Bigger Stronger Faster*

The post by reviewer "Melkmail" that this movie is "a pro steroid message disguised as an unbiased expose" is quite interesting, and I would agree with him that this film is not the masterpiece of objectivity which some people claim it to be. What I would say is that you will hear some pro-steroid views expressed which might not agree with what you are normally used to hearing about those chemicals. Among other things, Chris Bell has drawn a comparison between the over-the-top anti-marijuana ads of yesteryear (e.g. "Reefer Madness") and the anti-steroid views of the present day. I certainly doubt that those two campaigns are comparable. Similarly, the film points out that steroids have achieved wonderful results in treating illness and injury, as if that in the slightest way mitigates the alleged damage caused by steroid abuse. I don't know about you, but I would hardly be encouraged to take steroids just because someone told me that my testicles would return to normal size after I stopped using steroids.

What is also very interesting about "Bigger, Stronger, Faster" is that the persons interviewed on both sides of the steroid question are not exactly portrayed as "normal." In the interview with Congressman Henry Waxman is edited to depict him as a bit of a flake who does not have a grasp of details or facts. Likewise, those segments in which anti-steroid physician Dr. Gary Wadler is interviewed make him look a bit of a charlatan. Those two men were shown in the worst possible light, and I believe that documentary maker Chris Bell did this deliberately. So much for objectivity.

However, the body-builders, athletes, and coaches who openly advocate steroid use come off no better. It may not have been Bell's intention, but almost all of those pro-steroid folks strike one as a bit abnormal, and a couple of them even appear to be in need of serious psychological help. Is that what long-time steroid use does to a person? There are women who look and talk like men, and men who are almost as wide as they are tall.

Even knowing that those physical results have been achieved with the aid of anabolic steroids it's obvious that all those people have still put in tremendous amounts of hard work to be able to achieve the physical appearance and strength that they have; but the end result for many of them is an freakish appearance that might be more expected from one of Dr. Mengele's monstrous experiments.

The most sensible person in the whole film is Chris Bell's father Sheldon who has seen the effect of steroids use in his own family. He and his wife Rosemary both deserve a lot of credit for permitting themselves to be interviewed in the film.

What is especially shocking about the film, though, is not steroid use, per se. Rather, it is the openly expressed view among steroid advocates that because "everyone does it" they are going to do it, too. The do-gooders in this film may be depicted in a deliberately poor light, but the steroid advocates come across as having absolutely no moral compass. They openly and proudly advocate cheating in sport because their competitors cheat. So, this is what sport has become in America and around the world - a competition among cheaters. Kind of makes you wonder how these people can look at their wide, bloated faces in the mirror each morning.

The documentary "Bigger, Stronger, Faster" provides a decidedly unconventional - indeed, controversial - take on the use of anabolic steroids. Rather than pointing out the dangers of such use, the film seems to be making the opposite case: that steroids are really no more problematic than myriad other performance-enhancement substances and techniques used by athletes to better their game. And, if anything, it is the American obsession with being the biggest, the strongest and the fastest that may be the real culprit in the first place.

Christopher Bell, who directs, narrates and appears prominently in the film, was a short, fat kid when he and his two brothers, Mark and Mike, the latter of whom died not long after the release of the movie, became obsessed with achieving fame and fortune through bodybuilding, power-lifting and professional wrestling. With media-savvy role models such as Hulk Hogan, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone serving as their inspiration, the boys eventually turned to steroid use to improve their chances of achieving their goal. But Chris always felt bad for trying steroids, mainly because the media and the people around him kept telling him that it was both dangerous and immoral to do so. So he quit. Now, through his film, Chris has decided to find an answer to his question of whether steroids really are such a bad thing - in terms of their effect on both the body and competitive fairness - or whether their negative reputation is largely a product of media hype.

He spends a good amount of his time in the film seeking out professional athletes, coaches, and "experts" in the field, only to find that the "experts" – whether in the medical field or the halls of Congress – don't really have the facts to buttress their case, and that most of the athletes he talks to flat-out admit to using steroids themselves.

Chris really aims his opprobrium at the modern American obsession with achieving fame, fortune and physical perfection at any and all costs – a group in which he includes himself and his brothers. There's a particularly pointed and witty moment as a psychologist he's interviewing points to the slow but noticeable evolution of the GI Joe action figure over the decades, from a fairly trim average guy in the '50s to a muscle-bound, six-packed, super-hunk today. Chris calls out the media for its complicity in this obsession with the models that are used in advertising and the actors who have achieved superstar status on screen.

