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Saturday, September 16, 2023

TIFF 23: SLY - From Underdog to Hollywood Legend

 

In 1985 Sylvester Stallone had two of the top three highest worldwide grossing movies. Both sequels. Rocky IV and Rambo First Blood Part II. That is absolutely remarkable. As an actor Stallone has been ubiquitous for decades. What do we really know about Stallone the person behind the action movie icons. This is what Thom Zimny sets out to do in his documentary aptly titled, Sly

In the opening title sequence we see glimpses of Stallone's house. As ubiquitous as he is in movies and the popular culture, so to is his own image in his house. From action figures, to posters to statutes. We see the Academy Awards, snippets of the art collection, the scripts, the view from the Hollywood Hills. 

"It is really easy to become complacent." Starts of Sylvester says in the opening sequence of the documentary. He is in the midst of packing up his mansion to move back East to break up the feelings of dissatisfaction with the state of his current life. 

One of my favorite early sequences is of Stallone going back to Hell's Kitchen to reminisce about his New York City upbringing. Also when he is home watching movies and talking about the role models he found in film, James Cagney, especially Steve Reeves of Hercules fame.

Sly's childhood was transient and nomadic. He went throw thirteen schools in twelve years. It was the stage where he found home. He landed a role in Arthur Miller's Death of Salesman. A teacher told him he should pursue acting as career. Sly cites this as a moment that changed his life. Back in New York he was homeless and struggling to get any kind of role. The only thing he could get was off off Broadway. He started getting roles as thugs. 

Stallone started writing his own screenplays with John Herzfeld. Another life changing decision. Write out his frustrations and perhaps get somewhere. Every weekend he and Herzfeld started writing, writing, writing. He would break into to movie theaters all over the city to see films. 

I have never heard of the film Horses prior to this documentary. The premise of the movie now has me seeking this out immediately. A Cowboy and an Indian return from their graves a hundred years after they were hung. The cowboy's father was also reincarnated as a the sheriff he was to track them down. 

As far as documentaries go there is nothing about the technique or the choices on how to film the subject and the use of photographs and other visual media that is groundbreaking or innovative. As a viewer you are either a fan of Sylvester Stallone or you are not. That determines how much or how little you will gain from Sly and how much you will be entertained.

As I watched this documentary one of the most compelling aspects was sitting in a car, or walking down a sidewalk or sitting down and listening to Sylvester Stallone talk, reminisce and ponder his life. That is one of the paramount things we learn about Stallone in this documentary is how compelling, fascinating and - still to this day - we as an audience are drawn to him.

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