Pulling John

John Brzenk isn't a household name unless you follow the sport of arm wrestling -- but if you do, Brzenk is to his sport what Michael Jordan is to basketball or Muhammad Ali is to boxing. Born in 1964, Brzenk began competing seriously at age 16, and two years later he won his first world championship. Since then, Brzenk has been the man to beat in any serious international competition, and he has held the world arm wrestling championship for close to a quarter of a century. But at the age of 40, Brzenk finds himself facing the same questions that vex any great athlete.Should he retire while he's still at the top, or wait for time, age and stronger, younger competitors to strip him of his title?

This documentary also profiles two men regarded as likely candidates to take Brzenk's place as arm wrestling's king of the mountain -- Alexey Voevoda, a Russian from a long line of military heroes who wants to bring the championship home to his country, and Travis Bagent, a spirited young American who has followed Brzenk's career since he was a child and sees himself as the heir to his throne.

I thought Pulling John was an interesting documentary. I had no contact at all with arm wrestling; I didn't even know that there are official tournaments and it was nice to get a bit of insight into an overlooked sport that very few people talk about. At the same time, the subject is a bit limited. We are given some information about the beginnings of the sport and how it has evolved, the different techniques and so forth but let's not kid ourselves; in the end it's two guys trying to pull each other's arm. There's not a whole lot to talk about. That's why Pulling John focuses almost completely in this 3 individuals. Travis Bagent, the up-and-coming American who's extremely loud and obnoxious, Alexey Voevoda, the calm and collected Russian and Brzenk, the living legend. The human component is definitely what makes this documentary an interesting watch. Overall, it's quite entertaining and insightful, specially for someone who isn't familiarized with the sport of arm wrestling but it's not a great documentary by any means.

6.5/10

A mostly superficial glance at the world of professional arm wrestling, framed around the late-career biography of John Brzenk, the sport's resident living legend. With twenty-five years of domination (and a role in Sly Stallone's infamous action bomb Over the Top) under his belt, Brzenk knows his days are numbered, and Pulling John introduces his two most likely usurpers: the quiet, contemplative Russian Vassiliki Khonsari and his bombastic American counterpart, Travis Bagent. The trouble is, since each man has dedicated so much of their lives to the sport, there really isn't enough engaging material behind any of them to support closer scrutiny. We see them work out, watch them prepare for a match, meet their family... and always reach an uncomfortable lull in the conversation when it becomes clear that's all there is to see. The matches are a real spectacle, incredibly tense and exciting, even though most are over within moments. That's more a compliment to the drama of the sport itself, though, and not the work of the filmmakers. The backstage stuff isn't especially interesting, except perhaps to especially hardcore arm wrestling enthusiasts, and the electricity of the events would be just as effective on an ESPN2 broadcast.

This fascinating film had its World Premiere at SXSW Film Festival in Austin, TX. Most of the audience, myself included, probably had no idea that arm wrestling was even a professional sport when they walked in. And yet the film managed to charm the audience in the best tradition of documentaries about sports subcultures. I'd compare it with films like Pumping Iron, Word Wars, Murderball or King of Kong. The film focuses on 3 of the best international arm wrestlers - 1 Russian, 2 Americans - and reveals the complexities of their competitive sport. Their intelligence and commitment to excellence is revealed through interviews which break down many of the stereotypes associated with muscle sports. These guys are sophisticated and charming as well as strong.

The film also reveals the fascinating struggle of World Champion John Brzenk as he gets older and struggles with that question that all great athletes deal with: When do you reach your physical limits and decide that enough is enough and it is time to retire? We've seen this sort of question play out with the Brett Farves and Michael Jordans in more high profile sports, but this film allows us all to think about this same question much more thoughtfully.

The filming and storytelling is quite good and the drama and suspense of competition draws the audience in. The characters are complex and not simple athletic stereotypes. I hope more people get to see this entertaining sports documentary.

I rated Pulling John (2009) 6/10. Interesting doc, but feels very strangely edited. It is informative and entertaining, but it's just missing something. It is interesting to see where the "heroes" of the sport come from and what motivates them.

How exciting can you make a documentary about world-class arm wrestling?! So, although I am not giving this a huge score, for what it is, it's pretty good--but I just can't see its topic interesting the average viewer. I only watched it because I am weird--the word of guy who would watch practically any documentary! The film follows three arm wrestlers--one a Ukranian who lives in Russia and two Americans. One of the Americans, John Brzenk, is sort of like an arm wrestling god--as he's been a world champion in one weight class or another something like 25 years--even beating guys who are much, much larger! He is the man everyone aspires to beat and now two heavyweights (Alexy Voevoda and Travis Bagent--the Ukranian and the cocky upstart American) hope to finally be the guys to stop Brzenk.

There really isn't much more to the film than this--lots of footage of arm wrestling and lots of interviews with the camera. Both Brzenk and Voevoda seem pretty likable whereas Bagent is cocky--but it sure works for him! You do find yourself being pulled into the matches (which surprised me) and it was about as interesting as you could make this odd topic.