Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo

Craig / / 2011, Rambo

On Febraury 23, 2011, Culture Mob posted a throughtful review by Josh Katz of Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo.  Here’s a taste:

  • To call Sylvester Stallone’s 2008 action epic Rambo “frustratingly watchable” mislabels the matter somewhat—the film is compulsively watchable.  On an aesthetic level, it is a well-shot, well-cut, entertainingly-if-not-always-competently acted, and relentlessly paced piece of work.  I’ve seen it five times, and it goes down smooth every time.
  • I believe Sylvester Stallone wanted to make an important movie.  If you listen to the commentary track on the theatrical cut of Rambo or watch his Production Diaries on the extended cut (and I recommend giving these a whirl, just to get a sense of how eloquent and thoughtful Stallone can be), he seems committed to bringing the plight of the Karen genocide in Burma to light.
  • Stallone is a master of action movie filmmaking; that much is certain.  He instinctively understands where the camera needs to go to maximize visceral and spatial impact, how to split the balance of exposition and action, and how to vary action scenes while marrying them to logical narrative momentum.

You can read the whole piece here.

“Rocky” One of Oscar’s Biggest Upsets

Craig / / 2011, Honors, Rocky

On February 20, 2011, Barbara Hagen for Associated Content from Yahoo wrote a piece called 2011: Oscars Biggest Upsets.  In the piece Ms. Hagen looks at movies that seemed least likely to win the Best Picture Oscar, but did.  Here is what she has to say about “Rocky”:

  • Another example of how exceptional acting has influenced the outcome of the Academy Awards was in 1977 when “Rocky,” starring Sylvester Stallone took best picture. Moviefone.com says the performance of “Sly Stallone, [upstaged] the likes of Redford, Scorsese, and Lumet.” When I saw the movie myself, I could see the effort and the work that Stallone put into his character, and I would agree with Moviefone’s statement that Stallone outshined the other nominees for best picture.’

You can read the whole piece here.

Arnold Presents Sly’s Award

Craig / / 2011, Celebs, Honors

In this image provided by the International Cinematographers Guild, former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, left, presents actor Sylvester Stallone with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 48th Annual ICG Publicist Awards at The Beverly Hilton hotel Friday Feb. 25, 2011 in Beverly Hills, Calif. (AP Photo/ICG, Craig T. Mathew)

Rocky: All Time Best

Craig / / 2011, Honors, Rocky

On February 15, 2011, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post posted his choices for The Best Boxing Movies of All Time.  “Rocky” came in at #2 and here’s why…

  • 2. Rocky (1976) — The story of a Philadelphia club fighter who gets a once-in-a-lifetime shot to fight for the heavyweight title is an American classic. Some of the fight scenes look phony now, but Rocky still packs an emotional punch. It remains the ultimate Cinderella story.

    I caught a bit of “Rocky IV” on TV the other day and cringed at the scene where Sylvester Stallone makes peace with the Russian fans. It’s laughably, embarrassingly bad and cheesy. But even the sequels can’t tarnish the power of the original film.

You can read the whole list here.

Sly Poses

Craig / / 2011, Sly's Art

US Actor Sylvester Stallone, poses in front of one of his works during a press conference ahead of the exhibition ‘Sylvester Stallone. 35 Years of Painting’ in the Gmurzynska gallery in St. Moritz, Switzerland, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2011. The retrospective which shows 30 pieces painted by the action star lasts from February 18 to March 15, 2011.

(AP Photo/Keystone, Arno Balzarini)

Sly’s Swiss Art Show

Craig / / 2011, Sly's Art

US Actor Sylvester Stallone, poses in front of one of his works during a press conference ahead of the exhibition ‘Sylvester Stallone. 35 Years of Painting’ in the Gmurzynska gallery in St. Moritz, Switzerland, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2011. The retrospective which shows 30 pieces painted by the action star lasts from February 18 to March 15, 2011.

(AP Photo/Keystone, Arno Balzarin)