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Over the Top poster

Over the Top

year 1987decade 80sdirector Menahem Golan

94 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits ·

Sylvester Stallone Lincoln Hawk
Robert Loggia Jason Cutler
Susan Blakely Christina Marie Cutler Hawk
Rick Zumwalt Bob Bull Hurley
David Mendenhall Michael Cutler
Terry Funk Ruker
Bob Beattie Announcer
Alan Graf Collins
Sam Scarber Bosco

Over the Top | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Kyle Brandtproducer Craig Horlbeck
Explore episodeClose episode

Most Rewatchable Scene

Final tournament

In the discussion (19)
Approx. transcript time · 00:25:13Read transcript
  • Lincoln’s first diner arm-wrestling match, with cap turn and the over-the-top move, starts the rewatchable action.
  • The Smasher’s wildly intense dialogue is a standout in the diner sequence.
  • Hurley’s challenge after the match and threats about Vegas are highlights.
  • Most father-son scenes are rejected, although the child attempting to drive is mildly entertaining.
  • Mike’s arcade match is a candidate, with an intimidating older opponent and an initially crushing defeat.
  • Lincoln’s “world meets nobody halfway” speech is enjoyed despite skepticism that it could change the outcome.
  • Mike’s comeback is a memorably absurd upset after only two days of training.
  • Lincoln arriving at the grandfather’s mansion to retrieve Mike is the next nominated scene.
  • Lincoln crashing his truck through the grandfather’s gates and property is enjoyable excess, ending with five officers arresting him.
  • Winner Takes It All and the tournament montage transform the movie’s final 35minutes.
  • The documentary-style interviews supply memorable boasts, including Lincoln’s cap switch, Bosco’s engine metaphor and Hurley’s “second sucks.”
  • The straps, double-elimination rules and visible elbow injury make the tournament’s world exciting and dangerous.
  • Lincoln rejects the grandfather’s money and throws Terry Funk through glass doors in the hotel suite.
  • Lincoln’s earlier loss and rematch with Grizzly add vulnerability before his comeback.
  • Lincoln defeats Grizzly and Mad Dog Madison before the disputed Bosco semifinal.
  • Bosco’s quick defeat after grip and shoulder disputes is confusing because he protests that he was not ready.
  • The final strap raises the stakes, followed by a bloody nose and Hurley’s repeated threats.
  • Stallone’s exaggerated facial strain helps sell an activity with limited visible movement.
  • The tournament’s final 30minutes are the decisive rewatchable choice, with Hagar’s song essential to the appeal.

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

Broken-elbow competitor; Hurley ruled ineligible; Terry Funk honorable mention

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:41:07Read transcript
  • The wrestler whose elbow snaps is an early heat-check candidate.
  • Hurley is considered, then ruled too prominent; the wrestler with the broken elbow becomes the final choice.
  • Terry Funk receives honorable mention but is overshadowed by Hurley.

What’s Aged the Best?

Self-bet; bad dialogue; tournament; Hurley; Loggia; songs; Cannon credit; SNL; Grizzly; truck workout; funeral trope; father admiration

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 00:50:07Read transcript
  • Lincoln betting all $7,000 from his truck sale on himself is admired.
  • The cholesterol-poisoning exchange is enjoyed for its terrible dialogue.
  • Tournament structure and Rick Zumwalt’s imposing Bull Hurley casting work well.
  • Evil Robert Loggia is a strength.
  • The Hagar music video and a Golan-Globus production credit promise enjoyable excess.
  • The SNL sketch in which Norm Macdonald mocks Stallone’s movies after an accident is recommended.
  • Larry Greene’s opening song is considered underrated and better than Meet Me Half Way.
  • The repeated double-elimination explanations, strap and John Grizzly’s eccentric performance remain enjoyable.
  • The truck’s exercise apparatus remains a childhood favorite, despite likely producing an uneven physique.
  • Arriving midway through a funeral, silently dropping flowers and leaving is enjoyed as an absurd recurring movie convention.
  • A child watching an estranged father do something impressive captures a powerful emotional experience.

