Sly Stallone’s Most Underrated Acting Scenes

Tom at TV Over Mind came up with a list of Five Underrated Acting Scenes from Sylvester Stallone.  While the list or the presentation isn’t the best. (The used the photo above for heading <I added the text for my post> and it isn’t their number one choice.  Also some of the example that they picked were not the best choices for Sly most underrated acting scenes.  With that said, using just his top five, I’ll rank those same picks and then give you what I think are some much better choices.

Tom at TVOM

Craig

5. Talking to Adonis in Creed II during the fight

5. The final fight in Rocky V: Since this is more of a physical scene than an “acting” scene I rated it lower.

4. The final fight in Rocky V

4. The atrium scene in Oscar: Oscar is underrated. Sly’s performance is good but there are many scenes in other movies that should have made the grade.

3. The atrium scene in Oscar

3. Talking to Adonis in Creed II during the fight: Sly has better scenes in Creed II than this one.

2. PTSD scene in Rambo: First Blood

2. The Rocky Balboa speech: This is a good choice and it became so popular I can see why Tom listed it in his first spot.

1. The Rocky Balboa speech

1. PTSD scene in Rambo: First Blood: Sly gives a classic performance and shows that Rambo isn’t all blood and guts.

Other scenes that should have made the cut:

Rocky: So many to choose, but since I am going to limit it to one from each additional film, I’ll go with the scene where Rocky tells Adrian if he is just standing when the final bell sounds…

FIST: Again many to choose from, but this time I’ll go with the scene where Sly is talking to the men about the trucker that was hurt and although the company won’t take care of him., their union will.

Rocky III: The scene on the beach with Talia Shire where she asks Rocky what he’s afraid of and he answers…

Cop Land: So many great scenes… For me it is a toss up between Sly’s scene with Annabella Sciorra or his scene with DeNiro.

Get Carter: Sly’s rooftop scene with Rachel Leigh Cook is one of his best.

Rocky Balboa: Any scene where he is talking about Adrian.

Creed: The scene in the locker room when Rocky explains to Creed why he isn’t going to get treatment for his cancer.  One of Sly’s all-time best scenes.

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week:

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week:

“Rocky” Poster and Character Portraits by Leonardo Paciarotti!

Leonardo Paciarotti is a talented illustrator / comic book artist from Valencia, Spain.  Paciarotti created the Rocky poster above and the character pics below.  Paciarotti must be a true fan of the Rocky universe because these aren’t the only Rocky related pieces he created.  You can click on the images below to see them biggie-size and then click over to Leonardo Paciarotti’s Instagram or ArtStation pages to see more of his wonderful art!

Thanks to Brian Stross for the heads-up.

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week:

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week:

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week:

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week

Sly and the Family Stallone News for the Week:

Sly Stallone Directed Films, Ranked

Jake Dee at ScreenRant looked at the IMDb to come up with Every Movie Sylvester Stallone Has Directed, Ranked.  I decided to compare the IMDb rankings with my own.  After the chart are my thoughts…

Jake Dee (ScreenRant)

Zablo

1. Rocky II

1. Rocky Balboa

2. Rocky Balboa

2. Rocky III

3. Rambo

3. Rambo

4. Rocky IV

4. Paradise Alley

5. Rocky III

5. The Expendables

6. The Expendables

6. Rocky II

7. Paradise Alley

7. Rocky IV

8. Staying Alive

8. Staying Alive

Dee and I agreed on two rankings: #3 – Rambo and #8 – Staying Alive.

I placed Rocky Balboa in the #1 spot for a few reasons. Sly did a wonderful job of capturing the feel of the first movie, but making sure that it also captured how things had changed with the passing of time. I also have a special place for Rocky Balboa because it was such a longshot to be made and it gave the series a wonderful bookend closing.

Rocky III made the #2 spot because Sly was able to take the classic Rocky format (from 1 and 2) and modernize it. It was a dangerous move (Rocky loses, Mickey dies, new music, fast pace, add pro-wrestling) but it worked.

Rambo is #3. Sly placed Rambo with a team and made the battle scenes more graphic. Many thought an older Rambo wouldn’t work, but Sly showed that it would not only work but be one of the best films in the Rambo series.

Paradise Alley comes in at #4. Paradise Alley doesn’t get enough love. Sly’s directorial debut and he chooses a period piece that walks the fine line between drama and comedy. I’m a huge Paradise Alley fan.

#5 is The Expendables. Don’t call it a comeback. What a cool idea. Sly brings together fan favorite action stars and he makes it work not only for this film, but also a new movie series.

Rocky 2 is #6. Sly taking over the directing chores from the man who won the Oscar for directing Rocky. It was a big step, but Sly didn’t falter. Rocky II is a worthy follow-up.

Rocky IV comes in at #7. I like the idea for Rocky IV but it falters just a bit with the Miami Vice quick-cut editing to music. I have grown to enjoy Rocky IV more over time and especially with the way it sets up Creed.

The final spot goes to Stayin’ Alive. I enjoyed this film, but one of Sly’s movies has to come in at #8. Taking on this movie was a huge challenge and props to Sly for stepping up.