Generation Iron

Plot

Generation Iron chronicles seven top bodybuilders as they train to compete in the 2012 Mr. Olympia.

United States

Generation Iron was released on September 20, 2013 on 53 screens across the U.S. The film expanded to reach over 100 theaters in various areas of the country. The release of the film coincided with the 2013 Mr. Olympia, held on September 28, 2013 at the Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Canada

On October 7, 2013, Generation Iron opened for a one-night-only event in 21 locations across Canada.

International

The film had its European premiere on November 10, 2013 at the Copenhagen International Documentary Festival. The sold-out screening was held at the 650 seat Bremen Teater.

On November 11, 2013, it was announced that Generation Iron had secured distribution deals for Australia, Brazil, Germany, and New Zealand, with deals soon to be finalized with China, Finland, Italy, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the UK.

Box office

Generation Iron opened on September 20, 2013 with an opening weekend box office total of $245,000, making it the biggest documentary opening of 2013. Generation Iron held position as the #1 documentary in the U.S. at the box office for three consecutive weeks after its release. Its domestic total as of January 3, 2014 was $849,521.

Critical reception

Generation Iron opened to positive reviews, scoring 80% critic approval based on 15 reviews and a 86% audience approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

Ernest Hardy of The Village Voice gave the film a perfect score and called it "a gorgeous meditation on age-old existential concerns". The Los Angeles Times called Generation Iron "an intimate portrait of bodybuilders" and praised the film as being "compelling and energetic". Louis Black of The Austin Chronicle stated that the film is "really a triumph of intelligent, strategic filmmaking". Philip Martin, president of the Southeastern Film Critics Association, stated in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that Generation Iron is not just a film for bodybuilding fans and that "like all good stories, this movie about bodybuilding is really about much more".

Generation Iron also received a few mixed reviews. Nicole Herrington of The New York Times gave the film 2.5 stars and wrote, "For a documentary about extreme discipline, the filmmakers lack restraint: the movie, about 20 minutes too long, undercuts much of its own momentum." Nick Schager of The Dissolve expressed disdain for how the film "goes into absolutely no detail regarding the specifics of how [the bodybuilders] design their diets or their workout regimens". Film critic Tim Falkenberg of MXDWN praised the film for the same reasons, stating that "much in the way Ron Howard's Rush, released earlier this year, was about the competitors, not understanding Formula 1 competition, the documentary Generation Iron largely eschews educating its audience on the intricacies of its subject matter in favor of focusing on the competitors themselves".

Top ten lists

Home media

The Vladar Company released an extended director's cut on Blu-ray and DVD exclusively for sale on their website on April 4, 2014. Starz Inc. released the theatrical version of Generation Iron digitally on iTunes on April 4, 2014 and VOD/Amazon on April 15, 2014. Anchor Bay Entertainment released the theatrical version of Generation Iron on DVD on May 13, 2014.

Music

Jeff Rona composed the original score for Generation Iron. A soundtrack album was released on Milan Records.

Additional songs featured in the film include: