bluesteele
Joined Jun 2016
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Reviews5
bluesteele's rating
I've always enjoyed the various strongman competitions since I was a kid. They would show up at odd times on ESPN, and they were almost always repeats (in other words--very different from watching a live world championship . . . . sometimes you'd be watching a competition from 10 years ago!). But they were still captivating, especially when Americans began showing up in the top ten. Hard not to root for the homeboys and hang on for the final event to see who'd come out on top.
Brian Shaw is from nearby Colorado, and it's hard not to like the guy. He is like this 6'8" 450 pound 5 year old. Not arrogant (and a 4 time world champion has earned the right to arrogance!), but gentle and thoughtful. I began watching occasional "Shaw Strength" YouTube clips a few months ago--which often feature him going back and forth with Eddie Hall (England's strongman and one time world champion) like two brothers with a great sense of humor.
So this show has added two more giants to the roster and follows them through a series of well scripted on location competitions which are tied to some old school legendary feat of strength. You get this mix of giants throwing around objects the rest of us can only stare at, and the kind of humor that makes a lot of us recall from playing high school or college ball -- so it's very funny and very watchable.
The thing I like--the real world strongman competitions are not making any of these guys rich. Training is clearly a full time, 365 day a year occupation requiring significant investments in training equipment, coaches, and diet. Even at the elite level, the prize amounts are a fraction of what American professional football and basketball players get. Bravo to the History Channel for finding a way to leverage entertainment and helping to support someone like Brian Shaw financially. I hope this series makes it for a few years and helps these guys out!
Brian Shaw is from nearby Colorado, and it's hard not to like the guy. He is like this 6'8" 450 pound 5 year old. Not arrogant (and a 4 time world champion has earned the right to arrogance!), but gentle and thoughtful. I began watching occasional "Shaw Strength" YouTube clips a few months ago--which often feature him going back and forth with Eddie Hall (England's strongman and one time world champion) like two brothers with a great sense of humor.
So this show has added two more giants to the roster and follows them through a series of well scripted on location competitions which are tied to some old school legendary feat of strength. You get this mix of giants throwing around objects the rest of us can only stare at, and the kind of humor that makes a lot of us recall from playing high school or college ball -- so it's very funny and very watchable.
The thing I like--the real world strongman competitions are not making any of these guys rich. Training is clearly a full time, 365 day a year occupation requiring significant investments in training equipment, coaches, and diet. Even at the elite level, the prize amounts are a fraction of what American professional football and basketball players get. Bravo to the History Channel for finding a way to leverage entertainment and helping to support someone like Brian Shaw financially. I hope this series makes it for a few years and helps these guys out!
I feel compelled to write this review for all of those guys who get dragged along to see some cheezy romance flick by the wife or girlfriend and can barely make it through without trying to duck into the adjacent theater for something action oriented.
That's how I ended up watching this, but honest-to-God . . . I have to give credit where credit is due. I'm usually so cynical about movies that seem so clearly intent on going straight for the heartstrings and forcing every girl in the audience to go for the emergency kleenex stash in the purse. I hate that feeling of being manipulated. "Five Feet Apart" actually works very well on all of the important levels. Cystic fibrosis is not a common disease, and I certainly wasn't familiar with it. But the script and the actors handle the condition with surprising sensitivity. Rather than making it the focus of an emotional trainwreck, no one seems to be working overtime to make you feel sorry for them. Rather, we get to see what seems to be a surprisingly appealing group of teenagers who've accepted the condition in various ways long before the opening scenes of the movie, and they are going to move forward with life without asking for our sympathy.
There is a serious level of chemistry between Haley Lu Richardson and Cole Sprouse that has to be one of the most believable pairings I recall in this genre. The growing sparks between them effectively places this truly debilitating genetic condition in just the right context. They don't want your sympathy--they just want a slim chance at happiness. Yes, the teenage girls in the audience were crying rivers at the end . . . but for once . . . I could completely understand it.
That's how I ended up watching this, but honest-to-God . . . I have to give credit where credit is due. I'm usually so cynical about movies that seem so clearly intent on going straight for the heartstrings and forcing every girl in the audience to go for the emergency kleenex stash in the purse. I hate that feeling of being manipulated. "Five Feet Apart" actually works very well on all of the important levels. Cystic fibrosis is not a common disease, and I certainly wasn't familiar with it. But the script and the actors handle the condition with surprising sensitivity. Rather than making it the focus of an emotional trainwreck, no one seems to be working overtime to make you feel sorry for them. Rather, we get to see what seems to be a surprisingly appealing group of teenagers who've accepted the condition in various ways long before the opening scenes of the movie, and they are going to move forward with life without asking for our sympathy.
There is a serious level of chemistry between Haley Lu Richardson and Cole Sprouse that has to be one of the most believable pairings I recall in this genre. The growing sparks between them effectively places this truly debilitating genetic condition in just the right context. They don't want your sympathy--they just want a slim chance at happiness. Yes, the teenage girls in the audience were crying rivers at the end . . . but for once . . . I could completely understand it.
Yes this is a below average slasher copy flick, but it DOES feature the semi-legendary Rutger Hauer AND it has just recently been revealed in the Denver metropolitan area that one of the original financers of this film is Steve Atwater--potential hall of famer Denver Bronco's safety and one of the cast members is legendary Denver Bronco cornerback Ray Crockett!
For long time fans of the Denver Broncos, this is more than enough to establish this near-forgotten movie as a cult classic! If you love the Broncos, you owe it to your fandom status to watch this movie!
For long time fans of the Denver Broncos, this is more than enough to establish this near-forgotten movie as a cult classic! If you love the Broncos, you owe it to your fandom status to watch this movie!