Lance

Lance - a two part documentary about the rise and fall of seven time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. I didn't get into cycling until after Armstrong's reign as TDF winner and his infamous confession about doping on the Oprah Wimphrey show. Now - after spending over 3 hours in his company, I don't like the guy. It feels to me as if he's trying to deflect blame for his actions. To allow himself a new career (which is already happening as a cycling commentator on US radio. It feels like that - in his eyes - it is his road to redemption. I didn't know how to articulate how I felt about him until, towards the end of this often compelling doc his former team mate said "there are good people who do bad things, and there are bad people who do good things" and let's the viewer decide which category Lance belongs. My view is that he is a bad person who does bad things and I have zero sympathy for his demise. Yes - I'm sure there are reasons for his 'badness' - such as his tough paternal upbringing - but reasons are not excuses. I hope LA is not welcomed back to the public fray - he's all in it for himself, as I'm sure he's always been. A really interesting watch - 7.5 out of ten

Nice document. It's scary that he still things that Floyd did a wrong thing, when spoke truth?! That's attitude is just horrible. Well lance did good things too, so sometimes bad things can produce something good. He still is bad person in many ways. Not only he cheats but he is talking bad things about other athletes like Sastre. That comment about Sastre was just horrible.

"Lance" (2020 release in 2 parts; 205 min.) is a TV documentary about the life and times of Lance Armstrong. As the movie opens, Lance addresses the camera and says "I'm going to tell you my truth". The first question from the director to Lance: "When was the first time you dope?", which seems to take Armstrong by surprise ("so this is how it's going to go, huh?" Armstrong eventually responds it was at age 21). We then go back in time to Lance's upbringing in Plano, TX, and how at age 15 he became a break-out star in triathlon. At this point we are less than 15 min. into the documentary...

Couple of comments: this film is directed by Marina Zenovich, the award-winning documentarian whose previous work includes "Robin WIlliam: Come Inside My Mind" and "Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired", just to name those. Here she is granted "all access" to the Lance Armstrong of today, with Lance being forthright to the best of his ability and memory as to what all transpired in his cycling career and beyond. The first part of the documentary takes us through 1999 and includes of course Lance's battle with testicular cancer and his eventual return to cycling while also presiding over the Live Strong non-profit. The second part of the documentary focuses almost exclusively on Lance's fall from grace. If you are a cyclist fan, beware that some, but not a great amount, attention is given to his cycling achievements. You may recall that in 2013, Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney released the documentary "The Armstrong Lie", in the wake of Lance's confession of it all to Oprah Winfrey. So the question is what does "Lance" bring to the table that "The Armstrong Lie" didn't? To be honest, not a great deal. No new revelations of any kind. Yes, Lance is more remorseful than in 2013, but equally more cocky than ever before. Not sure if this documentary will change anyone's mind about Lance the person and/or Lance the cyclist.

"Lance" premiered at this year's Sundance film festival to good acclaim and recently aired on ESPN in its ongoing 30 For 30 series. I quite enjoyed watching this, although it lacks of course the element of shock and dismay when all of this unfolded in 2012013 culminating in the infamous Oprah interview. Still, if you are a fan of cycling and/or of Lance, I'd readily suggest you check this out and draw your own conclusion...

Jeez what a resentful odious creature. The fire in his belly is slowly consuming him. I am so glad he found sports instead of killing small animals as a child, or the world might have had to endure a completely different type of suffering. 10 years later, and a world set on fire since the last set if epics on all if Armstrong's transgressions, and this presents with a littke distance perhaps a more complex portrait of personal ambition in a sport that only seemed to catch on as a result of Lemond and then Armstrong. The most interesting quote in this two parter comes from a former team manager who when talking about Americans involvement in cycling that American sports are Football and Basketball, Anericans that go into cycling don't fit in(as in they are oddballs in their own culture). And yet Armstrong did nothing if not adapt an American competitive approach-win at all costs whether or not you destroy that which you set out to conquer. The family annihilator model of if I can't have it, I will amke damn sure no one else can.

Well anyway, Lance has been to therapy, seen the effects of his consequences meted out on his family, gotten the best coaching, legal and business advice power and influence and money can buy, and he's still desperate to settle scores, although he was nice enough to apologize to Emma the Soignier. It'll be fun in a new way to hear Christian V comment occasionally about Armstrong's alt Tour de France exploits during NBC's race broadcast.

He pretends that he accepts the wrong that he did but he still can't forgive Landis? He's still trying to reframe himself as hard done by, as much in his own mind as in other people's. The mental gymnastics he must go through on a daily basis makes me almost feel sorry for him. Except that he's a manipulative narcissist.

I'm looking forwards to a similar documentary with Trump after he gets out of jail for tax evasion...