The Butch’s Girlfriend Award for the Weakest Link in the Film

Hospital scenes; unexplained family abandonment

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:01:04Read transcript
  • The hospital scenes with Christina are considered particularly bad, including the performance and repetitive phone calls.
  • The movie never adequately explains why Lincoln abandoned his family for ten years; conflict with the grandfather is insufficient.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Kidnapping; Stallone’s acting; score; Hawk/Hawks; Brut slogan

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:04:28Read transcript
  • The henchmen’s attempted kidnapping feels like forced action inserted to give Stallone a chase and punches.
  • Stallone’s subdued acting and interview scenes feel like an effort-free payday.
  • Giorgio Moroder’s credited music contribution seems hard to discern amid the prominent songs.
  • The inconsistent Hawk/Hawks surname, including the letters, is distracting.
  • Brut’s “smells like a man” branding is dated, alongside memories of competing colognes.

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Lincoln is the villain; Mendenhall’s performance is good

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:09:07Read transcript
  • Lincoln is argued to be the villain: he abandoned his family and undermines the grandfather who actually raised and supported the child.
  • Jail familiarity, an unanswered drug question, physique, recovery and destructive behavior are interpreted as signs of drug use; these are speculative claims about the character.
  • Lincoln is accused of exploiting a dying woman’s illness to regain custody.
  • The child actor is defended as highly effective at playing the intended spoiled, hateful boy, including repeated convincing tears.

Apex Mountain

Golan-Globus; arm wrestling; Bob Beattie; annoying children of divorce; Rick Zumwalt; Sammy Hagar; motor-oil drinking

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 01:20:53Read transcript
  • Stallone is rejected.
  • Golan-Globus are affirmed in their prolific Cannon heyday.
  • Arm wrestling is an unquestionable yes, with the movie’s association persisting decades later.
  • Divorce films are rejected in favor of Kramer vs. Kramer, with Mrs. Doubtfire personally affecting.
  • Bob Beattie receives a definite yes.
  • The Vegas Hilton probably had larger boxing moments; Terry Funk is rejected.
  • Evil Loggia is placed at Scarface, while this grandfather is defended as potentially the good party.
  • Annoying children of divorce and Rick Zumwalt receive affirmative answers.
  • Truck driving loses to the late-1970s era, with Smokey and the Bandit and Convoy among comparisons.
  • Sammy Hagar receives an emphatic yes around his Van Halen debut period; the podcast’s same-year chronology is not independently verified.
  • Las Vegas is rejected.
  • Drinking motor oil is affirmed as a memorable, reckless gimmick.

Cruise or Hanks?

Cruise

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:25:20Read transcript
  • Cruise wins, with the lack of a romance seen as an advantage and a 1990s version imagined.

Is This Movie Better With…?

Byron Mayo as grandfather

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:36:39Read transcript
  • Byron Mayo as the grandfather wins, importing Loggia’s drunken, angry character into the rich-man role.

Just One Oscar

Winner Takes It All nomination; The Time of My Life win retained

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:08Read transcript
  • Winner Takes It All is initially chosen, but after checking the nominees the desired outcome becomes a nomination rather than beating The Time of My Life.

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

Hawk ornament; mud flaps; signed cap; Bangor shirt

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:45:04Read transcript
  • The signed black cap is considered; it reportedly went from Stallone to Hagar and later sold for charity.
  • The truck’s hawk ornament is a preferred choice.
  • The passing-side/suicide mud flaps are the other chosen truck collectible.
  • Hurley’s Bangor shirt is another option.

Who Won the Movie?

Arm wrestling

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:46:05Read transcript
  • Arm wrestling wins because the film remains the sport’s dominant cultural reference.
  • Stallone is rejected; Tyson Bagent is only a counterfactual belated possibility, and Golan-Globus lose on the film’s financial failure.
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