone simply make a director’s cut for Rocky V, the renowned worst installment of the franchise? That would’ve been the superior choice. Much like we discussed earlier regarding some of the core problems with the fifth installment, we also made some insightful suggestions that could’ve alleviated many of the harsher issues in the final product. Perhaps some added scenes could show tension between Rocky and his family for catering to this Tommy protege, or maybe we get more backstory on how and why Tommy admired Rocky growing up (instead of randomly appearing thirty minutes into the film). Maybe Tommy and Rocky Jr. interact more, building a budding relationship.

But it seems that no one, including Stallone, wants to get involved in that chapter again. Then again, the ends do not justify the means, and this director’s cut of Rocky IV was somewhat superfluous. Yes, someone can go back and rewatch to compare the two and see which is better, but it might not be a compelling argument: which one made you stand up from your seat back in the day?