Advantages: Will Smith in an exceptional performance, very insightful Disadvantages: The roughness will put some people off, drags in places
...legendary heavy weight boxer Muhammad Ali from the period 1964, where he clashed with the infamous Sonny Liston, through a decade to 1974 and the now famous 'Rumble in the Jungle' fight against George Foreman. ● Opinion
The first time I sat down to watch "Ali" I actually turned it off after about 15 minutes as it was nothing like what I expected. Not only did I expect a full biopic of his life from his early days but I also had become accustomed ... ...you see a side of Ali which was somewhat different to the public persona which many of us only know.
Of course with a film about one of the most iconic boxers of all time the film is going to have a few action sequences featuring the actual fights and training sessions. Compared to other boxing films, such as "Rocky" and "Cinderella Man", the fight scenes feel a bit under worked, but then for me they actually fitted in with the general rawness of ...
christianfilmcritic 15.10.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Ali (DVD)
Advantages: Excellent portrait charting Ali's life ... Disadvantages: He had a few fights too many...
...Instead, the film focuses upon Ali the Great, when he was at the top of his profession, a cultural icon yet politically ostracised.
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Cassius Clay
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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 ... ...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 ...
newty1977 09.04.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Ali (DVD)
Advantages: Excellent performance by Will Smith, compelling viewing Disadvantages: Boxing fans won't like the lack of boxing
Born Cassius Clay, Muhammad Ali converted to Islam during the course of his boxing career, and turned his back on his Christian background and slave name. This was to colour much of his life outside of boxing; he divorced his first wife, for example, because although she converted to Islam herself, she refused to dress appropriately. He claimed that fighting in the Vietnam war was against his religious beliefs, leading to all sorts of trouble, including ... ...insignificant compared to that of Ali - the man himself was larger than life and Will Smith took that on board and eclipsed everyone else in the film. I do, however, have to briefly mention Jon Voight, who plays Howard Cosell, a journalist who develops a love/hate relationship with Ali - his chemistry with Will Smith is fantastic and together, they add some much needed humour to the film. I have already mentioned my dislike of boxing. I think one ...
sunmeilan 25.04.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Ali (DVD)
Advantages: Excellent acting, good storyline Disadvantages: Less of what we were shown and more about the rest of his career
Ali is a film which shows part of the life of Cassius Clay. I have seen parts of this film before but as I saw it for a bargain price I decided to get it and actually watch the whole thing. The film starts with Cassius going for a shot at the title fight which he does win and soon becomes the Heavy Weight Champion of the World. He is close friends with a man called Malcolm X who is a black Muslim and has talked Cassius Clay into converting to become ... ...Muhammad Ali. Muhammad Ali is now champion of the world and is more than happy to use his fame to put across is political views and how the black Americans should stand up for themselves and demand to be treated as equals. Muhammad goes on to win more fights and he soon become undefeated but his luck is about to change when he is enlisted in the US Army which he refuses to do so now faces a very lengthy court case and the possibility of 5 years in ...
sewbizzie 20.03.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Ali (DVD)
Advantages: Good acting and boxing matches Disadvantages: Slow pace in places, no in-depth detail for many events
Ali is directed by Michael Mann and was originally released in 2001. The film covers a 10 year period of Muhammed Ali's boxing career, 1964-1974, but overall seems to be rushed. As a result we only touch on the events and do not get a real chance to look in-depth which is a shame. Will Smith plays the part of Ali and does an excellent job in my opinion in recreating the true character that Muhammed Ali was in terms of boxing ability and arrogance. ... ...hour of the movie shows Ali converting to the Islamic faith followed by his refusal to fight in the Vietnam War resulting in a jail term - Also removing his boxing belt. Shortly after he is cleared and starts back on the road to the heavy weight championship where we see fights with Joe Frasier and George Foreman. Throughout the film we are introduced to the friends in Ali's life such as trainer Angelo Dundee (played by Ron Silver), and the Bundini ...
paddeh 14.01.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Ali (DVD)
Advantages: Ali biography Disadvantages: a bit political
...did not grow up watching Ali fights I was too young, but I do think that he every much as great as they say he is.
The film depicts Ali's success in boxing between the 60's and 70's. The film concentrates on his major fights entwined with the political imbalance at the time, especially that involving the black radical movement i.e. that 'Nation of Islam' and one of its most prominent speakers Malcolm x. I think the film was very well done as a kind ... ...feel some of the pressures Ali felt and the battles he had to go through within his personal life as well as his boxing career. In the movie Ali is depicted as a man very much in love with, what he does mainly boxing. There were other insights in the movie which centred on his religious and political beliefs, such as he denounced his name, because it was to him a symbol of slavery given to him by the slave master that governed his family; Cassius ...
NEO_TECH 22.08.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ali (DVD)
Aliis a substantial biopic that follows the career of Cassius Clay aka Muhammad Ali from ... more
1964--when he took the world heavyweight championship from Sonny Liston--to 1974, when he took it back from George Foreman in Zaire. Along the way, the film looks ...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Aliis a substantial biopic that follows the career of Cassius Clay aka Muhammad Ali from ... more
1964--when he took the world heavyweight championship from Sonny Liston--to 1974, when he took it back from George Foreman in Zaire. Along the way, the film looks ...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 3 to 5 weeks...
In a performance that Joel Siegel of ABC News called "a transformation " Will Smith plays ... more
boxing legend Muhammad Ali in a visually stunning epic from Academy Award-nominated director Michael Mann (The Insider). Beginning with Ali's ground-breaking boxi...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Acclaimed director Michael Mann directs Academy Award nominated Will Smith in 'ALI'. An ... more
epic movie about the best loved, sometimes reviled and most controversial international sports hero of all time. A man whose wit and athletic genius, defiant rage a...
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Production Year: 2003 - Action/Adventure - Director: Jonathon Mostow - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring:Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nick Stahl, Claire Danes, Kristinna Loken, David Andrews
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam