Over the Top (1987)

Thanks for the memories!

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

Over the Top was made when Sly Stallone was the top dog in town which meant he could have any film made he wanted. Over the Top is probably the result of Sly's ego dictating the terms. This isn't a bad movie but just an alright one about a trucker(played by Sly) who wishes to get close to his kid- who sort of doesn't like him, as they go about on a road trip of sorts. There are some nice scenery and lets be honest- Stallone has that face, or perhaps its his eyes- which make you wanna root for him, and feel sorry for him. This is a decent film to watch, especially if you wanna go through Stallone's filmography but it isn't a great Stallone movie.

Wow not sure what I was expecting from a movie centering around arm wresting, but I guess I got it. This gem is from 1987 and about all it has going for it is the B-grade 80's campiness that now make it fun to watch. I mean who doesn't want to cut all the sleeves off your t-shirts, slap on a pair of suspenders, oil up your arms and drive your big rig off into the sunset while listening to Frank Stallone and Kenny Logins on the 8-track and yelling "over the top" at the screen. Awesome stuff.This is one of those so bad its good movies that just gets better with age because it gets cheesier. Its along the lines of Rocky V -which was pretty terrible too- and is more of a father/son drama than the sweaty, sinew straining, pulse pounding action you'd probably expect from a movie about arm wresting.Sylvester Stallone is the awesomely named 'Lincoln Hawk' a truck driver trying to reconcile and gain custody of his estranged son after his ex-wife becomes deathly ill. Grandpa (Robert Loggia), is not having it though and his son is angry and disrespectful which makes for a (not so) fun road trip after Hawk busts him out of military school and takes him out truckin' in an attempt to bond.Ultimately it comes down to Sly oiling up and arm wrestling for the custody of his son at the Las Vegas world arm wrestling championships.This is heavy on the family drama and emotion and dare I say, takes too long to get to the arm wresting part which (come on) is why we're watching this. That part of this film isn't so bad, Sly knows how to do these kinds of action scenes and (I guess) there are some genuine techniques used -It looked good. I'm not embarrassed to admit by the end I was totally invested in him winning the championship and the custom semi-truck so he could start his own trucking company and the more I think about this movie the more I love it. 3/7/16

Disclaimer: If you are a viewer that mainly prefers art-house-type movies, then you might as well ignore this review. In addition, if you're not able to take an action classic sports drama, ignore this review, as well. We'll both be better off.Over the Top (1987) I really do believe is an action classic sports drama! This is a great film for what it is and it is "Over the Top"! This is a movie I always was a big fan of it. I am a just big fan of the film. I used to watch this film over TV when it was on and I used to had a copy on VHS tape, I don't have it anymore, but I will get it on Blu-ray. This movie is directed by one and only Menahem Golan and it was written by Stirling Silliphant and Sylvester Stallone him self. Right after Rocky IV, Rambo: First Blood Part II and Cobra was followed by Over the Top about an arm wrestler father who try to reconnect him self with his son. I Loved this movie as a child and I love it since now! I think Stirling Silliphant did a great job writing a screenplay for this movie, he actually first wrote for Don Johnson - Miami Vice star, when he was so popular in that TV show in the 80's. Stirling Silliphant's presence and screenplay did help a lot of this movie! I know A lot of people will disagree with me and put my review down but I prefer this movie over Rocky V and Real Steel! Someone wrote on IMDb on Rocky V "A wonderful movie about father and son", that would be Over the Top! If you look Rocky V closely, you will probably see, similar story from Over the Top! I know a lot of people are making fun of this movie saying is just ridicules, it is a drama about a father trying to reconnect with his son, it also has an arm wrestling. And I am what makes this movie and the plot more ridicules than Real Steel?, which is a film that got praised and got thumbs up by critics, I would really like to know, because that movie has the same plot and it is even more ridicules. It is about a father trying to reconnect with his son, but it also has robots boxing, boxing robots! That's more ridicules than arm wrestling! Really?, seriously? Real Steel has 60% Rotten Tomatoes, but this was slammed from critics and only got 36% and get's a lover ratings over Real Steel on both sides. And Real steel is a film that basically rips off this movie, does a bad job of it, it's 10 time ridicules than this. It is nearly as much fun and the father is an asshole who was whiling to sole his son. Really? He was whiling to sole his son! In this film Lincoln Hawk (Sylvester Stallone) is not that kind of dad, he would never even remotely thinking of doing that!!! In fact he beats some guys up, who try to takes his so away from him! So why Real Steel get's the praise?, but Over the Top get's the bashing and get's the crap from critics. I really don't understand, but that just me personally. If you like Real Steel more, that's fine I don't have a problem with that. Over the Top is not your film, that's cool, you don't like it, that's cool I just don't understand it. I just don't understand why this film has such a bad reputation, the same goes with Lethal Weapon 3. Why is Lethal Weapon 2 much more better and bad ass than Lethal Weapon 3, "oh wait Riggs kills 15 people in 2 and in 3 he only kills less than 5 people. To me that is not the case, I think Lethal Weapon 3 is the same good as the 2 is. The odds are always against this movie."The world meets nobody half way. If you want something? You gotta take it." Rocky and Rambo star Sylvester Stallone gives fans another reason to stand up and cheer. He stars as hard-luck big-rig trucker Lincoln Hawk and takes us under the glaring Las Vegas lights for all the boisterous action of the World Armwrestling Championship in Over the Top (co-scripted by Stallone). Relying on wits and willpower, Hawk tries to rebuild his life by capturing the first-place prize money - and the love of the son (David Mendenhall) he abandoned years earlier into the keeping of his rich, ruthless father-in-law (Robert Loggia). He matches muscles with some of the game's gargantuan greats - and grips you tightly with a rousing finale in crowd-pleasing Rocky style. Grab hold for rip-roaring fun! Over the Top is a 1987 sport drama film starring Sylvester Stallone. It was produced and directed by Menahem Golan, and its screenplay was written by Stirling Silliphant and Stallone. 10/10 Grade: Bad Ass Seal Of Approval Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures, The Cannon Group, Inc. Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Robert Loggia, Rick Zumwalt, Susan Blakely, David Mendenhall, Chris McCarty, Terry Funk, Bruce Way, Jimmy Keegan, Allan Graf, John Braden, Reggie Bennett Director: Menahem Golan Producers: Menahem Golan, Yoram Globus Screenplay: Stirling Silliphant, Sylvester Stallone Story by Gary Conway David Engelbach Rated: PG Running Time: 1 Hr. 33 Mins. Budget: $25.000.000 Box Office: $16,057,580

Lincoln Hawk (Stallone) is asked by his dying wife to make her son's custody work with her Father and explains that he is too stuck in his way to change. I watched the entire movie...not once does he fulfil this promise to his wife. And at the end of the move...they are shown to be walking away from her Father...with no mention of him having custody...and him crying. Why involve her asking him this...if it is never brought up again in the entire movie? So many illogical scenes in this movie that it forced me to write a review. I feel as though Stallone just rushes through his movies attempting to create a macho persona...as oppose to actually thinking the storyline through. Stallone...go back to Rocky.