Category: Staying Alive

Does “Staying Alive” Pass The Test of Time

Craig / / 2013, Staying Alive


On March 13, 2013, William Bibbiani at CraveOnline, in his Test of Time column looks at Staying Alive.  Here are some tidbits…

  • Time has not been kind to Staying Alive’s reputation. It ranks high on nearly every list of “The Worst Sequels Ever Made.” Entertainment Weekly even gave it the #1 spot, above Batman & Robin.
  • Staying Alive isn’t as bad as we all remember. It’s not a classic, and it certainly lacks the cohesion, cool and barely post-pubescent passion of Saturday Night Fever, but it’s a surprisingly soulful examination of young manhood, told from the perspective of a filmmaker who, like Tony Manero, struggled en route to stardom in the heart of New York City. Staying Alive feels like a highly personal film and, like most personal films, it’s a jumble of hit-or-miss ideas.
  • …it’s easy to grow fond of Sylvester Stallone’s attempt to turn a Saturday Night Fever sequel – a doomed proposition if ever there was one – into something personal and heartfelt.
  • Does Staying Alive pass The Test of Time? Better than you’d think. It’s a misfire, but at least it grazed the target. It’s nowhere near the quality of The Godfather Part II or Spider-Man 2 or any other sequel that arguably surpassed the original, but it continues the emotional arc of the hero and it doesn’t just regurgitate the first film’s plot. It doesn’t feel like a soulless studio cash-in. In that respect, Staying Alive is at least a hell of a lot better than The Hangover Part II or Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. No, Staying Alive is not the worst sequel ever made. In fact, it’s halfway decent.


The Worst Music Movie Is… Not Rhinestone!

Craig / / 2011, Rhinestone, Staying Alive

On September 16, 2011, The Huston Press posted a piece by John Seaborn Gray titled, The Five Worst Music Movies Ever.  Not surprisingly, Rhinestone made the list.  Surprisinly, it came in at #5. 

According to this list Rhinestone is better than The Jazz Singer starring Neil Diamond, Glitter starring Mariah Carey and  Cool as Ice starring Vanilla Ice.  Is that a backhanded compliment to Rhinestone since Sly isn’t a singer and Neil Diamond, Mariah Carey and Vanilla Ice are.  Who knows?

What’s crazy is that the worst “music movie” on the list is Staying Alive. C’mon.  There’s no way that Staying Alive should be considered the worst.  Heck, I don’t even think it should make the list. 

So Sly dodges the bullet of worst music movie with Rhinestone and still comes in at #1 worst with Staying Alive.  That’s the name of that tune… and I ain’t singing along.

 

Stallone in Hollywood Animal

Craig / / 2004, Celebs, FIST, Staying Alive

Joe Eszterhas was, at one time, the highest paid screenwriter in Hollywood. He was also the first screenwriter to make the 100 Most Powerful People in Hollywood list.

Eszterhas’ first movie was F.I.S.T. which starred Sly Stallone. Before the movie was released Eszterhas and Sly had a few very public squabbles, although they did ultimately patch things up.

Here’s how the New York Post described it:

But when he was starting out, he and Stallone clashed after Robert De Niro wavered on playing the role of the Jimmy Hoffa-like character in “F.I.S.T.”  Stallone played the part.
Stallone claimed he was writing the script, not Eszterhas, and he fought him and the director, Norman Jewison, over Eszterhas’s plot, which called for the union leader to be fatally shot.

“The public will not accept me dying,” he told Jewison.

“We’re not making Rocky,” the director replied. “Without your dying, there is no ending to the movie.”

“I’m a star,” Stallone countered.

“You’re an actor,” Jewison replied.

They compromised on shooting the scene as written – but only once.

Stallone later told Eszterhas how much he liked his work on “Jagged Edge,” and said that since “I owe you one,” he wanted to hire him for $500,000 for a quick rewrite.  Stallone explained that he was directing “Staying Alive,” a sequel to “Saturday Night Fever,” and was halfway through the shooting but was having disagreements with John Travolta about the script.

Eszterhas agreed to meet with the two men in Stallone’s trailer. Travolta wanted to stress the “vulnerability” of his character, Tony Manero, but Stallone preferred to the put the stress on his being “cool.”

Eszterhas said he couldn’t help them.

“Sure you can,” Stallone said and offered to put him up in a hotel suite.

“Sly, you f – – – – d me once on ‘F.I.S.T.’ ” Eszterhas recalled saying. “What do you want to f – – – me again for, now that we’re friends?”

Travolta began to laugh, and so did Stallone, and Eszterhas left them to solve the problem
of Tony Manero’s personality on their own.

For the full article click HERE.

To order Hollywood Animal by Joe Eszterhas [and help support the SZ] click HERE.

– Craig Zablo

Sly in US Mag

Craig / / 2002, Celebs, Staying Alive

The October 14-21, 2002, issue of US Weekly features a two page spread entitled “Tuesday Night Fever” which looks at Paramount‘s party for the dvd releases of “Saturday Night Fever,” “Grease,” Urban Cowboy,” “Staying Alive,” “Flashdance,” and “Footloose.” The article takes a look at what some of the “key” players were doing then and now.

– Craig Zablo [October 5, 2002]