Stay Hungry

5 Comments

1. Barron Laycock says:

   September 5, 2010 at 10:53 am

   Review by Barron Laycock for Stay Hungry
   Rating:
   For a film with the kind of ensemble star power that this art-film had, one woul d be surprised to find that it also was the first serious role for future mega-star Arnold Schwarzenegger, playing a suprisingly articulate and overwhelmingly personally irresistable bodybuilder, in essence, himself. yet this first attempt at serious acting was with the support of Jeff Bridges and Sally Field, both with big reputations , and also from famed director Bob Rafelson, who has done a lot of stellar work. The plot is a bit silly and contrived; Bridges plays a down on his luck good ole boy, who tries unsuccesfully at first to ploy his charm into talking the owner of a small and musty gym into relinquishing his lease so Bridges’ shady real estate partners can go ahead with a big down-town development. The problem is that Bridges begins to empathize with and befriend this motley crew of off-beat character, including the ever-smiling and instantly likeable Arnold, who shows himself to be quite adept at handling a fiddle. And incidentally, that really is him playing as the film cranks away. The film never saw wide distribution, but is quite interesting because of who was in it as well as for some of the connections hovering just below the surface. The screen writer was also the author of the original novel, a guy named Charles Gaines, who had gone on to later co-author the smash best selling book, “Pumping Iron”, whose primary focus of interest was, of course, Arnold Schwarzenegger. This is a good movie for a rainy afternoon, sweet and sentimental in all the right places, if somewhat insubstantial. Think of it as “Going My Way” on steroids! I think you’ll be surprised how much you like it, in spite of some hokey moments. Enjoy!
2. Peter J. Raia-jr says:

   September 5, 2010 at 11:16 am

   Review by Peter J. Raia-jr for Stay Hungry
   Rating:
   To begin, I’m a life-long bodybuilder and Arnold Schwarzenegger fan, so, although he’s strictly a co-star in this, I’m obviously biased. That being said, however, I absolutely LOVE this movie all around! One of my favorite parts is the way some of the very best advice I’ve ever heard on friendships and relationships in general is dispensed throughout the film at times you didn’t even realize you were learning something. Examples: Joe Santo (Arnold) is putting Craig Blake (Jeff Bridges) through a workout and advising him, “You can’t grow without burning!”, and we come to realize just how profound that was when Joe repeats those words as the two dispute just why Mary Tate Farnsworth (Sally Field) left Joe for Craig. Also, there’s Craig’s uncle Albert, whose voice is heard previously at times reading letters to Craig, telling him, “It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you do something, and do it unsparingly.”. Again, awesome movie. I’ve worn out two videos of it thusfar, having watched it so many times. Time to get ANOTHER one…
3. David Baldwin says:

   September 5, 2010 at 11:54 am

   Review by David Baldwin for Stay Hungry
   Rating:
   If you were to take the packaging of “Stay Hungry” at face value you would think that the film is primarily a body-building film and that Arnold Schwarzenegger is the film’s star. Nothing could be further from the truth. The film’s main focus is about a recently orphaned rich kid(Jeff Bridges)from Birmingham,Alabama who along with his business partners is trying to buy a gym so they can tear it down and build apartments. These plans fall along the wayside when he falls for the gym’s cute gymnast(Sally Field) and developes a friendship with the champion bodybuider(Schwarzenegger).This film takes a while to warm to because of it’s unique rhythms. Bridges’ character isn’t an easy one to warm to because he seems a little self-absorbed and impulsive. That said, credit director Bob Rafelson for taking difficult material and making it interesting. As for Arnold’s performance, he’s very charismatic and has little trouble tackling the dramatic elements required of him. It’s a wonder he didn’t attempt more challenging roles in his career as opposed to the action parts that he churned out. Plus, he plays a mean fiddle.
4. C. Robinson says:

   September 5, 2010 at 12:02 pm

   Review by C. Robinson for Stay Hungry
   Rating:
   This is a great film for any Arnold fan to add to his/her collection. It is just a fun film to watch and get a good laugh at how we all were back then, you know what I’m talking about, and if you don’t , well then I suggest you buy this!
5. Anonymous says:

   September 5, 2010 at 12:07 pm

   Review by for Stay Hungry
   Rating:
   If you grew up in Birmingham, specifically Mountain Brook, in the 50s to the early 70′s, this movie is a hoot. Look closely and you can see all of the people you know in the characters of the movie. The characters are based on real people, making the movie far more entertaining for those who have been there.