Bigger, Stronger, Faster* Review

5 Comments

1. thornhillatthemovies.com says:

   July 1, 2010 at 10:46 am

   Review by thornhillatthemovies.com for Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
   Rating:
   “Bigger, Stronger, Faster”, the new documentary from Chris Bell, and produced by many of the people who have worked on Michael Moore’s documentaries, is a very entertaining, level-handed look at the use of steroids in America.

   “Bigger” is better than your average documentary for two key reasons. Chris Bell is a likable, very real guy and he guides us through this maze of information much like he probably learned about it in the first place, giving us an in depth look into the use of steroids and how they have affected both the practice and perception of sports in America, and to a lesser extent, the world.

   The second, and perhaps more important reason this film sticks out is because it comes from a personal place in Chris’ life. As he quickly explains during the beginning of the film, he was the middle of three children, all boys, who grew up with a loving, overweight mother and a loving, but busy with work father. In an attempt to stand out from the rest of the kids, each of the brothers decides to take up weight lifting and try to become famous as wrestlers, hoping to follow the likes of their heroes, Hulk Hogan, Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger into the limelight. They each transform their chubby bodies into bulky muscle powerhouses, but the fame is still fleeting.

   Chris’ older brother, Mark, actually makes it into the WWE, but his role is that of the guy who always gets beaten up by the more powerful and more famous wrestlers. He doesn’t last long. So he starts to take steroids.

   Chris decides the way to make it into the limelight is to move to Southern California, to be closer to the action, and the auditions. He naturally ends up at Venice Beach and gets a job working in Gold’s Gym, the place made famous by many weightlifters and body builders, by Schwarzenegger and Stallone. In a particularly telling moment, Chris speaks with one of the gym members, a man well past his prime who continues to work out at the gym, and lives in his small van in the gym parking lot. You can tell from the expression on Chris’ face he sees the similarities between them as he looks at the guys living quarters. You can almost see him pray that he won’t end up in the same situation; homeless, working out, continuing to hope for stardom.

   Chris’ younger brother, Mike, had development problems growing up, so he decided to follow his other brothers into weightlifting and bodybuilding. This focus clearly helped him to improve his life and his attention to detail, but he also decides to try to improve the workouts through the use of steroids.

   Chris knows his brothers use steroids, but he has stayed away from them. He wonders why one of three children would feel the need to do things the ‘right’ way, the harder way, and stay away from the drugs? This is what leads him on the journey through this documentary.

   The best scenes involve Chris and his family. On a visit home, he talks to his mom, a perfectly likable, overweight, middle-aged woman who spends her life as a stay-at-home mom. As they talk, she makes a batch of her famous bar cookies for a local high school sports team. It is unclear why she still makes these for the local high school, but it is clear the bars are both very good and not low fat. Chris claims his mother doesn’t know that his brother use steroids. She may not admit it, but you can tell she knows. Late in the film, Chris has dinner with his brothers and mom and dad and steers the conversation towards steroids, hoping that his brothers will finally admit it to their parents. Mom asks a few questions, giving the brothers an opportunity to come clean. But they keep their secret. And so does mom.

   As he meets with and talks to his brothers, we learn each of their stories and they couldn’t be more different.

   But Chris also seeks to understand the influence of steroids throughout sports. He speaks with many people, both pro and con, amateur and professional, and it appears that everyone is using some sort of enhancement. As the tagline for the film states “if everyone is doing something, can it be illegal?”

   He talks about how heartbroken he was when he learned Hulk Hogan was using steroids, despite all of the famous wrestler’s encouragement to get bigger through hard work. He talks about former NFL player Lyle Alzado’s sickness, which the NFL Player attributed to the use of steroids. Interestingly, the footage from an interview used in the film features Maria Shriver in her pre-Mrs. Ahnuld career. He talks about Stallone and interviews both Carl Lewis and Floyd Landis. These moments, interspersed with graphics, and other amusing methods of presenting the message, combined with the personal side of the story, make for compelling viewing.

