Paradise Alley

Stallone thought he was Brando and Coppola on this one, a complete ego trip, he even sings the title song, horrendously I might add. Every goombah cliché is in here. The dialogue includes such beauties as "She's got a lovely set of yams" and characters have names like "Sticky," "Burp" and "Stitch." Wow is it bad. You have to be a die-hard Stallone fan to enjoy this self-indulgent tripe. Although it's nice to see a young Tom Waits, Anne Archer and Armande Assante, all too classy for this cornball crapola. Waits even contributes to the soundtrack, but the songs are not his crowning achievement. Despite what others are saying here, this is one flick the critics got right the first time around. Fresh off "Rocky," Stallone thought he could do anything, but he failed. If you like your meatballs lathered with a think layer of cheese, then by all means, take a peek. But the rest of you, yo! Get outta here!

Paradise Alley is set in 1946 in the dingy and dirty streets of Hell's Kitchen- or the Bowery, take your pick, maybe more like the Bowery- and is centered on a group of characters, specifically three brothers, and how they try to maintain in their squalor or, as it turns out, try and make a way for themselves to get out. It's a sentimental picture as it tries to act super tough and muscular, and it's kind of like a Saturday afternoon movie for the guys who have already seen Rocky and Rambo flicks too many times and want to see something sort of "different". It certainly is. And not always in a good way. What I liked was seeing how the actors playing the brothers interacted. Cosmo, Victor and Lenny are impressionable and work very well as this trio dynamic. One had high aspirations and has a big mouth but a fairly good heart, another is a crippled war hero who's life has not worked out at all like he might have wanted for himself or his girl, and the other is a fairly content and BIG-sized ice delivery man who finds himself needing money to want that boat house. I liked also how Stallone put these characters against the lumbering idiot gangsters who were too bumbling to really make it as big-shots but could be threatening enough to other bums and the like in the neighborhood. Not to mention the character and performance of Frank McRae as the 40-something wrestler who lives in total degradation even as he's very good at what he does. Oh, and Tom Waits of course, for a role that is merely a blip but one that brings a smile all the same. The problems seem to come for Stallone that he isn't confident enough to take the material where it needs to go as a down-and-dirty grungy street flick. He gussies it up with over-blown camera moves and editing tricks (I hated the freeze-screen effects used), and seem to not always be as strong with dealing with melodrama and the natural way people talk as he did in the first Rocky. If there was a time to make this story maybe it was right after he has his first big success, and then move on to more conventional stuff. But it is at times fairly schmaltzy, and not all of the acting is very good (the female actresses are all pretty weak, and for a couple of good scenes Lee Canalito feel really flat as the "happy" wreslter brother dubbed "The Salami"). Stallone and Asante fare better with the material, and even Stallone himself goes hammy with his own words in some scenes; Stallone is Stallone, not a Pacino or De Niro, so heavy-duty dramatic scenes don't seem to cut it out as well. And yet, the film does have its moments. I especially dug that final wrestling match, the two contenders (the other being, I think, Terry Funk) duking it out as a rain storm is coming down in the arena and the power keeps cutting in and out with lightning effects thrown in. Stallone does make this an epic and nasty and brutal final bout, and it does bring a pretty satisfying completion to a film that is enjoyable but too clichéd by half.

This is one of Slys chesser films, which had both bad a good in it. Here is one for the Stalone fans. The song in this film was actualy sung by Sly, and I think this is the only time he has done it. Lets start with the bad parts in the film. The tied up monkey, and Sly chasing the cockroaches with a bat is a little too much. The song with the bird in the morning was very annoying. I think it is Bella eat your seeds, my wife laughed, but I almost shut it off. It's 1947 right and Stalone is dressed like he's in the 80's, with his ear ring, yeah right. The race for the dollar bill at the beginning, was pretty lame brain. Here is what worked in the film. The wrestling was good, and the part where Sly drives the truck into the bad guy's bar is funny. When Sly is training his brother, and tells him to throw a toilet into the river I just got a kick out of it. Its a bad and good film so I gave it a 5.

