Come one, ESPN: eating is not a sport! Anyway, there are eating tournaments, and this is what this documentary is about. Things were obviously bizarre since the beginning, when we say multi-champion Kobayashi eating dozens of hot dogs (or Kilograms of pasta...) and he and his eventual rival explaining their training techniques. However, what was just bizarre became quite creepy when, for profit reasons, managers of the "Major League Eating" started to explore xenophobia and jingoism in order to boost their contests appeal. The angry patriotism in the support for Joey Chestnut, initially planned by George Shea, is very weird and foolish. There are pathetic scenes of Chestnut sucking the sausages as a goose and Kobayashi being arrested with a sad song. There are many cheesy decisions by the director, unfortunately. The film is a curiosity, but does not have a great story. I agree with Shawn, another reviewer: if it were more political, exploring jingoism, it could have been better.
2 Reviews
Further Proof That Every Story Has Intrigue!
zkonedog5 July 2019
Sometimes, even for curious fans like myself, it can be tough to admit that professional eating is indeed a sport. Seemingly even more ludicrous, though? The notion that not only can it perhaps be a legitimate competition, but that it has backstory intrigue as well! Director Nicole Haimes melds all of that together quite well in this "The Good, The Bad, The Hungry" 30 for 30 installment.
For a basic overview, this documentary tells the story of how the Nathan's Famous Coney Island hot dog eating contest became a staple of the Fourth of July holiday every year. It goes back to the roots of eating competitions both in this country and abroad, using three primary figures to tell the story:
-Takeru Kobayashi: The legendary Japanese competitive eater who dominated the early years of Nathan's contest. -Joey Chestnut: The American who dethroned Kobayashi in 2007 and has established his own reign of dominance. -George Shea: The ringleader of Major League Eating (you'll know him as "the guy in the straw hat and suit").
What's odd about "Good, Bad, & Hungry" is that despite being a doc about one of the most ludicrous pastimes of all-time, it is largely tinged with an air of melancholy or sadness. Each player could be looked at as either a sympathetic figure or one of which some criticism can be levied. For example...
-Kobayashi faced anti-foreigner rhetoric from the hyped-up July 4 crowds, as well as initial disproval from his conservative father. At the same time, he also tried to rush the stage at a Coney Island event he was not part of, leading one to think he may not be the most emotionally stable of individuals. -Chestnut seems like the everyday "good guy", but his ultra-competitiveness gets him in a bit of hot water of his own sometimes, such as how he subtly criticized Kobayashi for "faking a jaw injury" on one occasion. -Shea is the master hype man and has grown the sport (especially its Independence Day spectacle) by leaps and bounds, yet can be a jerk in the process, particularly when it comes to dealing with contracts.
As someone who has been glued to the TV each Fourth of July morning for the past two decades, I found all this information to be fascinating. Who knew there was so much going on behind the scenes?! Everyone has a story to tell, I guess, and this doc really proves that sentiment. For those (like myself) invested in the proceedings, or even just those with a morbid curiosity, "The Good, The Bad, The Hungry" is a solid 30 for 30 episode that will appeal to a large crowd.
For a basic overview, this documentary tells the story of how the Nathan's Famous Coney Island hot dog eating contest became a staple of the Fourth of July holiday every year. It goes back to the roots of eating competitions both in this country and abroad, using three primary figures to tell the story:
-Takeru Kobayashi: The legendary Japanese competitive eater who dominated the early years of Nathan's contest. -Joey Chestnut: The American who dethroned Kobayashi in 2007 and has established his own reign of dominance. -George Shea: The ringleader of Major League Eating (you'll know him as "the guy in the straw hat and suit").
What's odd about "Good, Bad, & Hungry" is that despite being a doc about one of the most ludicrous pastimes of all-time, it is largely tinged with an air of melancholy or sadness. Each player could be looked at as either a sympathetic figure or one of which some criticism can be levied. For example...
-Kobayashi faced anti-foreigner rhetoric from the hyped-up July 4 crowds, as well as initial disproval from his conservative father. At the same time, he also tried to rush the stage at a Coney Island event he was not part of, leading one to think he may not be the most emotionally stable of individuals. -Chestnut seems like the everyday "good guy", but his ultra-competitiveness gets him in a bit of hot water of his own sometimes, such as how he subtly criticized Kobayashi for "faking a jaw injury" on one occasion. -Shea is the master hype man and has grown the sport (especially its Independence Day spectacle) by leaps and bounds, yet can be a jerk in the process, particularly when it comes to dealing with contracts.
As someone who has been glued to the TV each Fourth of July morning for the past two decades, I found all this information to be fascinating. Who knew there was so much going on behind the scenes?! Everyone has a story to tell, I guess, and this doc really proves that sentiment. For those (like myself) invested in the proceedings, or even just those with a morbid curiosity, "The Good, The Bad, The Hungry" is a solid 30 for 30 episode that will appeal to a large crowd.
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