Eight years ago, Peter Farrelly, having recently split from the directing duo with his brother Bobby, brought civil rights comedy Green Book to TIFF, where it won the People’s Choice Award on its way to Best Picture at the Oscars. Things haven’t gone so well for Farrelly since. His next three films, I will politely say, were not great. But he’s back with the “making of Rocky” dramedy I Play Rocky, which had the audience on its feet on multiple occasions. A true crowd favorite, it’s a film that could see Farrelly return to the Oscar stage, and do for star Anthony Ippolito’s career what Rocky did for Sylvester Stallone.
The film is about Stallone, after all, so maybe there’s kismet to Ippolito getting the same kind of Rocky bump for his performance. Ippolito is not only a dead ringer for Stallone, he captures the voice, the mannerisms, and the blue collar determination to see his dream through. Written by Peter Gamble, I Play Rocky is about how a broke ass Stallone, tired of losing out on acting roles, was encouraged by his then-girlfriend Sasha (AnnaSophia Robb) to write something for himself. Inspired by journeyman boxer Chuck Wepner’s valiant match against Muhammad Ali, Stallone banged out the Rocky script in 3 1/2 days. Producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff (PJ Byrne and Toby Kebbell) loved it, and so did the studio. They threw tons of money Stallone’s way but he wouldn’t budge on one non-negotiable caveat: that he play Rocky himself.
Gamble’s script is broad, big on laughs, and occasionally oversells the biggest emotional beats. What it does best is recreate Stallone’s real-life underdog struggle, showing him at rock bottom sleeping on the street, starring in softcore porn movies, and wondering when his big break will ever come. Turns out, he’d have to create that big break for himself. Tracy Letts is hilarious as studio chief Sandy Maddox, who can’t understand why this nobody actor is refusing a $300K check just so he can star in a boxing movie that will likely flop. The realities of Stallone’s life are constantly testing his resolve. I Play Rocky finds the heart and soul within Stallone’s story. He’s poured everything into this character who is willing to risk everything for a chance to be a winner, could Stallone do anything else but follow Rocky’s example?
There are many ways in which I Play Rocky‘s production mirrors aspects of Rocky, and one of those is the brilliant casting of Stephan James as Carl Weathers. James, for the brief time he’s on screen, overshadows Ippolito as the charismatic Weathers, who would play the flamboyant showboat champion, Apollo Creed. Weathers was such a huge presence in the movie that he stole scenes from Stallone, and eventually became an integral part of the franchise.
The entire cast surrounding Ippolito is strong. Robb takes what could’ve been a cookie-cutter “supportive wife” role and makes a meal out of it, with Sasha the first person to show any real belief in Stallone. Matt Dillon growls as Stallone’s verbally abusive father, and Jay Duplass is great as Rocky director John Avildsen, a role that Duplass personally lobbied Farrelly for.
Farrelly hasn’t won himself any fans with his last few movies, and Green Book hasn’t aged particularly well. I went into this with low expectations, but I Play Rocky blew the roof off it’s so good. The crowd went wild for it, and so did I. When the Rocky theme music plays, and you see him running up those steps in Philly, it’s like you’re watching the 1976 classic all over again. Some will likely argue that the film doesn’t make a case for its own existence, but isn’t honoring Stallone’s unique personal triumph enough? His Rocky journey is the stuff that Hollywood dreams are made of, and there are too few of those stories that exist anymore, much less being told in way that can inspire others to also fight for what they believe in.
Amazon MGM Studios opens I Play Rocky in limited release Nov. 6th, expanding nationwide Nov. 20th.
