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Ali
Review by Mike Furches (Mike's bio)
Directed by Michael Mann
Screenplay by Stephen J. Rivele, Christopher Wilkinson, Eric Roth & Michael
Mann
Story: Gregory Allen Howard
Will Smith .... 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 Roi
Nona M. Gaye .... Belinda Boyd
Michael Michele .... Veronica Porsche
Joe Morton .... Chauncey Eskridge
Barry Shabaka Henley .... Herbert Muhammad
Giancarlo Esposito .... Cassius Clay Sr.
Laurence Mason .... Luis Sarria
Candy Ann Brown .... Odessa Clay (Ali's Mother)
Michael Bentt .... Sonny Liston
James Toney .... Joe Frasier
Charles Shufford .... George Foreman
Vincent De Paul .... Roving Reporter
LeVar Burton .... Martin Luther King Jr.
Produced by Paul Ardaji (producer), Howard Bingham (executive producer), Lee Caplin (executive producer), Gusmano Cesaretti (associate producer), A. Kitman Ho (producer), Graham King (executive producer), James Lassiter (producer), Michael Mann (producer), Jon Peters (producer), Kathleen M. Shea (associate producer), Michael Waxman (co-producer)
Original music by Pieter Bourke, Bill Brown (additional music), Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds (songs), Marvin Gaye (songs), Lisa Gerrard R. Kelly (songs)
Cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki
Film Editing by William Goldenberg, Lynzee Klingman and Stephen E. Rivkin
MPAA Rating R - for some language and brief violence
This is a movie that I have been looking forward to for some time. You see, I come from a boxing family and actually boxed myself. My uncle, my mother's brother, J.D. Estep won numerous Golden Glove Championships and lost by 1 point in a split decision to Jimmy Ellis during the Olympic Trials. Ellis went on to win the Gold Medal that year as well as later on became the Heavyweight Championship of the World. So, you can see that boxing is so to say, in my blood.
I remember J.D. talking about Ali and Marciano being the best fighters ever and I, watching many of the Ali fights with him couldn't help but to agree that Ali certainly was 'The Greatest." So it was with a great deal of anticipation that I have awaited this film.
Michael Mann has done a great job of making this an 'Art' film. The usage of music, soft lens effects and more make this film rather remarkable to watch. I couldn't say enough about the ensemble cast. Will Smith turned down the role for approximately 5 years before accepting it. It is obvious that he put his whole person into the once in a lifetime opportunity of playing Mohammed Ali. He put on approximately 37 pounds of muscle and spent almost a year in the gym learning the sport. There are moments in the film where it is remarkable at the similarities between Will Smith and Ali. Not only does he look just like him, he sounds just like him.
Others in the role stand out remarkably. Jon Voight is remarkable as Howard Cosell and if you didn't know it was Voight you wouldn't believe it. This has certainly been a stand out year for Voight. Along with his role in "Pearl Harbor" he certainly deserves an Academy Award nomination this year for best Supporting Actor. This movie produces others though that could be considered for that role as well as Smith for consideration for Best Actor.
Jamie Foxx as Drew 'Bundini' Brown plays the part perfectly. He provides much needed comic relief into the life of this individual that very few fans of the sport know about. 'Bundini' was a friend and supporter of Ali for most of his career. He is the one that is responsible for many of the great sayings that Ali is known for.
Others include Ron Silver who plays the part of longtime great trainer Angelo Dundee, Mario Van Peebles who plays a remarkable resemblance to Malcolm X. Both of these actors do an exceptional job and could easily be considered for supporting role nominations.
"Ali" starts with Ali in the gym prior to his initial Sonny Liston fight. Through the sequence we see Ali as a youth in various flashback sequences. One of those scenes shows him in a Christian Church looking at some individuals within the church paint a mural of Jesus Christ, with pure white skin, blonde hair and blue eyes. It is clear from the early beginnings of Cassius Clay that he has difficulty with Christianity. Much of the remainder of the film explores Ali's commitment to the Muslim faith and his fight with the United States over his refusal to fight in Vietnam.
