While Yudin gives us plenty of room to laugh at them, he also acknowledges their capacity to inspire awe - not only at their bulging muscles, but at their willingness to go all the way with the infantile wish to look bigger than anyone else.

The film ends up being about much more than itself, much more than just bodybuilding or bodybuilders. Although a bit overlong, it is really a triumph of intelligent, strategic filmmaking.

For a documentary about extreme discipline, the filmmakers lack restraint: the movie, about 20 minutes too long, undercuts much of its own momentum.

Cleanly lensed, succinctly edited, Generation Iron is the bodybuilding documentary for this generation.