Underplayed Gems

Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story (1980)

Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story poster
Original title
Fighting Back: The Story of Rocky Bleier
Directed by
Robert Lieberman
Genre
biographical film, American football film
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 35m
Rating
5.0 of 10 from 1 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

A football player is drafted into the Vietnam War and suffers severe leg injuries. Doctors say he will never walk again, but he works hard in rehabilitation and returns to train with his team with support from his wife and coaches. He eventually helps them win a championship.

inspirationaldeterminedemotionalupbeatsinceremovingtriumphantpersonal

What happens

Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story is a 1980 made-for-television movie about the life of Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rocky Bleier, portrayed by Robert Urich. Based on Bleier's 1975 autobiography of the same name, it tells the story of how after becoming a running back for the Steelers in 1968, Bleier was drafted by the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. Injured by a bullet to the thigh and a hand grenade to the lower right leg, Bleier is told that he will never walk again. Not only does he walk again after a long rehabilitation, but Bleier also returns to train with the Steelers. With the sympathy and support of his wife Aleta (Bonnie Bedelia), Steelers owner Art Rooney (Art Carney), and coach Chuck Noll (Richard Herd), Bleier makes the team again and helps them become Super Bowl champions. This movie is a rarity among MTM Productions in that its rights remain co-owned with the network which originally aired the movie, although ABC's parent company The Walt Disney Company now holds the rights to the MTM library through Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution on behalf of Twentieth Television. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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