F.I.S.T.

Sylvester Stallone knows how to act (throw away your preconceptions and look at the great Oscar) and that's why, back in 1978, he decided to prove that Rocky's success was no accident and that his talent had a lot to do with it. Surprisingly, F.I.S.T. turned out well, despite how long it takes the main character to punch someone, and the fact that he doesn't show a single bit of muscle except for the facial ones. Stallone is good to watch for the first hour, he goes after what he wants, he’s sympathetically simple and impossible not to root for. Moreover, director Jewison was able to evoke the atmosphere of the time and he filmed both battles between the unionists and the factory workers very evocatively. The big problem, however, came with a leap forward of almost thirty years. America has changed, houses have changed, cars have changed, music has changed... But Stallone's character essentially didn't. I don't understand why the make-up artists didn't help him more, because a man in his thirties can't play a man in his fifties well enough with just dyed grey hair, a pout and a different posture, no matter how hard he tries. Masks, even just artificial wrinkles, are not a trick, they are meant to help the actors (for example, De Niro's fascinating transformation in Once Upon a Time in America, or in fact any role played by Peter Sellers) perform better and the audience to have a memorable experience, which F.I.S.T. could have easily been. Three and a half. (01/21/2015)