You definitely know Rogue Fitness already: massive purveyor of all things strength. But did you know they also make documentaries? On December 1st, Rogue released their documentary "Levantadores: The Basque Strongmen" on YouTube. The following is our review of this short documentary.

The culture of a people is made up of many elements. One isn't more important than the other.

Simply put, "Levantadores" is beautiful. As a study of culture, it's fascinating and touching. As a study of a culture of lifting, it's incredible.

Beginning with a description of the Rural Sports of Basque, we learn about how these strongmen first developed their sport out of the grunt work of day to day life: moving stones from the quarry, cutting down trees to build fires and homes, blacksmithing. One of the lifters is shown tossing around an anvil the size of a small child. He explains "blacksmiths used to bet each other. And that's where this sport that we do today comes form. Things like who can hit the anvil the most."

These strongmen wouldn't fit well on the cover of a muscle magazine, but they are men who understand the value of toughness and hard work.

And hard work is front and center in this culture of strongmen. Chopping wood, carrying stones, dragging boulders, and slinging solid rocks are all on the docket. As a fan of strongman, fitness, and lifting in general it's amazing to watch these men throw around stones weighing more than 400 pounds, sometimes using only one hand.

While the lifting and feats of strength are the main topic of the piece, the main subject is the culture of Basque, an old culture built around the farm and homestead and speaks an ancient language that's unattached to modern languages. Strength, lifting, hard work, and pride are clearly an integral part of their cultural identity. The care and effort that goes into creating the stones they lift is enough proof of all of that and more.

Their careful, loving, and detailed approach is applied to the construction of their implements, the practice of their craft, the development of their sport, and the traditions of their people. Beyond the impressive feats of strength showcased, it's touching to see the pride and love they have for their culture and their sport.

In the end, "Levantadores" is a masterful study of a culture built around the values learned through hard work and pride, and the film itself is crafted and executed with the same care, precision, and craft as the strongmen and their stones. It's shot, edited, and paced beautifully and lovingly presents a subject that is fascinating and touching. I strongly suggest checking it out if you like documentaries, being exposed to new cultures, and/or strength sports.