Mirror
★ 5 · 2009 · Documentary
Bodybuilding is the pure narcissism. While the runner struggles against time and the weightlifter struggles with the weights, the bodybuilder only has his mirror. Exercise programs, diets and hours and hours in a training room are only the outside of an extreme discipline and eternal struggle for the ideal body. An ideal body that, to most people, seems absurd, but nonetheless has a fascinating power. Not least because most people in the western world even know about the hunt for the perfect body.
More Like This
Pumping Iron
1977 · ★ 7.1
Amateur and professional bodybuilders prepare for the 1975 Mr. Olympia and Mr. Universe contests as five-time champion Arnold Schwarzenegger defends his Mr. Olympia title against Serge Nubret and the shy young Lou Ferrigno.
More info →
The Comeback
1980 · ★ 7
After an absence of five years, six times Mr Olympia winner Arnold Schwarzenegger makes a comeback and attempts to take the World Body Building Championship for the 7th time.
More info →
Evolution of Bodybuilding
2012 · ★ 6.2
Hear it straight from the Legends themselves about their stories of success and heartbreak. EVOLUTION OF BODYBUILDING offers a close look at what it takes to compete in the "Mr. Olympia" and how the industry has changes over the past 50 years.
More info →
Quest of the Muscle Nerd
2019 · ★ 7.5
Quest of the Muscle Nerd is a quirky and heartwarming documentary about one man's dream to host the first ever Bodybuilding/Cosplay competition and the two men who drag their bodies through hell to claim the crown.
More info →Supersize She
2005
Joanna is the youngest female body builder to get her 'pro' card at 20 years old. Born and bred in Cornwall, she has moved to LA to pursue her dream to win 'Miss Olympia', the ultimate bodybuilding competition. A personal journey into Joanna's struggles as an athlete and insights into the strange and misunderstood world of female bodybuilding.
More info →The Bodybuilder and I
2007
A heartwarming and comedic look at a unique father and son relationship. Documentary director Bryan Friedman reunites with his long-estranged bodybuilding father, 59-year-old "Grandmaster" Bill Friedman, as he pumps iron, tans, and watches his weight - all in preparation for a final shot at winning back the senior bodybuilding title he once held.
More info →
Man Made
2018
From adoption and homelessness to navigating relationships and overcoming self-harm, the four transmen in MAN MADE all have something else in common: they are all bodybuilders. Through the lens of FTMFitCon, the world’s only FTM bodybuilding competition, we delve into the lives of Dominic, Rese, Mason, and Kennie as they define what it means to be a man while contextualizing that definition through the social, racial, and economic realities of their lives. For the men of MAN MADE, it’s not about winning—it’s about stepping on stage and being seen for everything they are.
More info →
Adonis
2024 · ★ 8
A hard-hitting documentary that tackles head-on a controversial but increasingly alarming subject: young men's obsession with the perfect body, and the use of performance-enhancing drugs to achieve it. Once the preserve of top-level athletes, the use of anabolic steroids has become endemic among teenagers and young men with a passion for bodybuilding. Daring to tackle head-on the taboo of male beauty standards, Adonis offers a field investigation into the heart of this muscle-building machine, questioning the reasons behind and the physical, psychological and social risks of this race to the perfect body. As he stages his own vulnerability, the filmmaker lifts the veil on the scale of the public health crisis that is looming.
More info →
Strongman: Beyond the Mountain
2019
Before he was "The Mountain" on Game of Thrones, Hafthor Julius Bjornsson was on a mission to become the World's Strongest Man.
More info →
Generation Iron 5: Persia
2022
Documentary about bodybuilding’s rise in the Persian regions, feat. 2022 Mr Olympia Hadi Choopan.
More info →
Generation Iron 2
2017 · ★ 6.8
From the director of Generation Iron, comes the anticipated sequel that will depict 5 of the top bodybuilding and fitness mega-stars on a quest of achieving the ultimate physique and taking it to the next extreme level. In the world of social media and internet, the rules have changed as to what makes an iconic bodybuilding mass-monster. Starring Kai Greene, Calum Von Moger, Rich Piana, among others, this film will explore an all new generation of bodybuilders and how this new world, and new people, carve their own path to physique perfection.
More info →