The surprise film of the London Film Festival on Friday night was Peter Farrelly’s biographical drama “I Play Rocky,” about the beginning of Sylvester Stallone’s popular boxing franchise.
Farrelly was there to promote the film and gave a shout-out to its new star, Anthony Ippolito, who has already garnered praise for his portrayal of Stallone. “I could do a TED talk about Anthony Ippolito. This kid is ridiculous,” Farrelly said, adding that the 27-year-old actor sent a self-tape before the film’s crew launched a “worldwide search” for who would play Stallone.
“He heard about the movie, found the script, shot three scenes in his grandmother’s basement on Long Island, and sent it to us,” Farrelly continued. “I looked up and said, ‘That’s it.’ We never looked back.”
“I Play Rocky” tells the true story of how Stallone, then a young small-time actor, overcame his obstacles to both write and star in the 1976 classic. In addition to Ippolito, the film stars AnnSophia Robb as Stallone’s wife, Sasha Czack; Matt Dillon with his father, Frank Stallone Sr. in his role; PJ Byrne as “Rocky” producer Irwin Winkler; Jay Duplass as director John G. Avildsen and more.
Farrelly added that he was very proud that Stallone was pleased with the film. “No matter how successful the movie is, no matter how many people like it, I would be really disappointed if Stallone said, ‘I didn’t like it,'” he said. “And he loved it.”
The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last month, where it was awarded the People’s Choice Award and received positive reviews. DiversityChief film critic Owen Gleiberman called the film “a smartly crafted, crowd-pleasing film” and praised Ippolito for getting his portrayal of Stallone “just right”: “Watching and listening to Anthony Ippolito, we can believe that Sylvester Stallone is standing right in front of us, although the performance is more than a great impersonation. He really plays Stallone – the sweetly stubborn and driven one at the time.”
“I Play Rocky” will be released in the US and UK on November 6.