It’s a general rule to avoid pointing out when something could have been better, and while Rocky III isn’t quite as impactful as the first two films in that series—a real one-two punch—it remains a strong part of the story. Compared to This Is the Night, though, it feels like Citizen Kane. This film seems like it was written and directed by someone who had taken a serious blow to the head, possibly Rocky Balboa himself. Dr. Johnson once declared puns as the most basic form of humor, but this movie dips even lower with its reliance on jokes in retrospect. For instance, in 1982, Anthony Dedea (Lucius Hoyos), the young main character, refers to Rocky III as "The end of the trilogy, the last Rocky movie." The film seems to find that amusing! It’s funny because they continued making movies about Ricky. Anthony and his two companions—the lead in every teen comedy always has exactly two sidekicks—are teased for swimming with their shirts on. I think it's one of those rare times when the teasing is completely justified, maybe even encouraged. Either take off your shirt or stay out of the pool; it’s a pretty simple concept. Vincent (Frank Grillo), Anthony’s father, lost his restaurant and has to ask for money from Frank Larocca (Bobby Cannavale), who wants to be a mobster. Anthony views this as “shameful” and considers his father a "coward." What a hypocrite. He should start lecturing people about shame and cowardice once he takes off his shirt at the pool like everyone else; meanwhile, as Vincent tells him, “shut up when you speak.” Anthony becomes “Public Enemy Number One,” along with his friends, after being wrongly accused of questioning Rocky Balboa’s masculinity. I'm a fan of Rocky myself, but has the Italian Stallion really inspired that level of devotion, like we see here? It’s the kind of obsession usually reserved for Star Wars or Lord of the Rings. There’s also a subplot involving Marie (Naomi Watts) and Christian (Jonah Hauer-King), Anthony's mother and older brother, who form an emotional connection when she discovers he likes to dress in women's clothing. The issue isn't whether this is queerbaiting or not, but that it drags out a movie that’s already over 100 minutes long. It’s hard to believe that just two decades ago Watts was in Mulholland Drive, and now she’s been given roles that should have been cut to shorten the film. All things considered, while it might circle back to Rocky III, This Is the Night lacks both the Eye of the Tiger and its signature song.

Source on TMDB