"It's not bragging if you can back it up"!
 Apr 9th, 2006
Advantages:
Excellent portrait charting Ali's life . . .
Disadvantages:
He had a few fights too many . . .
Recommendable:
Yes
Detailed rating:
Did you enjoy it?
Story
Characters / Performances
Special Effects
Soundtrack
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  newty1977
About me:
Hope everyone is keeping well? Works really busy, my Ciao time is very limited.... pretty much non ...
Member since:30.12.2005
Reviews:98
Members who trust:92
Review rated by 50 Ciao members on average: very helpful 
"ALI" - 2 Disc DVD "It's hard to be humble, when you're as great as I am"!
"I'm not the greatest; I'm the double greatest. Not only do I knock 'em out, I pick the round. " Some people can't abide the man ... thought he was arrogant, abrasive and a whole host of other such expressions. My Dad is one of them, but for me, he's a legend and as a BIG fight fan, I appreciate the context in which many of his comments and shenanigans were aimed. Even if I was good enough myself to be professional and lived in his period, I am glad I am a welterweight! Just leaves the likes of Ricky Hatton for me then ... dohh!!
As the Beastie Boys would lament, Muhammad Ali, born Cassius Clay, certainly had the "skills to pay the bills!". There have been a number of movies made down the years charting the life and history of the famous Louisville, Kentucky boxer, but "Ali" is different. Simply, it's better.
This movie is a biopic but the way in which it differs from other biopic films of his left and is that it makes not attempt of charting his life from childhood right up until modern day. Instead, the film focuses upon Ali the Great, when he was at the top of his profession, a cultural icon yet politically ostracised. ~~~~~~~~~~
Cassius Clay
~~~~~~~~~~
This is a short piece of history leading up to the events of the film. Muhammad Ali was born "Cassius Marcellus Clay" on 17th January 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. His parents earned a modest living and worked hard for what they had. Ali started boxing in junior high, when he attended a local gym and was taught how to box by a policeman. Ali quickly set his ambition to be a top fighter and set his short-term goal on becoming an Olympian. Ali fought in the 1960 Rome Olympics and won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division. Soon after, he turned professional, and having beaten his first opponents rather convincingly, he was given the opportunity to fight world heavyweight champion, Sonny Liston, on 25th February 1964, a fight that saw Cassisus Clay knocked the champion out in 7 rounds to become the new heavyweight world champion.
Shortly after becoming heavyweight champion, Ali decided to change his religion and joined the Nation of Islam (Black Muslims), and, much to the disgust of his Father, took the Muslim name "Muhammad Ali." The Vietnam War then interrupted Ali's career and in 1967, the boxer was enrolled into the military, but he refused to serve, sighting his religious beliefs.
This served to ostracise Ali from some Amercians, who believed he was a traitor to his country, whilst others praised him for risking prison to stand up for his beliefs. Ali was charged by the government of violating the Selective Service Act, which led to the stripping of his world title and forbidding him to box. ~~~~~~~~
Timeline
~~~~~~~~
17 January 1942 ~ Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) born in Louisville, Kentucky.
1960 ~ won light-heavyweight gold medal at the Rome Olympics.
25 February 1964 ~ fought, and knocked out Sonny Liston; becoming world heavyweight champion.
1964 ~ joined Nation of Islam.
1967 ~ inducted into the military but refused to serve.
8 March 1971 ~ Ali lost to Joe Frazier / Supreme Court ruled in favour of Ali.
28 January 1974 ~ Ali won unanimous decision over Frazier.
30 October 1974 ~ Ali knocked out George Forman in the "Rumble in the Jungle."
15 February 1978 ~ Ali lost the heavyweight title in a split decision to Leon Spinks / Ali regained the title from Spinks seven months later.
1979 ~ Ali retired.
1980 ~ Ali lost a comeback bout to Larry Holmes.
1981 ~ Ali lost a comeback bout to Trevor Berbick.
1996 ~ Ali lit the Olympic flame in Atlanta. ~~~~~~~
The Film
~~~~~~~
The story picks up from 1964, when he took the World Heavyweight Boxing Championship from Sonny Liston, whom Cassius Clay - as he was known at the time of the fight - called the "Big ugly bear", and covers the proceeding decade of his life, up until the infamous "Rumble in The Jungle", when he regained the title versus George Foreman in Zaire. Will Smith, who had to gain something like 2 stones for the role and train as a boxer for several months (weights & timings might be a little inaccurate as my memory is fading!), delivered a stunning performance as Muhammad Ali, in a film delving into the personal life, outside of the ring, as well as the majesty of the boxer within it. The film charts Ali's problematic following of the Nation of Islam, which ultimately inspired him to change his name, dump first his first wife, and turn his back on his old friend Malcolm X. Ali had, in total, 3 marriages, which are all covered within the film, along with his refusal - when inducted into the American military - to go and fight in Vietnam. A refusal, based upon religious and social beliefs, whereby he did not wish to fight against his "..brothers…", meant Ali was stripped of his world heavyweight title and not granted a licence to box within the USA, one of the key reasons for the staging of his fight in Zaire.
