I just got done watching the movie which Mike Pulcinella was kind enough to ship to me for free (thanks Mike!) Since he and his brother first posted that the movie was almost done and they were excited about it etc, I basically ran my mouth saying all sort of negative remarks. I was mainly calling dave out on his poor form, and felt for some reason this movie would have some sort of negative backlash. In all honesty, it looked to me to be another training video from some meathead with shitty form. I could not have been more wrong.
This film in fact captures the essence of bodybuilding. After all, bodybuilding is why we are all here isn't it? It is what binds us together, what brough all of us here in the first place, the love of lifting weights and taking our bodies as far as we are willing. Over the years I have watched countless cookie cutter bodybuilding dvd's, from Shawn Ray's " The Final Countdown" to Ronnie's "Relentless" and to be honest they are more or less a bore. You see a genetic monster on substantial "assistance" throw around some heavy weights and do a couple mundane activities (eating, eating, saying something completely boring, eating again) before again showing you more footage in the gym.
RTB2, on the other hand, is on a different level. It brought me back to when I did my one and only show, and it honestly does in fact show you unabated what bodybuilding IS. You see dave eating his boring food, a little bit of his day to day life, him running through training partners, you get to know his beautiful wife a bit as well as his past. When he competes, you go backstage with him. If he is feeling like shit, you see it, and this film shows basically what every competitor goes through every time he competes. This is as real as it gets, you can spend a lot more money making a movie, but you could never even come close to touching on the level of reality and passion which this documentary delivers. I was honestly blown away when a competitor passes out the night before, and subsequently passes away at the hospital. Anthony Darezzo I believe was his name, there is a short eulogy by Dave Polumbo where he talks about the guy and his passion for the sport. When I competed I saw the same thing, people passing out, cramping needing oxygen etc. We bodybuilders definitely take it to the limit, but then again what athlete doesn't? I liked the movie a lot, and have a ton of respect for Dave now that I watched it. A great trainer he is not, but he does what works for him and has managed to make a modest genetic package into a top 5 national competitor. Onstage at the masters nationals you get to see him backstage and the man looks to be in SICK SICK SICK condition.
Overall, the movie was entertaining, informative and most of all very very REAL. I highly recommend it, it got my ass back in the gym after a 2 week layoff and almost has me wanting to get my lazy ass in shape and possibly get onstage. I don't want to sound like I'm kissing ass, just get the damn thing. If you have any questions ask me here, I will be happy to answer them.