   There are also a few scenes from an old after school special featuring Ben Affleck dealing with the side effects of using steroids. These scenes provide a welcome moment of laughter because they are so over the top and heavy handed.

   I think Chris may have actually found his entry into the limelight. I could easily see him parlaying this film into a television series or series of specials, ala Morgan Spurlock. They have similar personalities and Spurlock has made a number of films and season 3 of “30 Days”, the series of documentaries he makes for FX is currently airing. Chris is an extremely pleasant, likable person who clearly listens to his subjects, whatever their position, taking everything in. As he presents both sides of the argument, he appears to be genuinely interested in what they have to say, waiting for them to finish and for his mind to process before forming an opinion of his own.
2. Rocky Raccoon says:

   July 1, 2010 at 11:09 am

   Review by Rocky Raccoon for Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
   Rating:
   “That, that, that don’t kill me, can only make me stronger.” Kanye West-”Stronger”

   `Bigger, Stronger, Faster’ is fair, fun, and informative. Thoroughly taking every angle on the issue of steroid use, filmmaker Christopher Bell has ample material to back up his case for and against one of the most used and abused drugs going nowadays.

   First he focuses on his own family. He is the middle child of three boys. Mike “Mad Dog” Bell is the eldest, and Mark “Smelly” Bell is the youngest. All three have aspirations of bigness. Literally. Mark wants to be a professional wrestler, and Mike wants to be a champion power-lifter. All three have used steroids. Chris, the narrator, only used it once, but stopped because he thought it was “immoral”. This openness may have us questioning his credentials, but he is as thorough as he is fair.

   Among his interviewees are John Romaro, senior editor of `Muscular Development,’ Dr. Guy Wilder, New Jersey Congressman, Henry Waxman, Floyd Landis, Carl Lewis and Ben Johnson. His highlights include video clips from several steroid scandals, including the ones on Capital Hill featuring Jose Canseco, Mark McGuire, and Barry Bonds. We also get some footage of Senator Joe Biden’s indignation as well as Senator Orin Hatch’s impassioned pleas for deregulation of supplements.

   To indicate the fairness and breadth of this documentary, Bell interviews an HIV survivor who testifies and shows convincing evidence that steroids have saved and improved his life. Another selling point is when he interviews Donald Hooton, father of his deceased son, Keller, who allegedly took his own life after withdrawing from steroids. Here they reveal that the boy was on prescription anti-depressants as well. On the con side, he interviews Gregory Valentino, who admits that steroid abuse have given him the largest, but most hideous biceps. He even interviews porn star, Christian Boeving, for Pete’s sake.

   One of the best features Bell presents is the straightforward “Steroids 101,” which sorts out myth from fact well on the side effects of steroids.

   Although he tries, as a filmmaker he isn’t as smooth or funny as Morgan Spurlock or Andy Rooney, but his thrust is so exhaustive, yet honest, you can’t help but admire his ability to present a case and let the people watching make up their own minds. Christopher Bell doesn’t hide his misgivings about those whom he felt cheated to win, but it’s rare that you get someone so upfront about his agenda, yet so willing to give everyone a chance to speak their minds.

   A J.P.’s Pick 4*’s =Very Good
3. Andy Orrock says:

   July 1, 2010 at 11:19 am

   Review by Andy Orrock for Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
   Rating:
   Chris Bell’s “Bigger, Stronger Faster*” is a brilliant documentary. His triumph is to crystallize the steroids debate into its effects on a single family: His own. The stars of the film are the Bell brothers – big brother Mark (aka, Mad Dog) is a would-be WWE wrestler; younger brother Mike (aka, Smelly) is one of the world’s top power lifters; and writer/director Chris – no less addicted to perfecting his physique – balances his bodybuilding obsession with a degree from USC Film School. His unique blend of interest and career path has given us a fascinating film.