I didn't quite know what to make of "Paradise Alley" when it first came out in 1978, and quite truthfully, I don't quite know what to make of it today. Back in the mid 1960's I became quite a fan of professional wrestling, oxymoron as that description is. So it was the wrestling theme that prompted me to see it during it's theatrical release. Coming off the success of "Rocky", it was as if Sylvester Stallone had to follow up that first hit with another self propelled film as writer, actor and director. The comparisons to "Rocky", inevitable as they are, should be a cautionary one though. The former was a true diamond in the rough honored as "Best Picture", while "Paradise" and it's characters have trouble defining themselves in post War 1946 Hell's Kitchen. It seems as if each of the Carboni Brothers undergoes a personality change during the story. Cosmo (Stallone) is the schemer who prompts Victor (Lee Cannalito) to become a wrestler by going up against and defeating the house champion Big Glory (Frank McRae). Brother Lenny (Armand Assante) is at first protective of Victor, but with the wrestler's success in the ring, the tables turn and Cosmo begins to question Lenny's ethics and handling of the purses. Lenny becomes the stereotype of a boxing manager, deflecting questions about his integrity and how he's handling Vic's money. For me, a couple of things didn't ring true historically for the film's 1940's setting. The characters of Annie (Anne Archer) and Bunchie (Joyce Ingalls) looked just a little bit too glamorous for the story's backdrop. As for the wrestling scenes, though well done and featuring some of the mid '70's top mat stars, they were based quite heavily on the actual wrestling style of the Seventies. You had your grappling moves defined by flips and throws, punctuated by a Ray Stevens maneuver as he catapults into a turnbuckle. However most mat action prior to the 1960's was anything but, with rare exception. Even the widely available 1960 championship bout between Buddy Rogers and Pat O'Connor featured a lot of stale and boring rest holds. Ironically, I just saw this film again on the cable Yes Network hosted by Yogi Berra in a format titled "Yogi and a Movie". Between scenes, the famed Yankee great would talk about his youth and watching pro wrestlers like Lou Thesz and Strangler Lewis. Story boards between acts mentioned a lot of trivia about the film that appears on the IMDb site for this movie, which leads me to believe that it could have been a reference point for the presentation. There are a number of reasons to check out "Paradise Alley", and not just to be a Stallone completist. The filming style, particularly some of the bar scenes with their red tint lends a certain uniqueness to the movie. Another is the voice of Sly Stallone singing "Too Close to Paradise" over the opening credits and the rooftop race against "Rat" (Paul Mace). The one scene though that will test your patience is Victor singing to his parakeet, it's probably the one scene in film history that had me wishing for fingernails on a chalkboard.

Its advocates have spoken pretty well here, so I won't add much except to say that I was happy to vote it 10 to counterbalance the grossly undeserved low ratings. In fact, it's more like 8.5 or 9, so stretching to 10 didn't hurt at all, for fairness. I don't remember how I wound up seeing the film (in a theater, no less!), but I distinctly remember how I felt coming out: "Stallone wrote THIS! And he DIRECTED!?!?!?!? Boy, this guy's GOOD!" I liked Arthur Rose's comments in another comment, probably above mine, that Stallone had probably been persuaded that this was a bad film. I suspect he's right, and it may be why he never took on another project as worthwhile as this one. It's a fine story of very believable people in tough circumstances, and not all the resolutions are Hollywood-approved. There are people in here with actual moral problems. And they have consequences. I think it's hard for some people to watch exactly because it is about very believable people. It's one thing to see the cartoonish figures in our modern action films betray each other left and right. It's quite different to see a brother manipulate and betray his own brother in a way that is not slick, or glamorous, or anything but slimy. I'm surprised at how much, all of a sudden, I want to find the film and see it again. See it without the preconceptions that prevent otherwise sensible persons from giving Stallone his due. If you can enjoy an intelligent story about real human beings, you will respect this film.

Continuing my plan to watch every Sly Stallone movie in order, I come to to one of his most under rated movies. After rewriting the script to 'F.I.S.T' Sly went the full hog, and wrote, acted, directed and sings (Yes sings!! AndI think the style of music suits his voice well) the opening title track. Plot In A Paragraph: The film tells the story of the three brothers Cosmo (Stallone) Lenny (Armand Assante) and Victor (Lee Canalito) in Hell's Kitchen, New York City in the 1940s who become involved in professional wrestling. The tag line for this movie read "Three brothers... One had the brains, one had the muscle and one had the suit. Together they had a million dollar dream." Sly isn't "the muscle" you would expect him to play here, but the con-man brother "The brains" and I think he does a decent job as the fast talking Cosmo, Assante is very impressive in his first movie role, and Canalito (whilst not the most gifted actor) has a real charm to him, as the sweet natured, but tough as nails Victor, who dreams of leaving Hells Kitchen and living on a houseboat with his girlfriend. Kevin Conway and Frank McRae both of who starred with Stallone in 'F.I.S.T' appear here, as does Joe Spinell, who had a role opposite Stallone in 'Rocky'. Sly seems to be trying to add a bit of everything at his first attempt at directing, Action, drama, love, laughs and an underdog story. It's almost as if he was worried he may not get another chance to direct again, and wanted to try his hand at everything. He probably got his shot at directing this movie, for the same reasons a lot of actors get a shot at directing. They are hot property. But for some reason (like with his previous movie the brilliant F.I.S.T) audiences stayed away from this. I would recommend anyone to check it out!! As a side note: He actually wrote this before 'Rocky' and tried to sell it to producers for years, to no avail. Once 'Rocky' became a smash hit, producers were willing to look at the script, and Universal Pictures green-lighted the production.

