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See Arnold Run, biographical film, biography, review, biopic

See Arnold Run (2005)

Arnold Schwarzenegger had such a long and successful career, that it was probably inevitable more than one actor would be required to portray him. In this biopic, bodybuilder turned actor Roland Kickinger poses as the Austrian Oak while Jurgen Prochnow foolishly elects to stump up as the Governator. Thankfully Arnie’s movie career is all but ignored, otherwise we may have been subjected to a third portrayal of this Last Action Hero.

 

In what no doubt seemed an ingenious move by the filmmakers, the biopic flashes back and forth between Arnold’s tilts at the Mr Olympia title and the California Governorship. This allows the two stories to pathetically segue between each other. News of Arnie announcing he will run for Governor cuts to a scene of younger Arnie running near Muscle Beach. Arnie announces he will jump into the race… cut to younger Arnie jumping into the surf. Inadvertently it also allows the viewer to compare, almost side-by-side, which actor does the worst impression of Schwarzenegger. Kickinger has the advantage of being an Austrian, but he’s not much of an actor. Jürgen Prochnow on the other hand is a fine actor but a lousy mimic. Only when he is dealing with the scandal of his conduct on film sets does the biopic threaten to come alive. Elsewhere, Prochnow’s leaden attempts at being light-hearted rob the film of any comedic potential.

 

Biopic finishes with Arnie sitting upright in bed, studying the U.S. Constitution in hopes of finding a way he can run for President. But really, what are the chances of a celebrity with a history of womanising and inappropriate behaviour ever reaching that esteemed office …?

cast, Jürgen Prochnow, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Roland Kickinger, franco columbo
Bob Cicherillo, Lou Ferrigno, Doug Crane, mary carey, gary coleman, dee snider

Biopic condenses many events into the one year. Though film covers Arnold’s preparation for the 1974 Mr Olympia, it contains the following anomalies –

 

  • Learns of father’s death of the eve of competition, when father actually died in 1972.

  • Depicts the making of Pumping Iron, which documented the 1975 Mr Olympia

  • Whitney Museum exhibition of bodybuilding took place in 1976

scene comparison, Nora Dunn, Arianna Huffington, Mariel Hemingway, Maria Shriver

Though there is a fleeting reference to Hercules in New York and some audio and behind-the-scenes re-enactments from Pumping Iron, biopic avoids covering most of Arnie’s movie career. Instead, there are scene recreations of TV interviews, political debates and his guest spot on 'The New Dating Game'.

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