Back in the 1970s, before Disney turned into a full-time Marvel factory, they had a little cottage industry of live-action films about kids defying all known laws of physics. One of the final gasps of that era was The Strongest Man in the World, the last of three films starring Kurt Russell as Dexter Riley, the brainiac with a knack for accidentally creating world-changing scientific breakthroughs. This time, it’s super-strength cereal. That’s right—before protein powder and energy bars, there was breakfast food that turned an entire fraternity into Arnold Schwarzenegger. It’s goofy, it’s charming, and it’s about as subtle as a sledgehammer to the skull. But is it good? Eh. It’s like stale cereal—better than nothing, but not exactly a satisfying meal.
The Last Hurrah of Dexter Riley
In the late 1960s and early ‘70s, Disney realized it could make bank by taking the same basic concept—dorky college kid stumbles into superpowers—and milking it harder than the cow in The Strongest Man in the World’s opening scene. It started with The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969), where Dexter Riley became a walking, talking Google search after an electric shock. Then came Now You See Him, Now You Don’t (1972), where he turned invisible. For the grand finale, the studio decided to go full Popeye and give him super-strength.
This was Disney’s golden age of goofy, low-stakes comedy, when the biggest villain was always some shady businessman trying to take advantage of a magic formula. The Strongest Man in the World follows the same blueprint: Dexter accidentally invents something amazing, a rich guy tries to steal it, and a series of slapstick hijinks ensue. It was the last of the Dexter Riley trilogy, not because audiences were tired of it, but because even Disney knew you can only milk a premise so many times before the cow runs dry—again, much like the poor test subject in this film.
Kurt Russell Punches Physics in the Face
Kurt Russell, somehow still looking like he belongs in college, returns as Dexter Riley, but this time he gets significantly less screen time. The movie instead focuses on Richard Schuyler (Michael McGreevey), who is the real catalyst for the plot thanks to his homemade cereal mix. That’s right—Dexter, the so-called genius, is more of a sidekick in his own franchise finale. Meanwhile, Joe Flynn returns as the perpetually exasperated Dean Higgins, who once again has to grovel his way out of Medfield College’s impending bankruptcy. If Medfield were a real school, it would have been shut down for fraud decades ago.
Cesar Romero returns for the third time as A.J. Arno, the crime boss with absolutely no self-preservation instincts, because he spends every movie trying to rob a school full of teenage superhumans. He’s hired by Krinkle Krunch, a rival cereal company, to steal the formula, and this leads to a kidnapping subplot so unnecessary it feels like the movie is trying to hit a crime quota. Meanwhile, Dexter spends most of the film running late for things and occasionally punching people into next week. The whole thing ends in a weightlifting competition where Dexter has to save the day by bench-pressing over a thousand pounds. This would be shocking, but by this point, it’s just another Tuesday for Medfield College.
A Middle Child in the Disney Vault
When it was released in 1975, The Strongest Man in the World got the kind of reviews you’d expect for a movie where Kurt Russell fights gangsters using breakfast food. The New York Times called it better than The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, but not as good as The Absent-Minded Professor. Variety thought the slapstick worked, but it wasn’t anything new. Metacritic retroactively gave it a 63%, which is basically the movie review equivalent of a polite shrug.
It was also the final film for a handful of veteran actors, including Joe Flynn, Raymond Bailey, and Roy Roberts, which makes The Strongest Man in the World kind of like an accidental retirement party in movie form. Over time, the film faded into Disney’s deep live-action archives, resurfacing only when nostalgic adults wanted to explain to their kids that Kurt Russell was once the king of dumb Disney comedies before he started fighting intergalactic wars with a talking raccoon.
A Good-Natured, If Slightly Expired, Bowl of Comedy
Is The Strongest Man in the World a masterpiece? Not even close. Is it a fun, nostalgic trip back to a time when Disney made movies about goofy science experiments instead of superheroes? Absolutely. It’s the cinematic equivalent of a breakfast cereal you loved as a kid but realize, as an adult, isn’t nearly as filling as you remember. If you have fond memories of Dexter Riley and Medfield College, give it a watch. If you’re expecting a lost classic, well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5)
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