WebA hundred years ago professional strongman Stanley Pleskun would probably have been a star of the carnival midway. He goes by the groan-inducing nickname Filmmaker Zachary Levy wasn't specifically focused on that, The plot thickens, Commentary: Princess Peach started out as a boring damsel in distress. I used to ask my dad, Can you bend a quarter? Sokurovs latest feature, written by Yuri Arabov, follows several key decisions that Hirohito (fascinatingly played with quirky introspection by Issey Ogata) made for the good of the Japanese people, as well as for his own personal legacy. The parents and grandparents somehow cling to life in confusing ways. Jacqueline Mroz is a Montclair-based freelance writer. The Strongest Man in the Woooorld! But hes never happy with how she does it and always corrects her. Just as the viewer is about to give up on the possibility that anyone will ever give Rosow anything resembling an ordinary, normal response, the film adroitly shifts gears; we gradually realize that Rosow and his target have had their lives transformed by 9/11. WebA look at the life of the great strongman Stanless Steel aka Stanley Pleskun, on the TV Show "Out of this world". Barbara once was a shapely beauty. By the end, you dont entirely understand either of these people, but you come to understand why they need each other. 1 hour, 53 minutes. This website uses cookies to improve your experience.
As the camera finds her eyes, darting like those of a trapped animal, its clear that she knows there are better songs to sing. WebStanley Pleskun is on Facebook. Receive the latest news and breaking updates, straight from our newsroom to your inbox. An aging former aspiring model who has put on a few pounds and chain smokes, is the second major character in this sad and compelling documentary. Without any flashbacks, talking head interviews, or other third-party tricks to establish Pleskuns history, the audience is forced to live in the moment and experience the story entirely on its own terms. Stanley Stanless Steel Pleskun from South Brunswick, New Jersey has been quietly performing some pretty amazing feats of strength for many years.He can lift over 600 pounds with one finger, break chains, drive nails, lever sledge hammers and, incredibly, bend a penny with his bare hands.Stanless attributes his great strength to the many ways, he is his own worst enemy. Stay up to date with everything Boston. more layers there than just the physical stunts.". Times have changed, Review: Paint has a brush with greatness by mixing colorful comedy, heart and Owen Wilson, Could Johnny Depp return to Hollywood after the Amber Heard trial? Of more interest is his relationship with dutiful girlfriend Barbara, a faded beauty whose youthful dreams of modeling have given way to extra pounds, a lack of ambition and, clearly, low self-esteem. So there are times when Pleskun berates her for not "selling" his brand or his stunt with enough flair. That's the existential drama.". If youre going to make a stripped-down, fly-on-the-wall documentary, youd best have a fascinating central character on your hands. years, capturing a number of raw moments. Tickets can be purchased either at the theater box office, online or by phone. Text is available under the Creative Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. in Snazzy Second Season. In time-honored fashion, Rosow encounters an array of people who are inevitably either comical, ironic or sarcastic -- or all three. WebStanley Pleskun is on Facebook. Stanless is convinced he doesn't smoke, and advises Barbara to cut it out. Rosow is to bring the man, about whom he is initially told nothing, to New York. Ive been interested in strength ever since I was a kid, says Steel, a beefy-looking guy who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 285 pounds. Wedding Venues Stanley Pleskun bills himself as "Stanless Steel, the Strongest Man Alive." When: 7:40 p.m. Friday and 9:20 p.m. Saturday. He also has moments of offended anger, when he reminds me uncannily of Bruno S., the star of Herzog's "Stroszek.". He can be praised from recording everything and not wanting to censor anything out. She has a beauty. He dreams of making a career out of his strongman skills but so far nothing major has come from it. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Review: Explosive eco-thriller How to Blow Up a Pipeline strays from despair, Review: Kelly Reichardts first comedy is a wincingly funny portrait of an artist at work, Review: Troubled genius meets troubling system in Thelonious Monk doc Rewind & Play, Actor Lance Reddick reportedly died of coronary artery disease, California population winners and losers: Why some counties boomed and others shrank. She has a beauty. But Levy can't quite find the tone to make us feel completely comfortable with Pleskun. Its a great-looking movie, with an evocative use of music and, in rugged-yet-sensitive Michael Shannon, has an actor whose forceful, focused presence is the films sturdy linchpin. By what name was Strongman (2009) officially released in Canada in English? same time, because it's so small, it doesn't play to an audience. Stanless moves in with her. Levy seems to want us to like Pleskun yet he shows an unpleasant side that can be off putting.
Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Strongman catches them in an emotionally codependent tangle. Shes a shell of some former self. Internships apparently loves it. He also bums smokes from her. Whether this is true is beside the point. saying, 'Can you go down to the Princeton airport and film this How the pair got together, not to mention what Barbara ever saw in Stan, goes sadly unexplored, as does much dissection of Stans earlier life or insight into his seemingly quirky family. The relationship between Pleskun and Barbara becomes the real story in the documentary. He simply pointed his camera in Pleskun's direction and That's what "Anvil" and "Marwencol" did so well. He can lift over 600 pounds with one finger, break chains, drive nails, lever sledge hammers and, incredibly, bend a penny with his bare hands. The purported purpose was to capture Pleskuns search for fame as an entertainer whose nom de strength is Stanless Steel. He pounds nails with his hands. An aging former aspiring model who has put on a few pounds and chain smokes, is the second major character in this sad and compelling documentary. In many ways the movie resembles 2008's "The Wrestler," except Not for South Brunswick strongman Stanless Steel. Eventually there's a complex scene in which they argue, although she remains calm and composed and his complaints seem recycled out of New Age believes about the Soul and the essence of goodness. They hug, they kiss, but their relationship seems to center on his Strongman status and her acceptance and support of it. Her hair is a wispy gray, and she struggles with the workout routine Pleskun wants her to do. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected.
Steel runs a scrap-metal company (Stans Hauling and Moving), but says the hard work doesnt help with his strength training; it just makes him too tired to lift weights later, he says. Of more interest is his relationship with dutiful girlfriend Barbara, a faded beauty whose youthful dreams of modeling have given way to extra pounds, a lack of ambition and, clearly, low self-esteem. During the good times, they seem well matched and in love. We see him heaving heavy loads into the bed of his truck. She wears her hair in a graying ponytail or braids. -- Gary Goldstein Strongman. MPAA rating: Unrated. She is a good-looking woman about the same age as Stanless. Keep up with all the latest news, arts and culture, and TV highlights from KPBS. Keep reading with a digital access subscription. Levys cameras capture Pleskuns jealousies and frustrations, his rationalizations and self-pity. Director Zachary Levy gives his first documentary the feel of a reality TV show. In this case, her name is Barbara, an aging beauty who abandoned her own dreams of Hollywood stardom a long time ago. The real-life story of Stanless Steel-- the only man in the world who can bend a U. S. penny with his fingers-- as he attempts to transform the world around him with his mighty grasp. This film is not rated. WebStrongman is a 2009 documentary about strongman Stanley Pleskun, and his relationships with his girlfriend and his family. Strongman, Zachary Levys lump-in-the-throat portrait of an aging muscleman, is an outsider tale of unforced rawness and lilting poignancy. WebStanley Pleskun is on Facebook. WebStrongman is a 2009 documentary about strongman Stanley Pleskun, and his relationships with his girlfriend and his family. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. In the early 1990s, Steel put together a show with a series of stuntslike having a pickup truck drive onto his chest.
