Based off a book and script by local author Charles Gaines, Stay Hungry was not only filmed in Birmingham, but is also one of the few movies on our list that is about Birmingham as well and highlights several different historical sites around the city on the big screen. From legendary Chinese restaurant Joy Young and Boutwell Auditorium, to the Lyric Theatre, Country Club of Birmingham, the former Bank of Savings Building, local homes, and countless outdoor scenes and facades, few films from the modern era feature the Magic City— and commentary on its social life and strata— so prominently. Featuring a young Arnold Schwarzenegger in one of his very first movie roles as ambitious bodybuilder Joe Santo, Gaines had previously helped launch Schwarzenegger’s public persona through his 1974 book Pumping Iron: The Art and Sport of Bodybuilding, before getting him involved in the film adaptation of his second book. Also starring a young Jeff Bridges and Sally Field as love interests involved in a real estate deal gone awry, the movie was uneven at best, but did manage to land Schwarzenegger his first Golden Globe nomination and win with Best Acting Debut in a Motion Picture. We all know what happened from there. But for anyone interested in the changing face of Birmingham, Stay Hungry remains an incredible time capsule and portal into another era in our city’s history, and one that is not just fun and interesting to look back on, but is a reminder of some of the places we have lost along the way. And if you’ve never seen the climactic bodybuilding scene at the Lyric Theatre at the the end of the film, well, you may just have to watch it to see what all the fuss is about. You’ll never look at the building the same way again.
FUN FACT: Inspired by the movie, pioneering punk/new wave band Talking Heads famously named a song after the film on their Brian Eno-produced sophomore LP, More Songs About Buildings and Food.
Trailer Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdQNTQk5sHk