Die Hölle ist in mir

Rocky Graziano was a very, very flawed guy to say the least. To be more blunt, until he settled into a career in boxing, he was an antisocial jerk--a blight on society. However, as was the case with most older bio-pics (such as "The Birdman of Alcatraz" and "The Sound of Music"), in order to make a more marketable flick, the truth was often very, very malleable--as the writers took such huge liberties with the facts that the original of the film was hardly recognizable. And, since Rocky was not a very likable guy, I expected a whitewash with this film. Fortunately, the writers stuck reasonably close to the truth and Paul Newman puts in his first excellent performance (after his disaster in "The Silver Chalice").

The film begins with a lovely man (Harold Stone) forcing his young boy to fight. He slaps the little kid around horribly--and it was obvious the father was a complete jerk. From this sort of upbringing, it's understandable why the kid grew up angry (in reality, the father would bit his two sons against each other in boxing matches for his friends to watch--and Rocky's older brother usually beat the snot out of him). This portion of the film shows the many stupid and self-defeating things Rocky did before switching to a life in boxing. Stealing, violence, prison and a stint in military prison--all make up this sordid portion of the movie. To see just how Rocky manages to pull it all together, watch the film.

Overall, well-written and with a very likable performance from Newman. This isn't exactly "Raging Bull" but it is well worth seeing.

Up until now I've only seen Paul Newman in 1990's and later movies - but he's never been the actor that called me into a movie theater or made me change the channel. He always seemed to play the same type of part: easy going, calm, aware, well contained. Or maybe that's the way he made each part seem.

After seeing this movie, now I know why he's considered such a great actor. I only watched boxing when it was part of the Olympics - just don't enjoy the sport itself that much - and only know about Rocky Graziano from the newspapers. But Paul Newman was riveting. He made this character of a complete underdog, who apparently had no hope, no charm, and nothing to live for, into someone I cared about enough to stick with the movie for two hours.

I don't know how true-to-life the story was; Hollywood generally creates composite characters, cleans up reality and changes or outright ignores major events. Certainly the many fights Graziano had were a bit of a blur in the film and I'm sure several critical steps in his advancement towards middleweight championship were neglected. The reason for the violent relationship between Rocky and his father was unexplained. And his mother's mental state (the film alludes to her time in the hospital) is not fully developed.

These gaps do not overshadow in any way Paul Newman's performance. I always thought it was longevity, charitable works, and a long-lasting marriage to another actor (not to mention darn good spaghetti sauce) that gave him the aura he has - now I understand.

It's interesting to note the career relationship of James Dean and Paul Newman.

Both were leading contenders for the starring role in "East of Eden." Dean's moving screen test landed him the part over Newman.

Then, upon Dean's sudden demise, Newman was awarded the role Dean was to play in "Somebody Up There Likes Me." Fortunately, Newman was up to the task.

His Rocky was most effectively limned, with Newman in top physical form as well as in the acting department. He assumed a "New York hood" accent, which enhanced his portrayal, and executed the challenging fight scenes with conviction.

Perhaps young Newman's burning ambition at the time to greatly succeed in his craft provided extra stamina to smash through this meaty part for a "knockout punch." Fresh from Actors Studio training, Mr. Newman was fortunate to be surrounded by a quartet of fine "method" artists.

Eileen Heckart was particularly fine as Mrs. Barbella, Everett Sloane as a concerned Manager, Sal Mineo as dependable pal Romolo, and Pier Angeli as sensitive Norma Graziano.

Rocky's hard-hitting life was given a realistic black and white production, doing justice to the middle weight champ's biography. Robert Wise directed with his usual skill and confidence.

This is the movie that made Paul Newman a star. And with good reason. Although James Dean was signed to play the great Rocky Graziano, his death in a car crash made the role available for Paul Newman to step into. Newman who up to this point had made only a handful of forgettable pictures,turns in a marvelous portrayal of a man who is so filled with rage that everything he touches turns into trouble.

Newman's performance is layered with anger, humor, and fear. Rocky Graziano was by means the brightest guy in the world, and Newman to his credit does not try to make this an endearing quality of Rocky's.

The story does a nice job of not glossing over Rocky's troublesome youth. It shows a lot of the trouble and bad decision's that he made that led to being thrown out of schools, reformatories, and later into prison. This is not a sanitized bio-style film that you would have seen in the thirties or forties.

The rest of the acting is also first rate. Especially from Eileen Heckart and Everett Sloane as his mother and trainer, respectively. Lots of actors making their film debuts in this movie also. Look for Robert Loggia, Steve McQueen, George C. Scott and Dean Jones.

Robert Wise has done a wonderful job of bringing NYC to life in this picture. Watching Newman walk down the street with all of the people jeering him at first, and then rooting for him as he starts to gain some fame is the work of a top notch director. Wise would later exploit the scenery of New York to better use a few years later in "West Side Story". He also did an excellent job with the fight sequences.

It's easy to see where Sylvester Stallone got his inspiration for his "Rocky". In fact, you might say that he not only borrowed the development of his character, but that of Adrian, as well.

"Somebody Up There Likes Me" is well worth a look.

9 out of 10

Robert Wise was a film editor before he became a director. Having edited some of Orson Welles films when he was starting out, made him a natural director. After all, Mr. Wise knows how to move his camera and how to capture great moments in film. "Somebody Up There Likes Me" is a rarity these days, in that it's seldom seen.

This is also a film that has a rich texture. The story, photographed using New York as a backdrop offers a rare view of how it looked in those years. We are taken to Brooklyn, downtown Manhattan and other natural locations that were an asset in the film. It helps that Mr. Wise had the inspiration to engage Joseph Ruttenberg as his cinematographer because of the excellence of his work in the films he photographed.

This is a story of Rocky Graziano, a boxing champion, who came from a poor family. The father, Nick Barbella, is seen at the beginning trying to show young Rocco to box. When he doesn't get the response he wants, he punches the boy squarely on his nose, making him bleed. Rocco would grow up to become a hoodlum doing petty crime and being sent to jail.

Rocco's story could have ended in tragedy, but didn't. It helped to have met good friends along the way like Irving Cohen who helped him with his boxing career. The love of Nora is another of the blessings this man was blessed with. In fact, yes, somebody up there must have liked Rocco Barbella, a man who is a legend in boxing circles.

The young Paul Newman was lucky to land this part. James Dean had been selected to play the role, but it went to Mr. Newman who took it and ran away with the film. This was his big break through in films. Paul Newman was formed at the famous Actor Studio. His technique is in sharp contrast with other, formally trained actors, but in a way, by making Rocky's character so complex, we get a detailed account of the man by an inspired young actor that went to become a legend in his own right.

The supporting cast was excellent. Eileen Heckart is the suffering Ida Barbella, a woman who has been cheated out of everything by a husband that is a brute. Harold Stone is also good as Nick Barbella. Pier Angeli is sweet as Norma and Sal Mineo makes the best out of Romolo, the childhood friend. Everett Sloan plays the pivotal role of Irving Cohen.

In the film we see a lot of interesting young actors who went to have their own distinguished careers later on. Steve McQueen, Robert Loggia, George C. Scott, Frank Campanella, and other New York based theater actors are seen in the background without any credit.

This is a boxing film that was way ahead of the others because of the tight direction of Robert Wise.