It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This is an honest David-and-Goliath story; a documentary / body-building version of Rocky vs Creed. At the center is a pre-fame Arnold Schwarzenegger; cunning, egotistical, charismatic and hilarious. The film manages to admire these men and their insanely unnatural bodies, while knowingly allowing us to bashfully giggle at the scantily clad, oily muscles at every turn. Highly entertaining look at a world we're all aware of but rarely get to actually know.

Meet the absolute, ultimate giants of he-man muscle.As some of the biggest and brawniest bodybuilders in the world train, like total fiends, for the up-coming "Mr. Olympia" contest in Pretoria, South Africa, the viewer gets a front row seat to see all of the action, which includes exclusive interviews from a number of these top contenders who are diligently going for the title, like Lou Ferrigno, Franco Columbu, Mike Katz, Ken Wallace, and, of course, Arnold Schwarzenegger.Pumping Iron really is an excellent documentary. It contains lots of very good footage and gives the viewer a clear insight into the mind-set of these devoted men who pump iron with an absolute passion.I highly recommend this film to one, and all.

I really love this movie! I don't believe you can watch it and not sign up for a gym. It just gives you so much desire to start fitness-training. Maybe not on their level, but still you get the desire to pump some serious iron. Moreover, the dialog is incredible. The movie is from 1977, a funny period in time, and it is as if every line of dialog contains a great joke or something. I guess, a lot of superfluous material has been cut out, and the filmmakers have only kept the relevant stuff. I don't have any extra material on my copy of the DVD, so I don't know. Anyway, this is a great movie not only to see Arnold but also to see other legends of bodybuilding like for example Mike Katz and many others.

Pumping Iron is a great documentary. A rather revealing look at the then smaller world of body-building. Audiences are introduced to the charismatic, brash and overly-confident Arnold Schwarzenegger. Later we see the camaraderie between the muscle men at Arnold's gym in L.A. Thereis a huge contrast between the fun atmosphere of L.A. and the austere and dark gym where Lou Ferrigno trains under the rather obsessive watch of his father, Matty. While Ferrigno is bigger than Arnold, Arnold is considered to have the body with best symmetry and alignment, not to forget those 25 inch biceps. The scenes with Mike Katz, an amateur body-builder and former NY Jets player with an enormous chest are quite memorable and inspiring. Katz talks about the taunting he received as a kid and how this pushed him to train hard to achieve his goals. Try to watch the DVD which includes an update 30 years later. Included among several memorable scenes are: Arnold smoking a joint; Arnold talking about the pump and "coming" feeling; Arnold giving tips on how to pose; after Lou Ferrigno has finished an impressive set of military benches, his father tells that Arnold might be training twice as hard as he is; some body builders who can barely run normally thanks to so much muscle. Great Documnetary, don't miss it.