Bill Conti wrote the greatest instrumental of all-time. Not Beethoven. Not Mozart. But, Bill Conti.

It's the theme music to "Rocky," and if nothing else, it attracted me to the new Rocky movie, "Rocky Balboa." It's a film that's got buzz and is gaining attention with each person who watches it.

Because it's excellent.

Nothing will top the 1976 classic. However, the sixth film in the Rocky series is the perfect finale. Perfect. Lots of old faces. Lots of sentimentality. Lots of solid writing and, of course, there's Sly Stallone.

I told my brother that it's weird how bad Sly can be in some movies but how brilliant he is as Rocky Balboa. It's like he is that guy from South Philly. And, I think one of the reasons people love Rocky so much is because modern sports features nobody like the guy.

Not in boxing, for sure. Football, maybe?

I'll admit that I've never seen Rocky II, III, IV or V. To me, nothing was going to come close to the original. So, why did I decide to spend $6.25 on "Rocky Balboa"?

Simple. Most reviewers said it was the Rocky flick that came the closest to capturing the heart and talent of the original. So, I decided to see for myself.

I'm not going to give a thing away here. All I'll say is that it was understated, classy, well-done and probably the second best in the series because it came within a right-hook of being as good as the original.

For my taste, there was a bit too much ESPN and HBO involvement in the movie. There was a cameo from Mike Tyson. There were the boxing reporters and experts and trainers. Bert Sugar made an appearance.

That's what all sports movies do, nowadays.

However, the vast, vast majority of the movie centered on Rocky dealing with the death of his wife. It dealt with Rocky's loyalty to old friends and to this at times uncomfortable reverence Philadelphians have toward him. It dealt with Rocky's relationship with his son. It dealt with Rocky's understanding that the combination of age and inertia is deadly.

What is making reviewers love this movie is that it was more about HIM than it was merely the boxing. There is seemingly no shot that Rocky could ever be the champ again (at least long-term), but by God, he's not going to just sit back and rot. Not yet.

The boxing sequences, I thought, were just fine. It looked a little weird to see Stallone out there with Antonio Tarver. However, hell, George Foreman got old and became a champ, so why not Balboa?

It's like this movie knew that Rocky owed a bit back to the movie fans who hold the original Best Picture winner in such high reverence because this one was a movie fan's movie. It might not be a boxing fan's movie. I dunno. However, anybody who holds the original in high respect ought to give this one a shot. It might not be the second-coming of Godfather II, but it ain't half-bad either.

Bottom line is that if you liked the Rocky series at all, you will love this movie. Love it. It comes as close to capturing the heart of the original without just reproducing it as possible. If they'll just end the series here, it will have been the perfect finale.

Grade: A