Chris's main thesis is that steroid users are being unfairly singled out, while people in other areas of life - like college students and musicians who take performance-enhancing drugs - are not similarly accused of cheating. It's the hypocrisy that seems to bother Chris the most. He points out that the same Congress that brought baseball players in to testify about doping in that field also managed to deregulate a supplement industry that finds ways to rip off consumers with the promise of physical perfection. He likewise attacks the pharmaceutical industry that continually feeds America's obsession with consuming drugs as a means of achieving health and happiness. He also points out just how easy it is to procure access to all kinds of drugs – both legal and illegal – if the determination is there and the price right.

By focusing so heavily on his own family, Chris really personalizes the issue for the audience and prevents the movie from becoming just another finger-wagging, cautionary-tale polemic. This also brings us the film's most poignant moments as he and his brothers engage in moments of fruitful soul-searching and their parents reveal how they feel about the issue.

"Bigger, Stronger, Faster" is likely to upset some in the audience who feel it's taking a somewhat cavalier approach to what is generally considered to be nothing short of a scourge plaguing our nation. But Chris seems to be making some good points, even if he isn't coming right out and endorsing the use of anabolic steroids. He seems more concerned with exactly WHY we are so obsessed with being the biggest, strongest and fastest. And that deeper dimension is what winds up giving his film the competitive edge it needs to win.

I took 15 different anabolic steroids, oral and injectable, the original human growth hormone, and HCG during my four years of anabolic use in the early 80s as a competitive powerlifter, bodybuilder, and college baseball and hockey player...but now I'm a school teacher with a master's in math, so I'm not a total blockhead. I learned about 'roids from the best (Dr. James Wright, who did steroid research for the US Army), was involved in the drug trade with the best (England's Tony Fitton), and have been the subject of numerous studies, print stories, books, and shows (Time, Harvard University, Boston Museum of Science, Nightline to name a very few). That being noted, this was easily the most honest, straightforward and truthful program I've ever witnessed about anabolics - and that includes all the stuff I've been involved in. Those who don't agree simply don't have the experience to realize that, so it's not really their fault, they are just consumed with personal opinion and bias based on little to no first-hand knowledge and the misdirected media. Throw everything else in the trash, this show is the best.

If nothing else, this documentary (that took a very level-headed approach to weighing the pros & cons of steroid use amongst athletes/bodybuilders) was certainly well-worth a view just to get an eye-popping look at Greg Valentino's ridiculously over-developed biceps, as well as seeing a heavily muscled Belgian Blue bull (sans steroids) up close.

But besides these 2 very freakish curiosities, this fairly satisfied viewer was also very pleasantly surprised by how well-researched and competently presented Bigger Stronger Faster* was. I certainly wasn't expecting to be this impressed with this documentary.

Very professionally directed by Chris Bell (whose 2 older brothers were both avid steroid users), I found this entertaining documentary to be quite fair-minded about its research regarding the positive benefits of taking steroids as opposed to their negative side-effects, which showed clear links to cancer, heart attacks and erratic behaviour (roid rage).

Through interviews with medical experts, sports figures, etc., etc., Chris Bell's documentary repeatedly brought into question the use of steroids amongst high-profile athletes. And, as a result of this, brought some of America's biggest heroes in the arena of sports (who are praised to the heavens) down a few significant notches from their lofty positions on their pedestals.

Wow. It's been easily 10 years since watching this. Man have I grow up. But the re-watch of this is somewhat laughable. I used to think steroids were bad and horrible and worse than actual meth or H. But it ain't folks. Far from it. It's interesting now that I've grown up and learned so much how seeing the story about the kid who killed himself was NOT a result of steroids. It was the anti depressants. I suppose back when this was made that was not know as much. But now it's common knowledge. Especially in that age. Seeing the dad be a buffoon and blame juice is laughable while living in his mansion with a $3000 plus dog.

Are steroids bad? No, especially not if taken right. Do they give you an edge? Yep. They sure can. Does everyone who take gas get Arnold like? Hell no. It takes work and dedication. Not to mention a clean diet. When this was made the stereotype was everyone who takes juice gets huge. Even sitting on the couch. The realization is nope. It takes a stupid amount of work, diet, and TIME in the gym.

The best part of this was the showing of how magazines and supps are manipulated.

That still goes ok today. Cost $5 to make a pre-workout. Sells for $20. Hilarious right?

A side note. Taking vitamins are good for you. With a well balanced diet and exercise, it will help you. Are the overpriced? Sure. But they do help you.