It’s very funny when 90s movies write Arnold Schwarzenegger as an every man because then you have this hulking god of a man pretending to be on even footing with Phil Hartman, who isn’t remotely intimidated by him.
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Always comes to mind with Total Recall, where he’s supposed to be an average-joe construction worker who has no clue that he’s actually a memory-wiped secret agent, when that makes much more sense!
I like how he's the only heavily-accented, mountain-sized behemoth in the entire city and yet not even his own family can figure out who that "mysterious person in the Turbo Man costume" is.
Ja until he squeezes him and squeezes him like a tube of toothpaste and when he’s through, nine out of ten dentists wouldn’t recommend him for nothing!
To be fair the movie makes it very clear that Phil’s character has rizzed the entire neighborhood, they’re all giving him stuff! And Arnold’s wife is next! Phil is unstoppable!
Hartman always has that Rizz on him. Even if I was Arnie, I’d be worried. Especially with that ongoing implication that he’s fucked Everything and everyone in his neighborhood.
I like Arnold's movies. Arnold is around 5'10" but he wears a lot of "big heels". (I'm similar to Jesse Ventura's size)
In the first pic, Jess is slouching and Arnold is standing as tall as he can. In the Predator movie, Arnold is standing on a box.
Jesse Ventura is around 6'4". Joe Manganiello is 6'4" 1/2. Jimmy Kimmel is 5'11". Arnold was a peak 6'1" at the most in the 1970's when he was winning titles. (Body building is hard on the spine & body)
What's funny to me is the all-American names they give him, like "John Kimble" and "Howard Langston" when one word out of his mouth and you know he's "Wolfgang Gruber" or "Johan Steinmetz"
The part that gets me is how everyone acts like the way he's speaking is normal. No cracks at his accent. No asking to repeat what he said. Even in Kindergarten Cop, with a room full of kids never asking, "Mister, why do you talk funny?" it's absurd in how unrealistic it is.
I've always found it funny that like the only time a role has had his accent seem that plausible is as Victor Fries. Like, that sounds believably enough as some Austrian guy's name.
His nationality is almost always this unacknowledged elephant in the room and he’s cast as characters who were likely written to be American, with other actors in mind.
correct me if i'm wrong, but iirc Kindergarten Cop is one of the few movies of his where they actually mention that his character is Austrian, right? idk it's been a while since i've seen that.
I suspect he wanted to play that kind of role, such a devoted father figure that he can even come across as foolish in a comedy, rather than an invincible juggernaut of an action role. Even the Terminator got reinvented in that fashion in many respects.
That was supposed to be funny.
The audience was assumed to understand the ironic juxtaposition of casting Ahnold as an everyman.
They could be doing that with The Rock today, but the temptation to drop into action sequences is too great to play it straight, so they haven't really
Bully Joe nobody coming up to the rock and shoving him, as if he's just a 5ft 3 weedy pushover, before getting his ass kicked by an unassuming professional wrestler and action hero, is the 2020s movie cliche the 90s was all about with Arnie.
How tall is Arnold? I'm 6'8 but I'm a skinny boi and not at all built like Arnold (I wish!) so people think of me as an average everyday noodle they have to crane their necks to see
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https://bsky.app/profile/johnhatchard.bsky.social/post/3leios2lk3225
…but he’s actually average height for an American man…
…& short for a Europe man!
They do go out of their way to make him look tall on camera, though…especially in action movies! Hollywood magic!
In the first pic, Jess is slouching and Arnold is standing as tall as he can. In the Predator movie, Arnold is standing on a box.
Dude, maybe just cut back on the gym time? You clearly spend at least two hours a day lifting!
He’s pretty short.
I'd say "Alex Hesse" (Junior) and "John Kruger" (Eraser) are fine though. Exceptions that prove the rule and all that.
Also funny how they bury Arnold in clothes to conceal his muscles
The audience was assumed to understand the ironic juxtaposition of casting Ahnold as an everyman.
They could be doing that with The Rock today, but the temptation to drop into action sequences is too great to play it straight, so they haven't really
https://bsky.app/profile/f1ngerless.bsky.social/post/3lddlt2fehs2x
“the writer’s own wife, who’d previously met Schwarzenegger at an event, estimated that he was no taller than she was—or around 5’6””