Sly: Stallone par Stallone

There is a three-part series for Arnold Schwarzenegger and only one part for Sylvester Stallone. It's kind of a shame, especially since his life is at least as exciting, if not the most exciting. In the '70s, Sylvester Stallone was doing poorly, very poorly. And to see that once is incredible. An honorable man, with an honorable story. An intimate look, albeit explained in a somewhat monotonous way. It feels like the same people always have their say when they talk about Stallone or think they have something to say about him. A straightforward film about a person who has so much more to say than this film. All in all, a nice overview but not worthy of a person like Stallone.

This documentary's looking at the life of Sylvester Stallone is not much more than an extended interview with a few contributions from contemporaries. It does though in the end give you a pretty clear insight into the mind of the man, who to me always seemed to want to come back to his familiar franchises too often, rather than take on something new. I found it interesting then that he largely seems to accept this point as he often found himself uncomfortable making films that were to a large degree outside his control and felt more at home with Rocky and Rambo as can be seen by the quite extraordinary array of rather self indulgent memorabilia in his home. It was also interesting that outside the franchises he controlled, in nearly all cases, he seemed to have needed to change every script, character or ending to suit his personal vision on what the film should say.

The man himself though seems to have been influenced, understandably, by a very rough childhood, controlled by a deeply unpleasant and seemingly jealous father who treated his children appallingly. That said it seems to have toughened and shaped Stallone who ultimately now seems a pleasant person comfortable with life and the most important things in it. In the end you simply have to admire how this guy has dragged himself from nothing and built himself into such an American icon.

The articulate man behind Rambo and Rocky still suffers the wound of his father's abuse. Yet he has beaten that wound by having a fabulous career. This documentary just made me want to give Stallone a hug and tell him -'life is STILL GOOD, Stop and smell the roses!' In a capacity the dogged sadness about his failures seems theatrical too. Is he acting through his own biopic? Probably. I wanna send him to go watch Nyad, another flick on Netflix that talks to how life is really NOT over for people on their later years. It feels like the 'antidote' to Stallone moping. Where is his therapist? I love Sly but depression present here is just a disservice to his contributions.

A long-serving superstar that has lived a colorful life full of ups and downs, mostly in the public eye, getting a raw and open insight into the life and times of iconic Hollywood performer Sylvester Stallone is an appealing proposition but despite having the backing of its subject matter, director Thom Zimny's documentary feature released via Netflix's streaming platform doesn't ever feel like the quintessential examination of Stallone's life and despite being watchable throughout, feels like a missed opportunity for a deeper dive into a divisive figure that has stood the test of time.

Allotting most of its relatively brisk runtime to allow for Stallone to reminisce and ensure that the narrative of Zimny's film is directed into his favour, Sly never feels like it allows itself to veer off into the darker or more risky territory the best of these type of documentaries venture too as we are given some interesting career insights by the man of the moment and getting to hear about the likes of Rocky and Rambo's early days are unquestionably good value but you can't help but feel there was much more to explore and more talking heads that could've helped us explore the rise, fall and rise of Stallone over his 50 plus years in the industry.

Over these many years in the Hollywood system, Stallone has done it all from Oscars, public adoration and ridicule, personal overcomings, health issues and a constant need to try and prove that he is more than many credit him to be and his passion and commitment to his cause is one that anyone can get behind and Stallone's ability to pivot himself and his career multiple times is one of the most impressive examples in the history of cinema.

For any fan of cinema, from the most casual to the most hardcore there's going to be a moment in time where Stallone has played a part in your cinematic journey and as a piece that allows us to reflect back on the times gone by and all the moments Stallone has entertained or enthralled us, often against the odds, Sly acts as an easy to consume distraction that will most likely see viewers seek out one of his classics for a re-watch.

It's just a shame Zimny didn't make the most of his personal access to his subject matter and that the film itself didn't try do more than the bare basics to give us something more memorable, deserving of its unforgettable central figure.

Final Say -

A nice distraction and a product that's sure to appease long-term fans of Stallone and the Stallone brand, Sly never really gets out of first gear to make the most of its possibilities but as a simplistic exploration of the life and times of a Hollywood legend, Sly scraps by neatly enough.

3 Rocky statues out of 5

Jordan and Eddie (The Movie Guys)

I'm only going to compare this documentary to Arnold Schwarzenegger's because it is brought up so prominently in both of them how competitive they were. How toe to toe they went in the 80s making bigger and bigger action films and getting larger and larger grosses (not to mention biceps).

That said, Arnold's was better. I preferred Schwarzenegger's because it went deeper into his personal life and even his faults as a man and a husband.

Sly, the documentary, was good. But it mostly focused on his career. After the obligatory stuff about how he grew up and what a sonofabitch his father was, it was all about the movies. The hits and the flops. I'd've liked to have heard more about his marriages and his relationship with his kooky mother (which is completely overlooked) and especially about losing his son. Even his other business adventures are ignored. Wasn't he an investor in Planet Hollywood? We hear nothing about that.

Anyway, I enjoyed this. It was the perfect airplane diversion as I killed 7 hours over the Atlantic. But like the Arnold doc, I think Sly's life deserves more than a 2 hour recap. I could have handled at least twice that as long as the second part dove deeper into the man himself.