   Here’s the thing: his work is neither ardently pro- nor anti-steroids. But, as its subtitle (“the side-effects of being American”) implies, Bell notes what happens when three young brothers obsessed with wrestling (we see family tapes of them re-enacting WWE plotlines) have the various heroes of their youth (Arnold Schwarzenegger, Hulk Hogan, and Sylvester Stallone as notable examples) subsequently revealed as pharmaceutically-fueled.

   It’s a testament to Bell’s skill as a filmmaker that the unexpected standout is Smelly’s wife, Andie. Attractive and articulate, she emerges as the soul of the film. She comes across as a decent, trusting person. Without belaboring the point, Bell makes you see her as testament to his brother’s depth and inherent goodness. Her presence also evokes feelings of betrayal in the film-goer when Smelly begins to waffle on his “no more steroids” vow at the end of the film.

   Despite the glut of documentaries that have flooded the film world over the past two years, this one ranks at the top of my list.
4. Clyda Bell says:

   July 1, 2010 at 11:27 am

   Review by Clyda Bell for Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
   Rating:
   Clever, Funny, Touching!!! An absolute MUST see. A family touched by the use of steriods, a parent’s perspective through tragedy and triumph. The good, the bad, the ugly and anything you can imagine in between. This movie is so objective it begs you to have your own opinion about the topic. Don’t miss it, buy a copy for your local high school or library… Tons of acurate information that will benefit the masses!
5. Sandro Fabres Viana says:

   July 1, 2010 at 12:03 pm

   Review by Sandro Fabres Viana for Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
   Rating:
   Finally the truth about the Ben Johnson’ case. The whole world know that the american athletes only compete “in juice”. Always there were stories about a tam arriving in a country to a competition and, when knew that they have a dopping test, the whole team returned to america. Also, is was commom, some years ago, that always when a no american athlet won a international competion, some “dopping test” take back the medal and it fall in american hands. We, that live in another countries always was intrigued how it can happen ,if american atlets are always ” in juice”?!!
   
   This docummentary show how, explainin that Ben Johson/Carl Lewis controversy and we have only a honest conclusion to this: in a competition wiht all athletes juiced, the real champion was Ben Johnson, not Carl Lewis. However, this film show much more than this and help to clear some myths against steroids.

   A much more message dominates the whole film: Why these poor people think that they only worth if they “the first one, the better one, the bigger one”? This point apperas to in Bowling for Columbine. What is wrong with a view of a whole society that can not be happy being good husband, good worker, good friend, good father or mother? THIS IS RESULT OF A IDEOLOGICAL BRAINWASH! You have no right to happiness if you are not a “perfect gear to the system”.

   Only a point I think that is a little exagerating: Arnold Schwarzenegger is the “dark ship” in this film. Please, when he began, so much muscles was a obstacle, not a advantage, to actor career! He launched a new standard because he is a PERSONALITY. The secret never were his muscles or he never would act in another movies beyond adventures. We always like his face, his voice, his charisma, and if in USA there are thousands of musclemen, the most in juice, how explain that they are not so famous as Schwarzenegger? The muscles never was the answer to success, there is no shortcuts to explain this, some people have qualities that, as unique human beings, help them to be a success in some goals and are obstacles to another, and the most of them are innate qualities, not created qualities, as a brainwasher ideology would like the people believe.

   The problem with steroids is the truth: if the champions always tell the truht and the people can choose if they want to risk their health to be “hugge” or “the first one”, or if they will choose ohter goal or other heroes that do’t use them. For example, if you know that a man 5’9″ only can reach 220 lbs with natural training you can be satisfied and a sucess weighting 200-220. But if you, because steroids, believe that a man 5’9″ can wieght 280lbs, you will kill yourself trying to reach this, and when you reach ONLY 220lbs you can think that you are a failure. If you know the truth you can choose the truth or the cheating, and analize your sucess in a more realistic base (220 to natural, 280 to juiced). The truth free us, always!