Its louder than officials claim, Whos sending mystery Uber Eats orders to L.A. neighborhoods? Indeed, it seems quickly over. All rights reserved (About Us). He makes appearances at events in New Jersey and New York, bending steel bars, lifting trucks, and so on. The film feels a little like the documentary "Anvil" (which was about a kind of real life Spinal Tap). For his brand, its a happy little accident. The timid Barbara has continued to support Stanley even as it appears that he might be better off accepting his fate. Unlike supposed, 'reality TV', this documentary contains poignant raw moments. She is a good-looking woman about the same age as Stanless. ', Rumer Willis hopes her baby inherits her parents' 'goofiness', Kate Bosworth never thought she would marry again after Michael Polish divorce, Brooke Shields lost 'Dangerous Liaisons' role to Uma Thurman. In that respect his film is a marked contrast to the recent documentary "Marwencol." He stubbornly clings to his own ideas of what will bring him fame. WebHis wife Barbara appears to be shell-shocked by decades of enveloping chaos. Its the emotional heavy lifting that does him in. ever has.' He pounds nails with his hands. Pleskun weighs about 270 pounds, appears to be in his late 30s or early 40s, and has the unintimidating voice of a man half his size. She wears her hair in a graying ponytail or braids. Though filming his hulking hero off and on for nine long years, he has created a work that feels remarkably out of time, a snapshot of a man and a relationship running in circles. Don't try this at home, kids, but once, on a British TV show called "Don't Try This at Home," Stan lifted three people with . Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. Not only can he can bend a penny, Steel can fold steel bars in half and lift a 12,000-pound truck with his legs. . Walking all 25 miles of Sunset Boulevard in a day reminded us why we love L.A. She wanted more than a guesthouse for her sister. and disappointments depicted in the film, Pleskun (now 53) Shannons John Rosow, a martini-loving, hardscrabble Chicago private eye, is awakened in the middle of the night with an offer he cant afford not to take. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. During the good times, they seem well matched and in love. But "Marwencol" never lets Hogancamp come across as some oddball. WebHis companion Barbara is a complete mystery to me. Despite it all, the lovable lunk keeps trying, chasing the fumes of an echo of a shadowy dream. self-defeating stubbornness. During a moment of uncertainty in the kitchen, Pleskun, who can be simultaneously chivalrous and selfish, says, Barb, why dont you try some lemonade? She looks as though she still cant believe the lemons life has given her. Text is available under the Creative As soon as we started talking to each other I felt Stanley "Stanless Steel" Pleskun likes to lift, pound and bend. But Pleskun isnt close. He lifts trucks with his legs. She tries to be supportive and Pleskun enlists her as his emcee, a task she tries to do well but simply lacks the showmanship for. The setting, largely confined to the laboratory building and underground bunker of the otherwise bombed-out Imperial Palace, makes for somewhat claustrophobic viewing but effectively enhances the hermetically sealed feeling of Hirohitos royal life. Convinced his inevitable stardom is just one good gig away, Pleskun moonlights in parking lots and at kids birthday parties using the name Stanless Steel, The Worlds Strongest Man (when it comes to bending metal). Strongman could easily be mistaken for a mockumentary. He can lift over 600 pounds with one finger, break chains, drive nails, lever sledge hammers and, incredibly, bend a penny with his bare hands. We get in close but we don't find the kind of insight that the other two films provided to their subjects. Get our L.A. Ive been interested in strength ever since I was a kid, says Steel, a beefy-looking guy who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 285 pounds. He attributes his strength, in part, to his vegetarian diet. This documentary contains poignant raw moments news sent straight to your device and Marwencol. Of people who are inevitably either comical, ironic or sarcastic -- or all three Goldstein... Appears to be strong come across as some oddball 'reality TV ' this. The stuff of a shadowy dream not wanting to censor anything out Zachary Levy gives his first documentary feel! Initially told nothing, to New York, bending Steel bars in half and lift a 12,000-pound with! Kind of insight that the other two films provided to their subjects are! Marwencol '' did so well this website > Stanless moves in with her nom. 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Stanless moves in with her.
-- Gary Goldstein The Sun. MPAA rating: Unrated. Shop for Back Issues Barbara is a great mystery to me. ". He's extremely strong. The timid Barbara has continued to support Stanley even as it appears that he might be better off accepting his fate. Strongman, 'Stanley Pleskun', wants to be impressive, wants to be loved, and wants to be strong. It may sound like the stuff of a Saturday-morning cartoon superhero, but Stanless Steel actually has superhuman strength. Neither of his homes is terribly inviting.
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stanley pleskun barbara