Movie of the week: Pumping Iron

After meeting Arnold Schwarzenegger this past weekend, I felt inspired to watch the classic bodybuilding movie, Pumping Iron. As a long term fitness buff myself, I  still never understood the particular appeal of bodybuilding. However, Pumping Iron is a very entertaining and insightful look into the  bizarre world of bodybuilding, showcasing their dedication to the sport and the brotherhood that permeates the culture.
The documentary takes viewers directly into the lives and training sessions of Schwarzenegger, Lou Ferrigno, and Franco Columbu leading up to the 1975 Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia competitions. The former is given to the best amateur bodybuilder in the world and is won by Ken Waller. Waller engaged in some sabotage pre-competition by stealing the shirt of Mike Katz, which then throws him off during his posing for the crowd. Katz, who finishes fourth, still takes the time to shake Waller's hand.
Mr. Olympia, the award given to the best professional bodybuilder in the world, is the main focus of the movie. Schwarzenegger, the reigning five-time champion, is the favorite to repeat with Ferrigno and Columbu being his biggest competition. Its Schwarzengger's passion and passion for the sport that provides insight into the world of bodybuilding. He  compares their efforts in the gym to that of sculpting a statue and even goes as far to describe the feeling of getting his muscles pumped to a sexual climax.
 Throughout the movie the differences in training and personality between Schwarzenegger and Ferrigno become apparent. Schwarzenegger is cocky, charismatic, and trains at the now infamous Golds Beach in Venice, with tons of other bodybuilders. Ferrigno, who became deaf in childhood, is introverted, unsure of himself and trains with his dad in a basement in Brooklyn, New York.
Although he is much younger, Ferrigno is three inches taller and outweighs Schwarzenegger by 30 pounds and is the first legitimate threat to dethrone the champ in the over 200 pounds category. Columbu, the favorite in the under 200 pound category, easily wins the competition and awaits his opponent for the final showdown for Mr. Olympia.
Being a mastermind in psyching out his opponents, the morning of the competition is no different. While eating breakfast with Ferrigno and his father, Schwarzenegger starts his subtitle jabs telling Lou to relax numerous times and even instructs his dad to calm him down in front of Ferrigno. He continues his taunting by laughing at Ferrigno's grunting during training and repeatedly tells him to calm down. The tactics work as Schwarzenegger is considered more impressive and wins the competition. After winning the over 200 pound weigh category, Schwarzenegger easily defeats the much smaller Columbu for his sixth title as Mr. Olympia and afterwards retires from bodybuilding. To a laymen like myself, Schwarzengger does not appear particularly more defined than his competition and is even smaller than Ferrigno. While his symmetry is to be applauded, his real strength is in his charisma and looks. He is far superior at charming people, the crowd, and the judges than his opponents and is by far the best looking competitor. I believe it was these skills that made him the best bodybuilder of all time. The end of the movie shows Schwarzenegger going back to America with Ferrigno and his family. Their interaction seems jovial as they too joke around and try to appear bigger than they other, showing that beyond the competitions lies a brotherhood. 
Although silly at times, I found this movie to be quite entertaining. I highly recommend it for any fitness buff, but  I believe anyone can enjoy it as well.
Final Score: 8.5 out of 10.

Trailer of the Week: Man of Steel

Man of Steel is the trailer of the week. After Bryan Singer's disastrous attempt at reviving the Superman franchise in 2006, it's weak reviews and poor box office led to a reboot of the Superman once again. It's taken several years, but with Zach Snyder directing and Christopher Nolan producing, Man of steel looks to be the best Superman movie since Christopher Reeve donned the cape. Led by relatively unknown actor Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Kevin Costner and Russell Crowe, Man of Steel cast is as strong as Superman himself.

Link to the Trailer

The Governator

I had the privilege of (briefly) meeting superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger yesterday at a book signing for his latest biography. "Total Recall," named after the famous sci-fi movie is his new biography discussing his entire life including his affair with his former house-keeper. First gaining prominence in the Body-Building world, the Austrian native went on to become one of Hollywood's biggest action stars with several hits including; True Lies, Predator, and The Terminator franchise. Although not the best actor, the former California Governor is renown for his action prowess and ability to deliver one-liners. Of course his impact was much more prominent in the Body-Building world than Movies or Politics. He won numerous Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia titles, helped make "Muscle Beach" a household name, and changed the world of fitness forever. With his career as Governor done, Arnold has already returned to the world of movies with his part in The Expendables 2 and has already begun to film more. Although his best work is likely behind him, The Governator may still have some magic up his sleeve.

