Part 1 of our in-depth look at the making of Modern bodybuilding’s first feature film, hitting this September
BY DAVE LEE
PHOTOGRAPHS BY CHRIS SORENSON/THE VLADAR COMPANY
From the opening clip of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Franco Columbu plié-ing in a ballet studio, to the piano chords leading into Michael Small’s theme song with the great first lyric “Everybody wants to live forever,” to the training (with gym equipment you’re likely to find only in man caves), to the contest scenes, and everything in between—oh, and all the dialogue that’s been quoted by bodybuilders everywhere for the past 36 years—1977’s Pumping Iron, starring Schwarzenegger, Columbu, Lou Ferrigno, Ed Corney, Mike Katz, and Serge Nubret, among others, has been the inspiration for generations of aspiring bodybuilders.
Now, with the big-screen release of Generation Iron this September, bodybuilding gets a long-awaited and long-overdue makeover. Narrated by Oscar-nominated and Golden Globe-winning actor Mickey Rourke, Generation Iron takes over where Pumping Iron left off. Filmed last year, the docudrama stars Phil Heath, Kai Greene, Branch Warren, Dennis Wolf, Roelly Winklaar, Ben Pakulski, and Hidetada Yamagishi, and captures the real-life drama of the sport’s greatest athletes as they vie to become the 2012 Mr. Olympia.
For the rest of this article go to– Flex Online
