A staged documentary about a women's body-building competition sponsored by the filmmakers in order that they might film it. (The staging hits its low point with the "spontaneous" marriage proposal on which the camera somehow manages to eavesdrop.) There was the potential here for a sort of Werner Herzog meditation on the general theme of extremism; but it inclines instead toward a mere Phil Donahue symposium, albeit with more visual interest, on the topic of "Femininity: Who Makes the Rules?" Some rooting interest may be stirred up as well, depending on whether you favor the muscle-bound Bev Francis or the "sinewy" Rachel McLish. Or perhaps something in between: the more articulate (not to say articulated) Carla Dunlap or the doe-eyed ingenue Lori Bowen. Others may find, as in the Miss America contest, that their own personal ideal is not properly represented. But that doesn't get in the way of the fun. Directed by George Butler. (1985) — Duncan Shepherd
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