Seth MacFarlane to host the oscars.

Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane has surprisingly been tabbed as the host the 2013 Academy Awards Show. Although MacFarlane is immensely talented with singing and voicework, he is known to push the envelope and his style of comedy is often based on situational randomness rather than sheer cleverness. MacFarlane's latest success was his hit movie Ted, which debuted this summer surpassing everyone's expectations. H However, will the voice actor be able to pull of hosting the Oscars with the same success? Overall, you have to applaud the Academy for trying to bring a new style to the Oscars. However, one cannot help but worry what kind of antics MacFarlane may pull.

The Avengers vs The Dark Knight Rises

Moviegoers were treated this past summer with two of the best comic book movies ever made: The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises. Both movies have been both critical acclaimed and financially successful and have spawned a debate as to which film was better. While The Avengers significantly out grossed the third Batman flick, it still left something to be desired. The Avengers was an exceptionally entertaining film that was fun to watch, but it lacked emotional depth and plot development. Considering the task assigned to director Joss Whedon, I think he did the best possible job at incorporating adequate screen time to each character. However difficult the task, one cannot help but ask for more of this grand film in the sense of character development. The best performance of this movie is given by the villain, Tom Hiddleston. As Loki, Hiddleston steps toe-to-toe with every single Avenger and holds his own against all of them. But of course in the end his army is no match for the heroes and good prevails.

Final Score is 8 out of 10

Movie nerds everywhere waited four long years for the release of The Dark Knight Rises. Although it could not fill the shoes of its incredible predecessor, the third Batman installment was an epic film and one of the best films to close a trilogy ever. Tom Hardy gives an awesome performance as Bane. Together his voice and powerful body language is enough to scare any viewer. Christian Bale is solid as both Bruce Wayne and Batman again while Anne Hathaway gives a tremendous performance as Selina Kyle and Catwoman. Michael Caine's is possibly the best supporting actor of the film, offering a brilliant performance in two of the movie's most emotional scenes. The biggest problem of TDKR is speedy recovery of Batman after such a serious spinal injury. However, replete with epic action sequences, an interesting plot, and incredible acting, The Dark Knight Rises is one hell of a movie.

Final Score is 9.5 out of 10. 

 Although The Avengers is a solid movie, its lack of plot development hinders its overall score and The Dark Knight Rises is a better movie and is ultimately my movie of the year

Trailer of the Week: Argo

While his acting ability has been questioned in the past, Ben Affleck has garnered considerable respect as a director with his first two films; Gone Baby Gone and The Town. Argo seems to be his most difficult task yet as its the his first film he directed outside of Boston and has a real life subject matter that needs to be told carefully and respectfully. Backed by Bryan Cranston and John Goodman, Affleck leads an all star cast poised to deliver another hit.

Link to the Argo trailer

End of Watch Delievers and Then Some

I was originally hesitant to see End of Watch due to the plethora of mediocre cop films produced year after year. However, the film greatly exceed my expectations and is a must see for any moviegoer. Set in South-Central, director David Ayers uses a hand-held camera technique to take viewers on a two hour ride along through one of Los Angeles' toughest neighborhoods. The hand-held camera technique delivers a sense of realism often missed in many cop movies, but often does a disservice in the more action-packed scenes. However unattractive it may be, this technique gives viewers a perspective often not seen in cop movies. The strength of the movie is bolstered by the performances of Jake Gyllenhaal(Brian Taylor) and the perpetually underrated Michael Peña (Michael Zavala). Throughout the film's entirety, one does not question the bromance between the pair nor their ability to portray cops. From the first to last frame, the friendship between these two cops permeates each and every scene. Each new shift brings insight into their relationship and it becomes evident early on that these two men are more than merely friends; they're brothers that would stop at nothing to do anything for one another. Throughout the film, Gyllenhaal and Peña's give exceptionally believable performances as real life cops. From the conversations the have in their squad car to the way they apprehend suspects, both actors look and act how people believe a cop would. Big in stature, one would hardly question Gyllenhaal's physical capability of portraying a cop. However, even the smaller and less fit Peña makes believers out of the audience through a rough brawl with a much bigger and menacing street thug. If I could sum this movie up in one word it would be "Epic." Rarely has a movie ever been so Bromantic yet so emotionally gripping at the same time. So go see End of Watch. You will not be disappointed. Its as the second best movie of the year after The Dark Knight Rises. Final Grade: 9.5 out of 10.