Director, Michael Mann, is obviously fascinated by the multitude of layers that were prevalent in Ali's life during this ten year span, and has - in my view - provided an excellent blend of the politics, sport and religion that shaped Ali's conscious. In a way, the film doesn't seek to answer questions, but more so poses them to the viewer, yet it does leave out some of the more contentious questions thrown at Ali during the time; most notably the suggestion that two fights versus Sonny Liston were fixed. I like to think that history proved the answer to both those questions, in terms of Ali's confidence, ability and success within the ring…. "I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was." Ali had that aura about him, that supreme confidence, which meant he feared no one in the ring, but he was the master of out psyching an opponent before they even stepped in the ring, and it certainly proved not to be bravado. It was this loud and brash side that either won him friends, or made him enemies, but more people loved him than hated him.
Despite Ali's loud and often-arrogant public persona, he was a very quiet man privately, and was evidently a thinker and something of a philosopher. Some of the quotes attributed to Muhammad Ali are actually very clever and belied the opinion many had of the man...
- "It isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe"
- "It's the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen."
- "Love is a net that catches hearts like a fish"
- "Prejudice comes from being in the dark; sunlight disinfects it."
- "Rivers, ponds, lakes and streams - they all have different names, but they all contain water. Just as religions do - they all contain truths."
- "Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth."
- "Silence is golden when you can't think of a good answer."There are some very poignant scenes within the film, that are truly cinematic masterpieces, one of which I have scene described in several reviews of this film, but I must make reference to it also. Ali is out jogging in preparation for the "Rumble in the Jungle" and as he jogs through a village, there are murals of him all over the walls, the ensuing moments encapsulate a lot about the popularity of the man, the boxer.
~~~~~~~~
Soundtrack
~~~~~~~~ I honestly don't remember the music very well from the film, I am honest, but the soundtrack is available to purchase and comprises the following tracks;
1. "The World's Greatest" - R. Kelly
2. "Fight" - Alicia Keys
3. "Hold On" - R. Kelly
4. "A Change Is Gonna Come" - Al Green
5. "Ain't No Way" - Aretha Franklin
6. "Sometimes" - Bilal
7. "20 Dollars" - Angie Stone
8. "For The Precious Love" - Truth Hurts
9. "Bring It On Home To Me" - David Elliot
10. "E - Ali The Greatest" - Everlast
11. "Mistreated" - Shawn Kane
12. "Tomorrow" - Salif Keita
13. "All The Long The Watchtower" - Watchtower Four
14. "Odessa" - Martin Tillman
15. "See The Sun" - Lisa Gerrad and Pieter Bourke ~~~~~~
The Cast
~~~~~~
Will Smith - Cassius Clay / Cassius X / Muhammad Ali
Jamie Foxx - Drew 'Bundini' Brown
Jon Voight - Howard Cosell
Mario Van Peebles - Malcolm X
Ron Silver - Angelo Dundee
Jeffrey Wright - Howard Bingham
Mykelti Williamson - Don King
Jada Pinkett Smith - Sonji
Nona Gaye - Belinda Ali
Michael Michele - Veronica Porche
Joe Morton - Chaucey Eskridge
Bruce McGill - Bradley
Paul Rodriguez - Dr Ferdie Pacheco
Barry Shabaka Henley - Herbert Muhammad
Giancarlo Esposito - Cassisus Clay, Senior DIRECTED BY: Michael Mann (The Insider, 1999)~~~~~~~~~~~~
Other Information
~~~~~~~~~~~~
- Cost - I paid around £15 for the DVD, but it's currently available on Amazon for £7.97 with free delivery (B-B-B-Bargain!)
- Certificate - 15
- Catalogue Number: EDV9159
- Region 2 DVD (Europe, Japan, South Africa and the Middle East including Egypt).
- 2 Disc set, including special features; HBO making of special / behind the scenes / audio commentary (cast & crew audio clips) / original theatrical trailer
I haven't actually watched the specials I am afraid, so can't give you the low down on them, but I really must get around to doing so and will up-date this when I do!~~~~~~~
Awards
~~~~~~~
Nominated for 2 Oscars, 6 other award wins and 18 nominations ~~~~~~~
Conclusion
~~~~~~~
The film actually had a very mixed response, with many crediting the solid performance of Will Smith as Ali, yet directing criticism at Director Michael Mann. A lot of the criticism was aimed at Mann, because it was felt he hadn't captured enough history and background to Ali and his life, particularly in terms of charting his roots and rise to the cultural icon of the day. However, this was - to me - evidently not the intention of the director, who assumed that viewers would already be knowledgeable about Ali's roots and life, instead choosing to concentrate upon a specific decade of his life, most notably the decade that shaped his life! However, with that said, conversely, this is the reason I have given some background on Ali within this review, so that you have a little more knowledge should you choose to watch this film.
I thoroughly enjoyed the film and felt that it was a very accurate portrait of the events from this era of Muhammad Ali's past, with the performance of Will Smith, adding to the strength of the film. It gets my vote anyway!
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![Ali - Two Disc Set [DVD] [2002]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78534986.jpg)
by (28%):
by (2%):
19.04.2006 18:46
Another corking review, although one I'll miss as boxing makes me feel a bit squeamish. xx
15.04.2006 08:06
I can really only give this an "H" as you've posted it as a DVD review, but you've only mentioned the extras, not reviewed them.
13.04.2006 20:36
This is the only Will Smith film I have seen that I didn't love. I thought it was ok but I was glad when it was finished lol