10 Least Romantic Movies Ever Released On Valentine's Day
4. Over The Top
The big romantic movies that you probably associate with 1987 – Dirty Dancing and Moonstruck – were released to American theaters during the fall so if you wanted to see something mushy on Valentine’s Day you had a choice between a movie about a bookseller (84 Charing Cross Road), a movie about a dummy that comes to life (Mannequin) and a movie where Sylvester Stallone attempts to arm wrestle his way into your heart.
Intended as a serious drama, Over The Top casts Stallone as “Lincoln Hawk”, a musclebound trucker with two objectives – making amends with his young son and winning the World Arm Wrestling Championship in Las Vegas, where the top prize is $100,000. Cue lots of soap opera clichés as Sly tries to bond with his son, his father-in-law tells him he’s a loser so he drives his truck through the guy’s front room etc.
About as romantic as a wet sock, Over The Top is full of dudes with manly names like Mad Dog Madison whose rippling muscles are shown in extreme close-up. The only major female character dies halfway through, so it’s fair to say this is one for the boys.