The Strongest Man in the World

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Vincent McEveety directs. Cotton Warburton cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 151 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
• 2Part of the "Dexter Riley Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
• 3Editor Cotton Warburton shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 4Kurt Russell and Joe Flynn and Eve Arden carry the top of the cast.
• 5Marketing tagline: "The biggest dumbbell on campus... and the secret formula got it off the ground!".
• 6IMDB entry: tt0073760 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 7Only 77 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Editing

Cotton Warburton

Runtime

92 min · 1h 32m

Aspect ratio (typical)

1.37:1 (Academy)

Status

Released

Original language

EN

Certification (US)

G

IMDB

The Strongest Man in the World (1975) ↗

Part of

Dexter Riley Collection

Dexter Riley Collection AKA "Dexter Reilly" Trilogy

• 
  The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes

  1969
• 
  Now You See Him, Now You Don't

  1972
• 
  The Strongest Man in the World

  1975 · this one

Also by

Vincent McEveety

• 
  The Ballad of Hector the Stowaway Dog

  1964 · ★ 10.0
• 
  Skyward Christmas

  1981 · ★ 9.0
• 
  Columbo

  1971 · ★ 8.1
• 
  Cutter's Trail

  1970 · ★ 8.0
• 
  Star Trek

  1966 · ★ 8.0
• 
  Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

  1982 · ★ 7.8

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  The Strongest Man In The World

  Trailer · Official

Community reviews

What people are saying

• Wuchak2018-05-07
  ★ 4/10

  Some highlights, but overall kinda lame RELEASED IN 1975 and directed by Vincent McEveety, "The Strongest Man in the World” chronicles events at a Southern California college where Dexter Riley (Kurt Russell) & his pals inadvertently discover that a concoction of a new chemical mixed with a certain cereal will grant anyone or anything superhuman strength. It’s interesting seeing Kurt when he was so young (23 years-old during shooting) and there’s a fun all-star cast of familiars who were popular at the time (Joe Flynn, Dick Van Patten, Phil Silvers, Cesar Romero, etc.). I also like the mid-70s fashions & décor; and there are a few laughs or well-done scenes, like the great conference room sequence. But, with the exception of Eve Arden as a cereal mogul, there’s zero emphasis in the female department. In other words, the story takes place at a Southern Cal college, but there are no women, except in a very peripheral sense. Someone might argue that this is a film for kids. Yes, real LITTLE kids; and maybe adults on a nostalgia trip. THE MOVIE RUNS 1 hour 32 minutes and was shot in Los Angeles, Glendale and Pasadena, California. WRITERS: Joseph L. McEveety and Herman Groves. GRADE: C-

  Read full review ↓
• r96sk2020-08-03
  ★ 6/10

  Worst of the trilogy. While <em>'The Strongest Man in the World'</em> isn't anything atrocious, it most certainly fails to land on the same level as the two Robert Butler directed films. The plot, which is about strength this time, isn't as finely executed or as entertaining. Kurt Russell (Dexter), the star of the last two productions, barely features in this one. I can see why they kept the focus on Higgins (Joe Flynn), as it worked well in <em>'Now You See Him, Now You Don't'</em>, but to switch eyes from Dexter to Schuyler (Michael McGreevey) is a strange choice. Cesar Romero (Arno) and Richard Bakalyan (Cookie) are also too forced into things. There is still minor enjoyment in there, but everything's just a little duller than in the other sequel and <em>'The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes'</em> original. A decent set of films, still.

  Read full review ↓

Production companies

Who made it

• 

  Walt Disney Productions

  US

Key crew

• Art DirectionJack Senter
• Set DecorationWilliam F. Calvert
• CinematographyAndrew Jackson
• Art DirectionJohn B. Mansbridge
• EditorCotton Warburton
• ProducerBill Anderson
• MusicRobert F. Brunner

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• experiment
• milk
• laboratory
• strong man

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical1975-02-06G

Also known as

International titles

• Der Retorten-GoliathDE
• L'Homme le plus fort du mondeFR
• Der Retorten-Goliath - Der stärkste Mann der WeltDE
• Der Retorten Goliath - Der stärkste Mann der WeltDE
• Der stärkste Mann der WeltDE
• Der Retorten GoliathDE