Category: Honors

More Praise for Sly, “Rocky” & “Rocky III”

Craig / / 2005, Honors, Rocky, Rocky 3

The November 25th issue of Entertainment Weekly contains an article rating the top 30 sports movie dvds and stars.

Sly Stallone, Rocky and Rocky III all earned top spots.

Here’s what they had to say:

4. Rocky [PG, 119 mins., 1976; MGM]
HERE’S WHY: Hard enough to take a 15-round beating from Apollo Creed [Carl Weathers], soft enough to give Adrian [Talia Shire] the bed the night before the big fight, the Philly southpaw is more character than most. With one shot to prove he’s not just another bum from the hood, Sylvester Stallone faces the champ and does the unthinkable, by Hollywood standards: He loses. But wins our hearts by going the distance [and remembering Adrian’s hat].
DID YOU KNOW? The Italian Stallion’s blow-by-blow of the bout weighed in at 32 pages. EXTRAS The 2001 special edition features commentaries detailing every decision made in the making of this Best Picture.
FINAL SCORE:  We’d all like to eat lightning and crap thunder for Mickey [Burgess Meredith]. – Mandi Bierly

24. Rocky III [PG, 100 mins., 1982; MGM]
HERE’S WHY: Because it perfected the formula. Why have one nigh-invulnerable black heavyweight when you can have two? Why have one viscerally adrenalized fight when you can have three? The story of the Italian Stallion’s defeat at the hands of and subsequent victory over Clubber Lang – the only actually scary performance of Mr. T’s career – packs all the inspirational triumph you look for in a Rocky flick [and a touch of casual racism that you don’t], but Rocky III‘s true gift to sports cinema is the anatomically fetishized, borderline homoerotic training sequence. That, and “The Eye of the Tiger.”
EXTRAS:  We pity the DVD fools who included nothing but a measly trailer. If we find them, our prediction for the encounter? Pain.
FINAL SCORE: Twenty notches below the first Rocky on our list, but the most fun installment in the whole series. – Marc Bernardin

SYLVESTER STALLONE Rocky [1976] Rocky Balboa may be an outclassed palooka, but he has the heart of a champ, a virtue that Stallone portrays so convincingly that he transformed his Philly underdog into an indellible and enduring pop-culture hero. [See #4]

– The pic above is different than the one with the article. – Craig

“Victory” is #1

Craig / / 2005, Honors, Victory

The soccer website Football.co.uk recently conducted a poll in which 4000 soccer fans picked their favorite soccer movie of all time.

As you probably guessed, Victory starring Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, and Pele scored the top spot.

The top 10 soccer movies are:

1. Victory (1981)
2. Bend It Like Beckham (2002)
3. Fever Pitch (1997)
4. When Saturday Comes (1996)
5. Gregory’s Girl (1981)
6. Mike Bassett: England Manager (2001)
7. Mean Machine (2001)
8. The Football Factory (2004)
9. ID (1995)
10. Goal! (2005)

– Craig

Sly Wins Lifetime Achievement Award

Craig / / 2005, Celebs, Honors

Sly is going to be honored with a lifetime achivement award by the Taurus World Stunt Awards Foundation. Here’s part of the press release:

Sylvester Stallone, who rose to notoriety in 1976 when he was nominated for two Golden Globes and two Oscars (for Writing/ Screenplay and for Best Actor) of the now classic, “Rocky,” will receive the Taurus Lifetime Achievement Award for an Action Star.”Stallone has been a dynamic driving force in action films creating some extremely memorable characters and moments. The stunt community is excited to present him with this honorary award for his achievement as an action film star,” stated TWSA Executive Producer, Mitch Geller.

“On top of that, Stallone fully understands the difficulty and complexity of stunt work and through his films he has endowed the stunt community with a wealth of job opportunities.”

The 2005 Taurus World Stunt Awards will be hosted by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, with such notables as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dennis Hopper, Kiefer Sutherland, Rosario Dawson, Paul Walker, Daryl Hannah, Robert Rodriguez, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Michelle Rodriguez, George Eads, Gary Dourdan, Eric Szmanda, Hulk Hogan, Mr T and Lee Majors presenting awards as well. In addition, it was announced earlier this week that Quentin Tarantino will be honored with the Action Director of the Year Award for his “Kill Bill” series. The Taurus World Stunt Awards is the only show completely devoted to recognizing these behind-the-scenes heroes and their death-defying work. Winning the ‘Taurus’ has proven to be the most prestigious honor a stunt professional can take home.

