(1978)
3
Craig Butler
Although years of Rocky and Rambo sequels and their like took their toll on Sylvester Stallone's acting aspirations, the fact is that when he began he showed some promise as an actor. F.I.S.T. is a reminder that, while he may not ever be in the same league as Robert De Niro, Stallone is capable of turning in an effective dramatic performance that does not simply trade upon his powerful physicality and enormous self-confidence. He displays a fine sensitivity in a number of scenes, including his bumbling efforts at winning the hand of Melinda Dillon, and he finds variety in his confrontations with his various nemeses, confrontations that could easily become monotonous. Equally important, he provides the presence that is necessary to hold together this would-be epic. Presumably the sure and experienced hand of Norman Jewison was of help in molding his performance, as well as in drawing fine support from Peter Boyle, Rod Steiger and Dillon. Jewison is less successful at bringing the various strands of the tale together, with the result that it lags after the first 90 minutes or so and loses too much steam before the end. Stallone and Joe Ezterhas's script runs off track occasionally, and it never delves as deeply or as meaningfully into the characters and situations as it think it does. Still, F.I.S.T. is a moderately enthralling flick with a number of pleasant surprises.
F.I.S.T. on AllMovie
F.I.S.T. (1978)
