I finally got a chance to watch Pumping Iron last weekend, which I've been meaning to see for ages. It's basically the story — which I use very literally — of Arnold Schwarzenegger's pursuit of his sixth Mr. Olympia title in 1977. Someone kindly lent me the 25th anniversary special edition of the film.
The most fascinating part of the film for me was the revelations afterwards in the "Raw Iron" featurette about the making of the film. Everyone knows that documentary films exhibit some bias of their makers, but it's revealed afterwards that Pumping Iron has some broad fictional elements to add drama and marketability to the film. I'm not criticizing the film makers here (they consistently refer to the film as a docu-drama) but I was surprised how much of the original film I took at face value. I'm a reasonably critical audience member, but I passively accepted that the tension between Arnold and the film's antagonist was real and that other parts of the film were unscripted.
Aside from being a very entertaining film, coupled with the added features Pumping Iron provides a fascinating insight into the documentary process and also into the strange world Arnold was a part of at that time.
There is also an interesting scene in the Raw Iron segment where Arnold and a couple of other body builders are part of an art exhibit at the Whitney Museum, posing as real life statuary. It was part fundraising event, part art exhibit.
Comments
Joaquin - March 24, 2005 4:45 AM
I really loved seeing Schwarzenegger being so loose: forgetting vitamins, doing drugs, "socializing" with nice ladies... He must have had a lot of fun in those days!
And I'm sure some of it was scripted, but since I really enjoyed the film, I don't really care about that.
Paul - March 24, 2005 11:44 AM
What it is chief? Your "little weblog" is seriously pimped, designtastic, extraordinaire. I love your favicon collection staring me down on the right side. If tangmonkey were still being updated I would insist that you add us. Really though, a tang coloured monkey makes for a wonderful mascot, "We're the Internet's Hot Cousin - the One Everyone wants to Sleep With" or my personal favourite, "Our Creative Juices Spewed All Over Your Browser"
Anyhoo, I'm heading back to the Island in late May so we'll have to get together before then for a little basketball or a night out on the town.
Chin chin,
Paul
matty - April 5, 2005 7:58 PM
If it was partially scripted then they did quite well making Arnold look like an ass. One thing you can say about the guy, he will anything to win. Whether to deceive his "best friend and child" Franco Columbo by not hesitating to give him the wrong training info or playing mind games with the childlike Ferrigno he truly showed that he was the best. I thought it was a great film. Maybe they shoul've brought this one out for mulitple screenings before the California Governor Vote?