Pulling John (2009)

Bottom line: Pulling John actually got me emotionally invested in the world arm-wrestling final from 2008 so, for, about an hour-long documentary, I'd say thumbs up.

Now, I don't know about you but my arm-wrestling experience is, one, losing. Two, Over the Top (1987). Three, late-night espn; you know, when they just finished up the world lumberjack competition, and then they switch over the arm wrestling (either that or darts).

I don't know how Pulling John came on my radar but I have had it bookmarked for literally years. I'm glad I finally made time to watch it.

Pulling John opens with a montage outlining John Brzenk's rocket-propelled entry and subsequent domination of the world arm-wrestling competitive scene. It's fast-paced, it had interested clips; it was a great way to open the movie. But John is only part of the story.

We have a trio of competitors. Brzenk, naturally, and two up-and-comers: Alexy Voevoda (from Russia), Travis Bagent (from West Virginia). I was going to say from US but, man, this guy is from West Virginia.

We jump at appropriate paces between the three stories and they are really nicely set up stories too. Brzenk has been the world's greatest arm-wrestler for the past twenty years but he's getting older. Does he have the chops to continue to compete as he once did or should he retire on top?

Alexy Voevoda is competing for the pride of his country. He comes from a family of arm wrestlers and continues the tradition. He has crushed all the competition in Russia and wants to extend that to the rest of the world. Ultimately, he hopes to defeat the one and only Brzenk.

Back in the states, we follow Bagent who also comes from a family of arm wrestlers. He, like Voevoda, wants to defeat Brzenk and reign as the world champion arm wrestler.

Now that we have our cast, let me touch on the rules of competitive arm wrestling, well, one part of it. We have three weight classes; Medium, Heavy Weight, and Super Heavy Weight. Cause we can't have big strong guys being "light" so "light" is just Medium. Alright, guys...

Now, the weight classes all compete until they have the winners. The winners of those classes then compete. Doesn't that sound weird? Brzenk's class, for example, is the 210lbs class. Bagent, on the other hand, is almost 300lbs. They have to compete with one another to crown the world champion. It's essentially the final boss from Mike Tyson's Punch Out
What's even crazier though, when you think about it, Brzenk has absolutely destroyed everyone for the past twenty years. Brzenk is essentially David fighting a never-ending stream of Goliaths but he's playing the same game as Goliath!

I'd recommend Pulling John. It's not the most polished documentary; it's no Somm or Blackfish but it's still a lot of fun. It has a steady pace and it really builds up the characters. And I say "characters" because each of the people in the movie, competitors, and spectators, are so unique it felt like an anime or a videogame. I loved it.

If you are looking for a light, fun documentary, I'd point you to Pulling John.