The 5th Annual Taurus World Stunt Awards is set to be held this Sunday, September 25th at Paramount Pictures. The Taurus World Stunt Awards telecast, which will air domestically Thursday, October 13, 2005 on E! Entertainment Television from 8-10 PM ET/PT. Internationally, the show airs in over 100 countries reaching nearly a billion viewers.

– Craig

“Rocky” Still the Standard!

Craig / / 2005, Honors, Rocky
Now that “Cinderella Man” is out and doing well, writers are creating their lists of the best boxing  movies ever. I’m happy to say that “Rocky” is always listed and usually at the top.

Joe Holleman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch ranks “Rocky” at #2 and says, “Sylvester Stallone  reinvented the underdog film with this Best Picture Oscar winner.”

Louis B. Hobson of the Winnipeg Sun writes: Stallone deserves kudos for writing and starring in a simple, time-honoured story told with style, heart and passion. Stallone made Rocky Balboa a symbol of the extraordinary things ordinary people can achieve if they have a dream and the passion to pursue it.

Nearly 30 years later, “Rocky” is still the standard! – Craig

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Sly Set to Receive CineVegas and Brenden Theaters Star Award

Craig / / 2005, Celebs, Honors

Sly Stallone along with Laurence Fishburne,Christina Ricci, Helen Mirren, and Taylor Hackford will be honored at the eighth annual CineVegas Film Festival. The festival will be held from June 9th -17th in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Sly is set to receive the the CineVegas and Brenden Theaters Star award. I’ll post more information as the dates near in case any SZoners want to attend.

Mr. Fishburne and Ms. Ricci will receive the “Half-Life” awards for their carrer achievements. Ms. Mirren is up for the Marquee Award for Lifetime Achievementand Mr. Hackford will receive the Vanguard Director Award.

– Craig

Rocky: One of the All Time Best

Craig / / 2004, Honors, Rocky

Dennis O’Connell’s Entertainment Column for October 15, 2004 at AskMen.com lists the Top Ten All Time Best Movie Characters. And you just know that Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky made the list. Coming in at #9, here is what was said:9. Rocky

Rocky Balboa has delivered some cheesy speeches in his lifetime (anyone remember Rocky IV, where Balboa single-handedly melted the Cold War?). Regardless, no one saw Rocky for its intricate plots or Oscar worthy acting. They did, however, watch the Rocky series for the macho and epic battles between man and his enemy. Rocky made you want to be a boxer, executed flawlessly by all-around class act, Sylvester Stallone.
– Craig

Loaded Legends

Craig / / 2004, Honors

The September 2004 issue of the men’s magazine LOADED: ‘The Nude Issue,’ has a page dedicated to Sly Stallone. It’s called…

LOADED LEGENDS
Every month we celebrate mankind’s crème dela menthe, the fellas who’ve truly made a difference.
No. 2 SYLVESTER STALLONE

Some excerpts…

‘ What everyone does acknowledge, however, is Stallone’s masterfully realistic performance as the dim– witted slugger.’

‘Sly is a hero for the people no matter what kind of justice he’s administering.’

Peace,
Jazz
http://www.theartofjazzman.com

Thanks, Jazz! – Craig

Sly Gets Physical

Craig / / 2004, Honors

Ernest “Jazzman” Resendes checks in with info that Sly is on the cover and a feature story story in the September 2004 issue of Physical.

Jazz sent in the mag cover pic as well as these excerpts:

Stallone is proud of an honor he received from bodybuilding pioneer Joe Weider for his “Rambo II” physique. Hanging on the wall in Sly’s opulent mansion is a modest plaque from Weider that proclaims Stallone’s physique from that movie as the best cinematic body of the ‘ 80s. And, remember, Weider is the guy who brought Arnold over from Austria. “I was impressed that he would think of me so highly in the bodybuilding world,” says Stallone.
“My first few screenplays were horrible, ” he says. ” But at least I got through them. That’s the lesson. You fail your first five times, but the mere fact that you completed the journey, that’s the win. You know that you can sit at a desk, whether it’s two weeks or six months. You know you can do it. ”

Among the choice pieces hanging on the actor’s walls is one by the late British contemporary master Francis Bacon, with the personal inscription by the artist to Stallone –a remarkable tribute.

This is an era when dimpled, doe-eyed pipsqueaks from boy bands can become generation’s sex symbols. Is it any wonder why so many lament: ” Where have all the real men gone?” Then in walks Sylvester Stallone and order is restored.

Peace,
Jazz
http://www.theartofjazzman.com
Thanks, Jazz! – Craig