Stay Hungry
1976 Directed by Bob Rafelson
Synopsis
Stay Hungry is a 1976 dramatic comedy film by director Bob Rafelson from a screenplay by Charles Gaines. The story centers on a young Birmingham, Alabama, scion, played by Jeff Bridges, who gets involved in a shady real-estate deal. In order to close the deal, he needs to buy a gym building to complete a multi-parcel lot. When he visits the gym, however, he finds himself romantically interested in the receptionist (Sally Field) and drawn to the carefree lifestyle of the Austrian body builder "Joe Santo" (Arnold Schwarzenegger) who is training there for the Mr. Universe competition.
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Stumbled across this 1976 movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger playing a Mr Universe contestant and violinist - I had to watch it. Jeff Bridges being all floppy haired and a young Sally Field looking crazy hot sealed the deal. But once the initial love story had played itself out this turned into one seriously fucked up movie. In fact it has one of the best/worst endings of a film I've ever seen as it spirals into a misguided sex comedy with a very shocking end for poor Sally. Amongst all the chaos Arnold gets chased through the busy streets by 30 bodybuilders all oiled up and in their speedos - they break off their pursuit when asked by the locals to bust some poses, which they happily oblige. I've never seen a chase sequence involve five muscle men on the roof of a coach flexing before and I doubt I ever will again.
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Part of my ongoing aim to watch every Arnie film.
Clearly the intent of Stay Hungry was to re-boot Arnie’s Hollywood career. At the beginning of the film he’s credited as “introducing Arnold Schwarzenegger”. Which I suppose is fair game as the Lucille Ball movie was for TV, he was uncredited in the Long Goodbye and went under the name “Arnold Strong” for Hercules in New York. The 1970s wasn’t a place where a muscleman superstar could just walk into the movies. It was a time of auteurs. Like Stay Hungry director Bob Rafelson; writer and director of Five Easy Pieces. So Stay Hungry doesn’t star Arnold, it stars Jeff Bridges and Sally Field with Arnie playing Mr Austria, a…
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Part of my ongoing aim to watch every Arnie film.
Clearly the intent of Stay Hungry was to re-boot Arnie’s Hollywood career. At the beginning of the film he’s credited as “introducing Arnold Schwarzenegger”. Which I suppose is fair game as the Lucille Ball movie was for TV, he was uncredited in the Long Goodbye and went under the name “Arnold Strong” for Hercules in New York. The 1970s wasn’t a place where a muscleman superstar could just walk into the movies. It was a time of auteurs. Like Stay Hungry director Bob Rafelson; writer and director of Five Easy Pieces. So Stay Hungry doesn’t star Arnold, it stars Jeff Bridges and Sally Field with Arnie playing Mr Austria, a…
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Stumbled across this 1976 movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger playing a Mr Universe contestant and violinist - I had to watch it. Jeff Bridges being all floppy haired and a young Sally Field looking crazy hot sealed the deal. But once the initial love story had played itself out this turned into one seriously fucked up movie. In fact it has one of the best/worst endings of a film I've ever seen as it spirals into a misguided sex comedy with a very shocking end for poor Sally. Amongst all the chaos Arnold gets chased through the busy streets by 30 bodybuilders all oiled up and in their speedos - they break off their pursuit when asked by the locals to bust some poses, which they happily oblige. I've never seen a chase sequence involve five muscle men on the roof of a coach flexing before and I doubt I ever will again.
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Dear Arnold Schwarzenegger, Actor in STAY HUNGRY
So here we are, seven years after the release of Hercules in New York. It looks like the, shall we say, "interesting" way that film turned out forced you to rethink your Hollywood career trajectory. Instead of rushing headlong into leading roles, it seems you dialed it back and looked for roles that were not only a good fit, but also provided the opportunity to work with some big name directors. Roles that required more than just your Mr. Universe credentials... (CONT'D)
http://www.dearcastandcrew.com/letters/2012/11/14/stay-hungry.html
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A bizarre, but highly watchable film from Bob Rafelson.
The joy in this flick is in the casting. Rafelson assembles a cast of solid character actors and just lets them have at it. A retrospectively bizarre gathering of Jeff Bridges, Sally Field, Arnie, Robert 'Freddy Kruger' Englund, Scatman Crothers and a superbly malevolent performance from R.G. Armstrong keep this picture effortlessly involving.
It is by no means a classic, though, the strong performances struggle to cover up a lack of focus or, really, point. Jeff Bridges plays the central role but all other characters seem to be scene-chewers in his orbit.
This film is a great unknown curiosity and an entertaining watch but its position within obscurity is ultimately deserved.
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Underrated quirky comedy/drama from the 70's. The Govenator shockingly gives a very natural performance (his first major acting role). Has an oddball cast of familiar faces. A real gem.