Slyvester Stallone: what makes him a bad actor? (1 Viewer)

[Thik Nongyow]

The winner of several "Razzies" from acting to directing, actor Slyvester Stallone is often considered one of the worst actors of our generation. What makes him a bad actor?

A note of caution: please do not personally attack Stallone, but focus on what makes him a bad actor.

 

[Chauncey_G]

I would argue that he is NOT a bad actor (I throw out Rocky, First Blood and Copland as examples), he's just been pinned into playing roles that do not lend themselves to good performances. 99% of the time, Sly gets roles because of his physical presence, not his acting ability (read: dumb, loud action movies. I have nothing against dumb, loud action movies; they're just not the kind of thing an actor gets to "stretch" in).
I'd been hoping that his turn in Copland would generate more interest in giving him better parts, but alas, no such luck.

 

[Tino]

He was also good in Nighthawks (which he also directed), F.I.S.T, Paradise Alley, Cliffhanger, Assasins and more.

He may not be your idea of a good actor, but I think he is a fine actor when given good material (such as the aforementioned Copland).

 

[Vickie_M]

I haven't seen most of his films, but I too liked him in Rocky and Cop Land and, I must admit, a guilty pleasure, Victory.
I was actually looking forward to Link Removed , but I have no idea what happened to it, if it opened and disappeared, or if it hasn't opened yet. It looks to be a comedy/crime drama where Stallone plays a bodyguard protecting the daughter (Madeleine Stowe) of a murdered mob boss (Anthony Quinn's last role).
Tino, I'll have to check out some of the movies you mentioned.

 

[Ben Menix]

Then, of course, there's Stop Or My Mom Will Shoot.
Ewwww.....
*Loved* Victory, one of my favorite movies.
I've always felt that Sly is the kind of actor that can make a good part more poignant, and a bad part seem *awful*. I think that is why he was the "bad actor" rep...when he's bad, he is *very* bad.
Ben Menix
[email protected]

 

[FrankT]

I to think he can be a good actor give the right material.

On another note...when I watched the movie "Driven", which I believe he wrote, I thought "what a crappy movie." Later I watched the special features on the DVD and they go into his original script and ideas which focus more on his character and developing the store. I think it could have been a half decent movie if they would have left it like his original vision and not hacked it up and made it more "Hollywood".

So I do think he has talent in acting and writing if given the right script and freedom.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

My anwser: Nothing. He was great in the starring role of that little boxing picture he wrote that beat Taxi Driver for Best Picture
EDIT: Whole forum was down for a moment there...

 

[Vickie_M]

Loved* Victory, one of my favorite movies.

Cool, someone else liked it! I guess it shouldn't be considered a "guilty pleasure" since, after all, it was directed by John Houston. It's just, well, one of Houston's lesser movies. Victory was my first exposure to football (soccer) and I found it fascinating how they used their heads and feet.

 

[Terrell]

I agree with Tino and Chauncey. He's not a bad actor. He just continually chooses stupid projects. Maybe he doesn't have much of a choice but to choose those roles.

 

[steve jaros]

Agreed - Stallone could act just fine within a limited range, but he often made bad choices...

 

[Matt Stone]

he's just been pinned into playing roles that do not lend themselves to good performances. 99% of the time, Sly gets roles because of his physical presence, not his acting ability

He doesn't necessarily get pinned into the roles, I'm sure he has some say in choosing them.

But overall, I agree with the the others...good actor with good material. Copland is a really great film IMO, with a great performance from Stallone.

 

[JakeR]

Good actors need good material to perform at par.

Stallone, IMO, is one of a dying breed of actors who actually seem larger than life. (Edward Norton is a great talent, but I can't get past the fact that he looks like he should be serving me a meatball sandwich at Subway.)

As actors get older, I find that their selection of material grows less perceptive. Harrison Ford in Random Hearts and K-1, Sly in his numerous blunders, etc. It's frustrating to watch.

It's probably too late for Sly to jump-start his career. Avenging Angelo sounds like cheese on the level of The Specialist, and he seems either unwilling or unable to commit to projects that would enhance his credibility. To erase a subconscious 'Stallone stigma,' he'd likely have to take a supporting role, as he did in Copland.

Rocky 6 and Rambo 4, while unlikely to ever get made, are not his answers. And from reports, that's what he was attempting. Sad.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Tino,
Stallone didn't direct "Nighthawks" which is a film I like very much.

Also, I wouldn't call Stallone a bad actor just not a very good one.




Crawdaddy

 

[Michael Reuben]

Nighthawks (which he also directed)

The credited director for Nighthawks is Bruce Malmuth. (I agree that it's one of Stallone's better films.)

M.

 

[Rich Romero]

That's part of what makes his role in Fight Club so great, he just seemed like an everyday guy, which he needed to be.

 

[Ben Motley]

(Okay okay I admit it! You can't deny that Rocky is a phenomenon rarely matched, in it's quality and the story of the production itself. I also really like Paradise Alley. As for most evrything else, I still stand by my above statement. )

 

[Seth Paxton]

Well I agree with the "good within limited range" aspect. And apparently not good at choosing agents/projects either (I mean Driven was awful for so many reasons that had nothing to do with his acting).
Besides thinking he was great in Rocky and Copland, enjoying him in Victory and Nighthawks, I also think he is great in Oscar. I find that film VERY funny in a classic sense, and his effort is a big part of it.
Again, NY accent gangster isn't exactly stretching it for him though.

 

[Tino]

Right you guys are about Nighthawks not being directed by Stallone. But he did direct Travolta in Staying Alive!

 

[Randy van Rijn]

Actually... Stallone and director Malmuth didn't agree about a lot of things and Stallone did direct a lot of the film himself after the director left.

 

[Chauncey_G]

He doesn't necessarily get pinned into the roles, I'm sure he has some say in choosing them.

To a certain degree you're right, of course. But there's typecasting involved here. It's not so much what he chooses as what he gets offered, I think. Sly got going as a physical actor - an action star - with his body-building image. Those are the films of his that made a lot of money (Copland, on the other hand, tanked at the box office if I remember correctly). Historically speaking, it's the most bankable genre for him.
The problem is also one of time. The man isn't getting any younger, and that spells doom for an actor whose career has been built on what he can do physically. So here's the catch: he probably doesn't get offered a lot of decent acting roles because people see him as an action star, but he doesn't get as many action movies because he's getting older.
That's why I said earlier that I'd been hoping that his turn in Copland would open the door to better roles.