A Mentira Armstrong

This movie - and the situation it chronicles - forces us to consider

to what extent we can expect an even playing field - literally - when we watch sports. The athletes say, "Every one else was doing it."

When fans watch NASCAR races, I hope they understand that it's a team sport. The people who built the car, the people who maintain it, the guys who change the tires, the spotters and others contribute as much or more to the win as does the driver. However, when we see an individual athlete - biker, runner, skier, etc. - compete, do we see that the "best man" wins or the performer with the best doctor, the best chemist and research department and the cleverest lawyer to get around the system, as one of the interviewees in this movie suggests.

Should we accept that performance enhancements are now a part of sports, athletes and their supporters will continue to find ways to counter efforts to limit them and accept that? The destructive qualities of steroids - including their potential for violent behavior and the process Armstrong admitted using raise doubt. The drug Amstrong took and the use of blood transfusions to short-cut the body's process for communicating and responding to muscle fatigue surely must be physically destructive. However, I have long had questions about the long-term effects of professional football tackles, questions now being answered, at least in terms of head injuries. Players and fans continue to accept this.

This movie may be more interesting to people who are not cycling fans but is a good exploration of a range of observers and participants.

I always admire the commitment of a documentarian. It feels destined for Alex Gibney to have been following Lance Armstrong just before the turn of his downfall as all his documentaries need a tinge of controversy before they're just right. A comeback film wouldn't have been as interesting as this. Perhaps it's morbid curiosity of why I'm looking into Lance Armstrong more now that the truth has broken out than when he was heroic cyclist who wasn't held back by a little cancer. What brings a man to do something like this? What was the point? The Armstrong Lie has intimate access to the disgraced icon and it's undeniable that he's compelling to watch, if sometimes repulsive. Above all, it reveals the nature of our celebrity worship culture and the power it feeds and the lives it destroys.

The documentary covers all aspects of the sport of cycling. It's quite infectious with its cinematic style and I regret watching this the day that the Tour de France was close to me but I missed it. The film gives scattered information about the basics but there's great insight into how the cheating works. The cutting makes the human drama thrilling as people try to beat Armstrong at his game. The film doesn't necessarily take a side, but he still makes you sick to your stomach when he lies through his teeth to the camera. I couldn't help but keep thinking that Ben Foster will be perfect for Stephen Frears' upcoming film. We still haven't got all the facts, especially about Armstrong's peers, and there's quite a bit about media manipulation here too which the film is a part of, but the story of a contemporary legend falling touches an aching nerve.

8/10

Review: After watching the Program recently, I thought I should watch the real story about Lance Armstrong, because I couldn't believe that a man could be so vindictive and manipulating to so many people, and now that I've watched this in depth documentary, he was worse than I first expected. The fact that he nearly got away with taking drugs during his 7 championship races, sickens my stomach and I personally think that he should be stripped of all of his personal earnings, which he has made from his deception and bare-faced lies. He ruined so many people's life's, including his fellow racers and he damaged there reputations by claiming that they were lying about his drug taking. Because of the power that he gained during his cycling career, he had the backing of some very important people, who helped him through his successful career but when the truth came out about his filthy habits, he tarnished there reputations and made loads of money after coming clean. His excuses for taking the enhanced performing drugs, were that it was the norm at that time and there wasn't any tests that could track the drugs, and the only reason why he got caught, even though there was loads of investigations, was because he returned to cycling after retiring with his 7 consistent wins. Anyway, I found the documentary very entertaining and well put together by the director and the various interviews with the people who surrounded Lance Armstrong at that time, proved that he really wasn't a nice person. The sad thing is, he actually could have won a few of the championships without the drugs! Enjoyable!

Round-Up: This documentary was directed by Alex Gibney, 62, whose known for his documentaries and his in depth look into debatable matters. He won an Oscar for Taxi To The Dark Side in 2008 and he was nominated for an Oscar in 2006 for Efron: The Smartest Guys In The Room. He's directed documentaries about WikiLeaks, James Brown, musical artist Fela Kuti, Steve Jobs, Frank Sinatra and various political matters. Judging by this film, he's not one to hold back information and he does get down to the nitty gritty when it comes to delicate situations, so I'm looking forward to watching some more of his projects.

Budget: N/A Worldwide Gross: $500,000

I recommend this movie to people who are into their sport/documentaries about Lance Armstrong's rise and fall from grace. 7/10

To judge something in terms of how it's executed is all well and good but in a documentary such as this the message takes precedence. It seeks the truth and all the arguments aren't displayed for that to emerge. If it it simply allowed the viewer to make up his own mind then that would be o.k but the film displays a bias thereby becoming a vehicle and a misleading one at that.

The fact that doping was prevalent in cycling and still plays a large factor is obvious. If Armstrong was racing on a level playing field of dopers then that to me would also have been acceptable. However this was far from the case.

Non of Lance's team mates were caught doping whilst they were in his team. Meanwhile all his major competitors were absent from the start line at various points in time due to suspensions and had some key teammates missing from every tour for the same reason. Throughout all the disruptions, devastation, controversy and even a suicide Armstrong was always there with a full strength squad.

The film touches on the importance of team mates and how on all of his wins Armstrong rode alone for only minutes at a time, but fails to take the next step and look at how the various disqualifications imposed on all other teams (apart from his own during his winning years) affected his competitors. Had the film done this Armstrong would never have agreed to be in it because he's still pushing the lie that he won those seven Tours fair and square once we accept as fact that they were all doping.

The UCI had invested in him and were being invested in by a lot of the same sponsors, they allowed many cyclists to burn whilst protecting this man. The film doesn't touch on those aspects and the film maker remains a fan.

I gave the film five stars because it is well shot and well put together. I am a cycling fan and it's view of the race was a pleasure to watch. There is stock footage obviously but the film does follow Armstrong and films the 2009 race independently. The film gives an insight into what it takes to be a professional rider and rider's relationships with one another and their team officials.

Some of the people interviewed I've never seen interviewed i.e doctor Ferrari, which added another point of interest for me.

The 2009 and other pre-'outed' interviews were interesting, giving an insight into Armstrong's mentality at the time and although there is marked contrast to his post-confessional ones it's by no means a transformation and a true repentance. His approach to people seems outwardly very different now, but his attitude towards his legacy and the morality of his actions remain to all intents and purposes unchanged. The exclusions of Paul Kimmage and Greg Lemond from the documentary also indicate this.

I'd say watch the film but bear the other stuff in mind too.

When everyone cheats, it becomes a different contest. The powerful friends, money (125 million plus), risk and pain tolerance, influential scientists, compelling story, performance enhancing drugs, viciousness, ambition to win at all costs, willingness to bully others, . . . Armstrong has all this and more. The documentary is a powerful and gripping indictment not just of Armstrong and cycling, but of sports and humanity in general. Armstrong's doping is bad, but his abuse of power is worse. The film shows how willing people are to be fooled, or to trample on others. Despite its two-hour length, the film held my interest throughout. There are so many parallels in a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne, wherein he writes, "There is something truer and more real, than what we can see with the eyes, and touch with the finger." So too with Armstrong, cycling, sports, and all of us. This brilliant documentary helps bring such truths to the surface.