F.I.S.T (1978)

Director:

Norman Jewison

Writers:

Joe Eszterhas (story)
Joe Eszterhas (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

17 August 1978 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

A love story between a man, a country, the people he led and the woman he loved.

Plot:

Johnny Kovak joins the Teamsters trade-union in a local chapter in the 1930s and works his way up in the organization...

Plot Keywords:

Trade Union | 1930s | Entire Title Is Capitalized Acronym | Acronym In Title | Labor

Cast

Sylvester Stallone	...	Johnny Kovak
Rod Steiger	...	Senator Madison
Peter Boyle	...	Max Graham
Melinda Dillon	...	Anna Zarinkas
David Huffman	...	Abe Belkin
Kevin Conway	...	Vince Doyle
Tony Lo Bianco	...	Babe Milano
Cassie Yates	...	Molly
Peter Donat	...	Arthur St. Clair
John Lehne	...	Mr. Gant
Henry Wilcoxon	...	Win Talbot
Richard Herd	...	Mike Monahan
Tony Mockus Jr.	...	Tom Higgins (as Tony Mockus)
Ken Kercheval	...	Bernie Marr
Elena Karam	...	Mrs. Zerinkas

Runtime:

145 min | UK:131 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | West Germany:16 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | Norway:16 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating)

Filming Locations:

Attercliffe, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, UK

Company:

Chateau Productions

Trivia:

The scenes that take place in Cleveland early in the story were filmed in Dubuque, Iowa. One of the reasons they chose that town is because, since the town was wired for cable TV, none of the homes or buildings had TV antennas on the rooftops.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Neues aus der Anstalt: (#2.2)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

Rockin' Robin

Stallone's finest acting is seen here...

Stallone, known for physique, bulging biceps, droopy eyes and slurred speech has proved audiences that he is one of the finest actors. Personally, he is one of my favourite actors since I was a kid and movies like Rocky, Copland, First-Blood (rambo), Lock-Up, Nighthawks, Oscar and Asassins have also proved the same. F.I.S.T begins with the story of a struggling blue collar worker back in the 1930s of USA. He tries to live the American dream, but is only betrayed, kicked and disgusted with life around him. His character Johnny Kovak moves to become an organiser for Labour Unions in the first half of the movie. The second half shows him becoming older as president of the Trucking Labour Unions and the dirty deals he is forced to undertake to ensure welfare of the workers. The film is based on the lines of Rocky as a struggling man trying to cope, added with a realistic ending. A must see for Stallone fans and people who like Drama movies. Bill Conti's score is moving and Norman Jewison's direction is amazing. A satisfactory story line combined with some powerful performances will impress you. I am quite surprised as to why this film is so underrated !