Strongman

Even big guys get the blues, as viewers will see in this powerful (in more ways than one) and engaging cinematic character study. Zachary Levy's debut film serves up a winning profile of Stanley “Stanless Steel” Pleskun, of South Brunswick, NJ. An old-school strongman who could have stepped out of Coney Island in the days of vaudeville, Stan lifts cars in parking lots, pounds nails with his hands at private-booking kiddie parties, hoists platforms loaded with people using one finger, and (his personal specialty) folds coins in his big hands, turning a penny into a two-year anniversary present for his chain-smoking love, Barbara. Stan shoulders domestic friction with Barbara and her disapproving sister, while also harboring professional envy for better-paid fake strongmen in Cirque du Soleil, all the while pining for something more meaningful in his "craft." Stan also avidly watches The Honeymooners, and after a while he really comes to resemble Ralph Kramden (albeit with the ability to bend horseshoes) in this incredibly entertaining fly-on-the-wall portrait of a fascinating character. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: C, P. (C. Cassady)