Motompa Go in cold, and you're likely to emerge with your blood boiling. This has to be seen to be believed.

Mischa Redfern I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Edwin The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

stanevans22 Stallone thought he was Brando and Coppola on this one, a complete ego trip, he even sings the title song, horrendously I might add. Every goombah cliché is in here. The dialogue includes such beauties as "She's got a lovely set of yams" and characters have names like "Sticky," "Burp" and "Stitch." Wow is it bad. You have to be a die-hard Stallone fan to enjoy this self-indulgent tripe. Although it's nice to see a young Tom Waits, Anne Archer and Armande Assante, all too classy for this cornball crapola. Waits even contributes to the soundtrack, but the songs are not his crowning achievement. Despite what others are saying here, this is one flick the critics got right the first time around. Fresh off "Rocky," Stallone thought he could do anything, but he failed. If you like your meatballs lathered with a think layer of cheese, then by all means, take a peek. But the rest of you, yo! Get outta here!

The_Movie_Cat In a review of 1984's Rhinestone I claimed that it was roughly the point where Sylvester Stallone's career started to become derailed. Yet having watched Paradise Alley, I realise I was wrong.It's astonishing just how rapidly the actorly ego and lack of people to tell him "no" emerged. Stallone's first two post-Rocky movies featured him in America's past. F.I.S.T (7/10) had him play a 1930s union man, backed by the superlative Rod Steiger and directed by the man behind In The Heat of the Night. Spending nearly two hours watching Stallone as a union rep is an odd choice right on the back of the commercial hit Rocky - kind of like following up Raging Bull with a pseudo-biopic of Arthur Scargill - but it's a decent film, generally well made. Yet somehow that same year someone had convinced Stallone that not only could he direct, but he could also sing as well. Groaning the forgettable title tune, he delivers a childlike depiction of 1940s slum life in Paradise Alley, an overearnest tale that produces laughs only when none are intended. Both his 1978 films feature an arm wrestling match, nine years before he'd make an entire film around the sport in guilty pleasure Over The Top. But just take a look at the depictions of said arm wrestling matches in both '78 vehicles... Norman Jewison's is the one that's not making you cry with unintentional laughter.Stallone isn't an awful director, but there's no reason why he should have discarded the original Rocky director for four of the sequels. (In fairness, when John G. Avildsen was brought back, then Rocky V was a famous misfire). But in just one month he moved from shooting a film under the watchful eye of the man behind The Thomas Crown Affair to shooting a movie under the watchful eye of the man behind Staying Alive and The Expendables. The difference is hugely pronounced, as F.I.S.T has a relatively controlled and purposeful performance from Stallone, while Paradise Alley has him wholly believing he's being charming and likable (a la Balboa), instead of just obnoxious and tiresome. The character he plays in Paradise Alley is as likable a character as Stallone is good at singing. Ultimately the entire movie comes off as a vanity project, and far from a good one: the difference between the two films could not be more marked.

Mark I watched this movie and contemplated suicide. Yeah, it was that bad. After the first hour, I only continued with the film with the thought there had to be something appealing. And there wasn't. I am rather shocked it was distributed in DVD format.I can't think of a worse movie now, this is the very bottom. The story was really shallow, the characters acted poorly. The type of characters were like that of a bad comic book. Timing was so slow that the story literally stops in spots. And the music was lousy. I think Sly actually sang the opening and closing song! 2 hours of my life totally wasted!This movie stole 2 hours of my life! Nighly not recommended.

x_mourning_star_x This film has a texture and depth that was missing from many of the films that year. The appearance of cameos such as Tom Waitts give the film an authenticity lacking in many other period pieces. The oppression of the human spirit by the New York of the times rings true and demonstrates the power and fragility of the human spirit. The costumes and sets of New York portrays the darkness of the spirit that was rampant at those times. The relationships of the three brothers portrays the relationship and struggles we all wrestle with, from time to time, as we both exploit and nurture our inner beings. The opening scene is an immediate indication of how plans go sour.