The last time Sylvester Stallone tried to take on a real dramatic role, the results were… creatively successful. He put on 40 lbs for James Mangold’s “Copland” in 1997, but reviews were semi-mixed. Mangold insists even though Stallone really delivered best intentions, he had engendered ill will among certain audiences with his mindless action films. “When ‘Cop Land’ came out, a lot of daggers were out for Sly,” Mangold said in 2011. “He had made a bunch of shittier moves, he’s the first to admit, that weren’t aimed for the highest result each time out.”
Even though the role did earn him good will in the end, Stallone claimed at the time, the movie hurt his career — a bit of a head scratcher when you consider it’s probably his best work since the early “Rocky” movies.
Evidently, he wasn’t fully discouraged from serious roles. Seventeen years later (minus the neo-noir “Shade” which he only co-starred in) Stallone’s about to star in "Reach Me," a 2014 drama which we’ll see later this year (though admittedly, it appears to be more of an ensemble than starring vehicle). Directed by John Herzfeld ("2 Days in the Valley," "15 Minutes" with Robert De Niro and Edward Burns) the film has a pretty huge cast. It stars Stallone, Cary Elwes, Terry Crews, Thomas Jane, Tom Sizemore, Lauren Cohan, rapper Nelly, Kevin Connolly, Kyra Sedgwick, Kelsey Grammer, Ryan Kwanten and Tom Berenger.
The drama is about a group of people that all have a connection to a self-help book written by a reclusive former football coach. And it appears that Berenger is said coach.
The trailer looks… a little unfantastic, to put it nicely, and resembles “Crash” if it were a straight-to-video B Movie and not an Oscar winner (funny how that happened, right?). But maybe it’s your thing? The movie will hit cinemas on October 24 in the U.S.
Watch the trailer below and judge for yourself.
Great ensemble cast. Looking forward to this one
There was a Kickstarter campaign for this movie.
Good cast. Looks a bit cheesy though
People forgot that after Rocky, Stallone was offered the lead in Coming Home-the film that won best acting Oscars for Jon Voight and Jane Fonda. I love Stallone and always wanted to see him in more drama films. After Cop Land, he was offered the lead in William Friedklin's Rules of Engagement. It has to do with some of the choices he has made. It's been reported that Stallone has been offered the lead in The Grim Reaper. A true life film about a mafia hitman. It written by the true crime write who wrote GoodFellas, and Casino. I hope Stallone accepts the role.
Love that this trailer misattributes Danny Aiello as an Academy Award winner.
I remember hearing Stallone was compared to Marlon Brando after the first Rocky. It is interesting to think what Stallone could have achieved if his career went off in a slightly different direction. I like the guy now but still interesting to think about what might have been.
Yeah, itâs weird seen Stallone not kicking butts.
I always thought Sly did a great job in his dramatic roles. He's not just an action movie prop – he really cares about the character he portrays and always attempts to do something unique with each role.
Unfortunately, this latest attempt will most likely be marred by the director, John Herzfeld (who also wrote and directed the John Travolta/Olivia Newton John gut-churner from 1983, TWO OF A KIND, a film that many people seem to leave out of Herzfeld's oeuvre), who has to be one of the worst filmmakers of the last 30 years.
People forgot that after Rocky, Stallone was offered the lead in Coming Home-the film that won best acting Oscars for Jon Voight and Jane Fonda. I love Stallone and always wanted to see him in more drama films. After Cop Land, he was offered the lead in William Friedklin's Rules of Engagement. It has to do with some of the choices he has made. It's been reported that Stallone has been offered the lead in The Grim Reaper. A true life film about a mafia hitman. It written by the true crime write who wrote GoodFellas, and Casino. I hope Stallone accepts the role.