The Hustler of Muscle Beach (1980)
A slick promoter in the bodybuilding subculture of Venice Beach, California, finds what he considers a diamond in the rough: a dedicated but somewhat mentally challenged young man who wants to win bodybuilding championships, but needs some help and direction--and the promoter thinks he's just the one to do it.
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To me, this movie is perfection.
Please don't spend money on this.
There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.
The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;
OK, so the acting is silly, the script is weak, and the director probably wasn't there most of the time... But if you are into body building or body builders, and like seeing hustlers turn into good guys, this movie is actually very enjoyable. It is heart warming at times, and it's almost too much seeing Richard Hatch doing an over the top performance of a common hustler (no not that kind... the kind of "hustler" where a guy does everything he can think of to legally extract money from people's pockets).The focus of the movie is a huge body builder (Tim Kimber) with an adorably cute innocent face who was sadly only in 3 movies his entire acting career. He plays a developmentally delayed man who needs guidance to enter a body building contest and win. And he is really about the best actor in this movie.10 minutes later...On further investigation, Tim Kimber seems to have done phenomenally well for himself. He is co-author of a couple of body building books, and (get this) he has been co-owner of the Gold's Gym chain for over 20 years. Good for him!