Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger can look back and laugh now about their heated rivalry as they once sought to outdo each other in terms of box office muscle. Give Arnold the edge when it comes to Netflix docu-memoirs, as his eponymous three-part film easily tops “Sly,” a Stallone-centric rumination on his rise in “Rocky.”
Simply put, much of the documentary involves Stallone holding on to his life and career, with some noteworthy revelations — from serendipitous developments in the “Rocky” casting to Dolph Lundgren being hospitalized during the making of “Rocky IV” — but also a lot of selfish thoughts. And frankly tiring.
Stallone spoke candidly about living with an abusive father, how he began writing out of frustration with the violent roles he kept being offered, and how he turned down what was then a lot of money when making “Rocky” because, even though the studio loved that movie. script, they strongly opposed the idea of him starring in the film.
As old clips and current interviews remind us, “Rocky” changed Stallone’s life overnight, while relegating his brother Frank to the unenviable position of being known as little more than “Rocky’s brother.”
But it’s easy to forget that Stallone’s efforts to follow up on that early success resulted in flops like “FIST” and “Paradise Alley,” before he found a home in the franchise with the “Rocky” and “Rambo” films on rotation as they piled on. Consequences and profits.
Although Schwarzenegger has been interviewed alongside “Rocky” co-star Talia Shire, director and outspoken fan Quentin Tarantino, Henry Winkler (who co-starred with Stallone in “The Lords of Flatbush”), and director Thomas Zimny (“Springsteen on Broadway”). “) seems content to leave this basically “The World According to Sly.”
The goal is clearly to humanize his subject, presenting an older, wiser Stallone with perspective on his quest for theatrical triumphs. This includes his realization in later life of the importance of family (the documentary briefly touches on the tragic death of his son Sage in 2012) and the unresolved issues – primarily relating to his father – that found their way into his work. There’s even a short clip about his ill-advised snack food adventures, such as “Whoa! Whoa!” Or my mom will shoot,” which Schwarzenegger claims he tricked him into doing.
However, the constant focus on Stallone’s point of view prevents “Sly” from doing everything it should in the context of how his films fit into the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s, particularly the way Rambo and Rocky become Cold War foot soldiers. Simply put, Zimny has stepped back and allowed this to look like a licensed product.
Like “Arnold,” “Val,” “STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie” and any number of other nostalgic documentaries released in the past few years, “Sly” has value as a pop culture record, allowing the talent Influential in expressing herself. Their story is for those weaned from their work. Compared to the best of the lush genre, it’s more of a lightweight than a real contender.
Sly premieres November 3 on Netflix.
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