The film follows Graziano's impoverished childhood in New York's East Side slums, where he grows up in the streets, among hoodlums and gangs
His father (Harold Stone), a disappointed, third-rate ex-boxer, takes out his frustrations by drinking and by beating up Rocky; his mother (Eileen Heckart), is an unhappy, nervous wreck
As a result, Rocky becomes a brutal delinquent, spending most of his youth in reformatories and prisons Defiant, impulsive, striking out with his fists at anyone, he is seemingly incorrigible Even the Army can't tame himhe punches an officer, goes AWOL and is sentenced to hard laborbut in prison he learns that he can turn his hatred into a living: instead of fighting the world he can punch one man at a time in the ring He becomes a successful fighter, marries a devoted woman, Norma (Pier Angeli), and eventually makes it in the world, becoming middleweight champion
The story is in the tradition of a number of fifties movies about delinquency and rebellion Newman's portrayal of Rocky as an inarticulate teenager is similar to Brando's motorcyclist in "The Wild One," who also rebels against anything convenient and practical But unlike the Brando character, Rocky develops from a causeless rebel into someone with a clear goalto become a respected member of societyand this strong ambition allies him with many of Newman's subsequent characters
In "The Rack," Newman says he's "half my father's disappointmenthalf' my mother's hope," and the situation here is the same Alienated from his vicious father, he runs out "to be something," and strikes back at the world Their final confrontation, in which each recognizes his responsibility toward, and need for, the other, is a powerful moment; and the two reaching awkwardly for each other recalls the car scene in "The Rack."
Newman effectively portrays Rocky's sincere but clumsy attempts at tenderness with Norma; in subsequent films he would play many men who have difficulty being tender Rocky is made even more sympathetic by his genuine concern for a fellow hoodlum (Sal Mineo), whose idolatry of Rocky as a father-figure evokes the similar relationship between Mineo and James Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause."
As a result, Rocky becomes a brutal delinquent, spending most of his youth in reformatories and prisons Defiant, impulsive, striking out with his fists at anyone, he is seemingly incorrigible Even the Army can't tame himhe punches an officer, goes AWOL and is sentenced to hard laborbut in prison he learns that he can turn his hatred into a living: instead of fighting the world he can punch one man at a time in the ring He becomes a successful fighter, marries a devoted woman, Norma (Pier Angeli), and eventually makes it in the world, becoming middleweight champion
The story is in the tradition of a number of fifties movies about delinquency and rebellion Newman's portrayal of Rocky as an inarticulate teenager is similar to Brando's motorcyclist in "The Wild One," who also rebels against anything convenient and practical But unlike the Brando character, Rocky develops from a causeless rebel into someone with a clear goalto become a respected member of societyand this strong ambition allies him with many of Newman's subsequent characters
In "The Rack," Newman says he's "half my father's disappointmenthalf' my mother's hope," and the situation here is the same Alienated from his vicious father, he runs out "to be something," and strikes back at the world Their final confrontation, in which each recognizes his responsibility toward, and need for, the other, is a powerful moment; and the two reaching awkwardly for each other recalls the car scene in "The Rack."
Newman effectively portrays Rocky's sincere but clumsy attempts at tenderness with Norma; in subsequent films he would play many men who have difficulty being tender Rocky is made even more sympathetic by his genuine concern for a fellow hoodlum (Sal Mineo), whose idolatry of Rocky as a father-figure evokes the similar relationship between Mineo and James Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause."