Directed by:
Michael MannCinematography:
Emmanuel LubezkiCast:
Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, Jon Voight, Mario Van Peebles, Ron Silver, Jeffrey Wright, Mykelti Williamson, Jada Pinkett Smith, Nona Gaye, Michael Michele (more)VOD (3)
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Will Smith gives a stunning performance portraying boxing legend Muhammad Ali in this biopic from acclaimed director Michael Mann. Mann gives the film a specific timeline, 1964-1974, tracing Ali's life and career from the early Cassius Clay days to his involvement in the Nation of Islam and his controversial refusal to join the US military. The film culminates with the dramatic final showdown in Zaire against George Foreman, "The Rumble in the Jungle." The film gives the viewer an eye-opening, personal look at key events in Ali's life, his friendships with Malcolm X (Mario Van Peebles) and TV broadcaster Howard Cosell (Jon Voight), and many intimate moments including the night Ali meets his wife, played by Smith's real life wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. (Sony Pictures)
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Reviews (7)
Muhammad Ali (1942–2016) was the 16th heavyweight boxing world champion, but by his time, the original idea was already there, as Jack Dempsey first fulfilled it. The story of this champion is full of activism, racism, and politics. In his career, not even the black bomber Joe Louis was important anymore, but rather the endless strife to regain the title. Will Smith surpassed himself here, but considering the complexity of the whole life story, I must conclude that the resulting film is only a superficial work.
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"Ali" is certainly not the best boxing movie ever made, but on the other hand, it is an interesting exploration into the life of a boxer who is known by many people as a legend, but not much is known about him. The first thing that occurred to me when I watched the film is the fact that it could have been much more controversial. The life of Cassius Clay, also known as Cassius X, also known as Muhammad Ali, was controversial, definitely interesting, and definitely had more to offer. I don't completely understand why the film avoided his illness, although it is true that it occurred later. But well, the film only focused on a certain part of his life, from his first steps in the ring to his first defeat against Joe Frazier and the subsequent fights that brought Ali into the spotlight. People loved him, as much as they hated him. It was impossible not to love him. His boxing style was incredible, and I don't think that anyone in history has been as fast and achieved as much success as he did. He didn't cover himself, why would he, when he was so fast that he could simply dodge the punches? The strongest moments are those in the ring and those where the camera focuses on Ali himself, which Will Smith played perfectly. Not only did he learn his way of speaking but also his boxing style. I consider this truly brilliant, and I can only agree that the beloved actor was nominated for an Oscar, even though he didn't win it. That year, his colleague Denzel Washington took the statue for the film "Training Day," where he gave his best performance. John Voight was also nominated for an Oscar but also didn't win. Throughout the whole film, I didn't recognize him, which is not so much his achievement but mainly the achievement of the makeup artists, who transformed his face beyond recognition. I wasn't as captivated by the film as I had hoped, "Warrior" had a much greater impact on me, but I still think that it is another example that boxing films are simply not bad. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2012/10/zitra-nehrajeme-lovci-dinosauru.html
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A biopic without adornment from a visual master. Just like with his film The Insider two years prior, Michael Mann tells the story of a remarkable person that not only addresses its subject matter but also various social issues and what it's like for people under strain. And just like with The Insider, the story is captivating, visually stunning, and interesting overall. However, it is also overly generous in length and uneven in pacing. Whenever the camera isn't focused on Ali, I don't have much to grasp onto, and the family problems become uninteresting filler. On the other hand, the moments when the main character encounters his femme fatales are among the strongest, because here Mann applies his natural sense for romance. His best ally in all of this, of course, is Will Smith, who has found his strongest tentpole role here, and I never stopped believing in this complicated character for a single second.
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Mann has bound himself in the shackles of a biopic, and yet all the while we are being winked at by a loutish fighter from the Italian quarter. Whilst Mann formally once again sympathetically does his own thing (the cinematography, the music), in the dialogue and pacing he lacks Scorsese’s explosiveness, and the period is also reflected quite dimly. Thematically, the film packs a lot in (personal testimony, sports drama, agitation for racial tolerance), only to end up resolving nothing even in a two-and-a-half-hour runtime. A cruelly missed opportunity.
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Simply wonderful. A biographical drama as I like them best. No over the top going into unnecessary details, but the coherence of the central branch of the movie means watching Ali with bated breath. The moments in the ring are an unforgettable masterclass of cinema and the emotive moments are handled with similar bravado. Will Smith gives the performance of his lifetime and his depiction of Muhammad Ali is more than convincing - on occasions he simply IS Muhammad Ali. Michael Mann again filmed an excellent movie and this is his first movie using today much-discussed digital camera. But the important thing is what he does with that camera. And what he does is absolutely captivating. Here again we have that central thought that shows itself in each of Mann’s movies. This time it was the struggle of a man against the system. Muhammad Ali’s fight against everybody who didn’t understand one simple thing: That he was the best.
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Gallery (81)
Photo © 2001 Columbia Pictures
![Ali - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/160/237/160237418_f54ef2.jpg)
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