Truck driver Lincoln Hawk, after abandoning his wife Christina, arrives at a military school to finally meet his son Mike (12). Lincoln takes Mike with him on a ride in his truck, showing him his skill: Lincoln is an expert in arm wrestling. Arriving at the hospital, they are informed that Christina died from a disease. An angry Mike takes a taxi to his rich grandfather Jason Cutler. Lincoln sells his truck, obtains 7,000$ for it and bets 20:1 on himself in an arm wrestling match in Las Vegas. Mike finds out his grandfather hid all the letters Lincoln was sending to him for years, so he goes to Las Vegas, where Lincoln manages to defeat the favorite, Bull. With the money, Lincoln and Mike decide to open their own company.
Israeli filmmaker Menahem Golan achieved huge success in his native country both as a producer ("The House on Cheleuche Street") and a director ("Operation Thunderbolt"), until he co-founded Cannon Films and started a new career in the US in the 80s. One of the American films he directed was a movie that was more hated than it deserved to be, the decent sport-road movie father-son drama "Over the Top", which has its 80s charm despite numerous flaws: the minute the truck passes by and the camera pans up towards a mountain in the background, while the title "Over the Top" pops up, you know it's going to be a cheesy ride. This is one of those 80s movies you cannot be mad at. Golan has a sense for some aesthetic images thanks to his cinematographer David Gurfinkel, such as the scene where the camera lingers on Lincoln sitting on the back side of his truck, looking in the distance. There are several problems in the storyline, though—for instance, the 12-year old Mike is picked up from school by a man who is a complete stranger to him, Lincoln (Sylvester Stallone), who claims to be his father based only on a photo of himself and Mike's mom.
While driving in the truck, Mike exits, runs across the highway, a car almost hits him, but he is chased after and caught by Lincoln who holds him and understands ("I hate you!" - "Then hate me, we have to start someplace!"). Wouldn't anyone from the driving cars stop and inquire about a man chasing after a little kid running away from his truck on the highway? The reason or motive for why Lincoln abandoned and never saw Mike in person was never explained. Equally as questionable are such weird moments as when Lincoln gives the 12-year old Mike the order to drive the truck in the street or to persuade him to himself participate in arm wrestling with random teenagers in a video game arcade, even though the kid clearly doesn't want it. In a way, there is a certain symbolism here: Lincoln represents the middle, working class, while grandfather Cutler represents the upper class, and Mike thus has to decide in which camp he belongs to. Lincoln "forces" Mike to be more humble, down to Earth, to "twitch" him out of the 'spoiled brat' mindset. Yet, these elements were not done in a good way. The arm wrestling finale is banal and too routine, with the typical happy ending for the underdog, yet even that isn't that bad and has its flair.
Grade:+
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