Many watching the film will not understand the confusion that Ali went through prior to his decision to follow the Muslim faith. While watching many of the scenes and flashbacks I was reminded of the racial attitudes that existed throughout America at the time. I was also reminded of the words of a valued musician friend of mine who once told me that, "Sometimes what is important in Christianity is not so much how many we win to the Lord but how many we have turned away from Him." Recalling these words and thoughts I couldn't help but wonder as to the role that inappropriate Christian attitudes played in developing the dedication to the Muslim faith that Mohammed Ali has.
In the above mentioned area I was reminded of the importance of loving my neighbor not just in word but also in action and deed. If Christians had been advocating more so for the rights of African Americans in the 1950's and 60's than they were placing them on the backs of busses and viewing them as less than human it is possible and likely that Ali would have accepted Christianity as opposed to rejecting it or at the very least would view it differently today. While there can be no certainty to this we can not hide from the fact that as 'Christians', we certainly have a lot that we need to go to God for and ask forgiveness for. A large part of that is our unwilliness to 'Love your neighbor as yourself' mentality that Jesus Himself stated was among the greatest commandments.
The film continues on with the struggles of Ali in his relationships with women, within his church, the United States Government and much more. The real Mohammed Ali has to be credited with his willingness to allow the bad as well as the good to be portrayed in this film. If giving credit to the movie for anything besides the ensemble cast it would be the human nature given to Ali.
From the above you would think that I really liked the movie but the truth of it is that I didn't. There were many reasons I didn't. While many have hailed this as the greatest boxing movie ever, I beg to differ. It is far from it. Many of the boxing sequences were poorly staged. While extravagant, they were not true to the nature of the sport. While Will Smith spent a year or so in the gym it was obvious that the editor had not. Choosing sequences that show poor boxing form and certainly not similar to Ali.
How anyone could portray Ali was actually another problem with the film. Ali is a real life character who is truly one of a kind. In his prime there was no faster Heavyweight, I believe ever. His famous footwork and shuffle was truly exceptional and if Will Smith tried any of it it certainly didn't make it into the final cut.
There are other problems with the film though. Ali's life is certainly more detailed than any 3 hour movie can make it out to be. My personal belief is that you would need a 8-10 hour mini-series to make this film and concept even begin to work. As a result the film jumps from scene to scene with no continuity. There is little done to develop the story line and as a result I was often lost as to where I was in the movie and as to what was going on. I have heard many say that the film was too long but I refuse to say that. If any thing I believe it was not long enough. This was likely a studio decision and if so they are now paying the price for the lackluster attendance.
This is one movie that I have to say the trailers and HBO Making Of Special are much better than the movie. I remember watching many of the pre-movie interviews with the cast and hearing their comments on how good this movie was. I refuse to believe that they actually thought it was that good. It was simply a matter of receiving a portion of the gate revenues as a part of their salary contract. This movie also contains one of my pet peeves in regards to movies. There are numerous sequences that are in the trailers and publicity materials that are simply not in the movie. Another indication that the studios pushed this one out before the final product was ready.
This movie may have potential but only in the future DVD release. I would hope that the release would include an extended version of the film with much of the deleted sequences. I would also hope it would include extras with the real Mohammed Ali. His life and his character was certainly much more interesting than that portrayed in this film.
While there was certainly wonderful acting in this movie there was no story. For whatever reason, editing, story line, script or whatever, this film fell far short. I would recommend that if you want to learn more about Ali that you check out a number of great videos from the video store. Otherwise wait until this one arrives on Video or DVD.
On a scale of 1 - 10, A technical knockout in the 3rd- 3.
Copyright 2002, Mike Furches. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission.
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About Mike Furches: Mike is the senior pastor of United at the Cross Community Church in Wichita, Kansas. The church, located in the inner city of Wichita has a unique ministry to former gang members, drug addicts, prostitutes and others often neglected by the church. Mike also is involved in freelance writing and speaks nationally. Check out his web page for more information: http://www.furches.org/ E-mail Mike |
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