I have to admit that this film to many critics was a turgid mess, but I cannot help but enjoy and have true sentimentality for it. You have to watch Paradise Alley when you are in the right kind of mood. What mood is that? The mood I was in when I saw it on TV years ago. It's got heart, good wrestling, believable characters, funny moments, a couple of hot babes, suspense and a bit of violence. It even has a good "Rocky" feel ending that wins your heart ending with a strong ballad. This is entertainment and who cares if it doesn't live up to any purists idea of good film-making. It's fun. If this movie were to be redone it might have a chance at the Oscars. It's quirky and offbeat and contains all the elements to get your moneys worth.

I watched this movie and contemplated suicide. Yeah, it was that bad. After the first hour, I only continued with the film with the thought there had to be something appealing. And there wasn't. I am rather shocked it was distributed in DVD format. I can't think of a worse movie now, this is the very bottom. The story was really shallow, the characters acted poorly. The type of characters were like that of a bad comic book. Timing was so slow that the story literally stops in spots. And the music was lousy. I think Sly actually sang the opening and closing song! 2 hours of my life totally wasted! This movie stole 2 hours of my life! Nighly not recommended.

THIS WAS AN EXCELLENT FILM. I have never understood why this movie got such bad reviews or such a bad rap. I personally think it is one of Stallones Better Films. I am in fact one of 10 who gave it a 10. I think next to "Copland" and the original "Rocky" it is in fact Stallones best work. I thought the film had a lot going for it not the least of which was great direction and cinematography. And anyone who has the perception to use Tom Waits as a Bartender can't be all bad. I thought the characters were well acted and I thought the story had much depth of field in it. I found no similarity at all between Charlie Chaplin and Armand Assante, unless one thinks, Sgt Bilko and Saving Private Ryan are similar simply because they are both soldiers. What all those who use a cane are Charlie? I think this film, because of Rocky and "fight" and "up from nothing hero" themes has really been genetically altered by the press and critics. I think it is likely that Mr. Stallone himself has been convinced that this is a bad film. I promise you Sly it is a very good film in this viewers opinion. In fact twenty years from now, when it can just be viewed anew and without gile and critics are no longer busy being clever or cute this in fact be one of the greatest sleepers of all time. If you are one of those that voted 8, 9, or 10 on this film, I would like to hear from you. If you didn't that's your opinion and your stuck with it.

1940's. Hell's Kitchen. Shrewd, fast-talking, and ambitious con man Cosmo Carboni (well played by Sylvester Stallone, who also wrote, directed, and even sings the theme song!) encourages his good-natured, dim-witted, but strong-as-an-ox younger brother Victor (a solid and engaging performance by amiable big lug Lee Canalito) to participate in wrestling matches in order to win enough money to get out of their impoverished neighborhood. Stallone blends sentiment and seaminess into a tasty offbeat mix that manages to find just the right balance of grit, humor, warmth, and pathos. Better still, Stallone presents a vivid and flavorsome evocation of the period setting along with a beautifully lurid underworld milieu that's both captivating and appealing in equal measure. Armand Assante does strong work as Cosmo's cynical and crippled war veteran sibling Lenny. Frank McRae likewise shines with his touching turn as faded and battered washed-up brawler Big Glory. Moreover, there's a delightful array of colorful low-life secondary characters: Kevin Conway as slimy crime kingpin Stitch, Joe Spinell as flashy wrestling ring emcee Burp, and Terry Funk as fearsome brute Frankie the Thumper. This movie further benefits from the charming presence of three attractive ladies: Anne Archer as sassy'n'sultry redhead dance hall gal Annie, Aimee Eccles as the sweet Susan Chow, and Joyce Ingalls as classy dame Bunchie. Laszlo Kovacs' glittery cinematography provides a striking garish look. Bill Conti's spare harmonic score does the trick, too. A nicely quirky little winner.