My wife and I saw "Rocky Balboa" last night, and it was everything I'd hoped it would be. It was more than that, actually.

The movie reminded me of why people like the Rocky character so much. He's a genuinely good guy with a good heart. Sylvester Stallone focused on that aspect of the character and gave him a very fitting and touching farewell.

There are enough callbacks to the previous movies that "Rocky" loyalists will have a lot of great nostalgic moments, but even if you're a newbie to the franchise, I doubt you'd be lost.

The movie has its share of cheesy stuff, but Stallone had the sense to reign those moments in with some very realistic dialogue.

Also, for the first time in a long time, the audience in the movie theater gave the movie a round of applause as the credits rolled. Good feeling.

3 1/2 out of 4 stars from me. Dr. Masse, you're gonna be very pleased...