Will Smith Movie:

Editorial Review:
Ali is a rush of charm, violence, and well-crafted mythmaking sure to enthrall. From the unforgettable surge of the opening--a 10-minute montage of sheer brilliance where formative scenes from the early life of Cassius Clay float along on the rapture of a live performance by Sam Cooke in a Harlem nightclub--through to Muhammad Ali's departure for Zaire to fight George Foreman, Michael Mann's homage is mostly crisp and fleet-footed. As Clay/Ali, Will Smith acquits himself marvelously due in large part to his uncanny re-creation of Ali's most famous weapon, his mesmerizing voice. Indeed, the best scenes throughout showcase Ali's verbal rather than pugilistic sparring; whether with his entourage (notably Jamie Foxx), Howard Cosell (Jon Voight), or Don King (Mykelti Williamson), Michael Mann's Ali has the same authoritative wit and ability to surprise that so disarmed the public. The news conferences and behind-the-scenes banter are exquisitely re-created; not so Ali's flaws. Mann's attempt to depict Ali's womanizing, his dubious affiliation with the Nation of Islam, and his insatiable need for the spotlight seems halfhearted and laborious in comparison to the film's enlivened adoration of its subject. As the sluggish second half of the film betrays, Ali is at its impressionistic best when it's in awe rather than when it explains. --Fionn Meade

Ali [Region 2] Reviews:
Amazing record of Ali's life
2009-08-06 - Liked it very much. The movie instigate me to do additional research about Ali's life and people around him, in special,
Malcon X. I have being suggesting it for many friends.

Packs a Solid Punch
2009-06-02 - Ali is a biopic directed by Michael Mann that successfully covers legendary boxing icon Muhammad Ali's benchmarks over a ten-year time frame. The film opens as Cassius Clay prepares for his fight against heavy weight titleholder Sonny Liston. `That man's so ugly, when he sweat... the sweat run backwards off his forehand just to stay away from his face.' The famous `Louisville Lip' opens up as Clay taunts his opponent during a press conference.
From that point on, there is no doubt that Will Smith did a brilliant job in portraying one of the greatest of all time: from the hard work Smith put in at the gym to look and move like Ali, to Smith's emulation of Ali's persona, Smith's talent and achievement is undeniable.
Ali is set in the 1960s, a time of the struggle for civil rights and also a time of war. It is a docudrama that is faithful to historical context. It depicts Ali's at first brotherly relationship with Malcolm X, which slowly deteriorates as X drifts away from the Nation. It also boldly depicts Elijah Muhammad's blatant behavior towards his followers. Ali's wartime struggle is also successfully portrayed as the film dedicates a big part to show his three-year slump after he refuses to join the army on moral grounds.
Some criticized Mann for taking `docudrama liberties' as he depicts the relationship between Ali and Howard Cosell more intimate than it really was and for assuming that Sonny Liston DID apply a substance on his gloves before his fight with Ali. But these are minor `Hollywood touches' that Mann uses to appeal to a wider audience and hardly cause a drag to the great picture.
The only real disappointment of the movie is that it solely focuses on the `greatness' of Ali instead of telling a wholesome life story. It doesn't tell us how Cassius Clay grew up, learnt to box, and gradually made his transformation into Ali. The film also concludes after the `Rumble in the Jungle' fight between Ali and George Foreman; it doesn't deal with Ali's later life after catching Parkinson's.
The power and inspiration of Ali is undisputable, and probably one of the most successful docudrama ever made. `Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee His hands can't hit what his eyes can't see.' No film about The Champ would ever come close to touching Ali.

Where is the Champ?
2009-05-28 - ALI is nothing but a playful punch. Telling the tale of the boxer, Muhammad Ali, the movie goes through his life, starting with the early matches before his rise to fame and struggles with keeping himself in the boxing game after joining the Nation of Islam, to his name change from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali, simultaneous romantic relationships, and refusal to join the Vietnam War. Though the film is accurate in the portrayal of events and the character of Ali and even delves into aspects of racism not explored in other films, ALI seems to have no clear single point of view or message about the titular character.
Directed by Michael Mann, with Will Smith in the lead role, the movie starts off with Ali, then named Cassius Clay, training, followed by a match. Proceeding to cliche examples of African-American discrimination with shots of bus segregation and police targeting of blacks, the movie's development seems undirected indeed. Unexplained scenes of the Nation of Islam gathering and Malcolm X making speeches did not help in clearing up what was going on for the audience. It seems that this film had no direction from the get go.
Only after an hour into the movie, do we get a taste of what Mann was trying to communicate from the start. After an onslaught of story exposition and character establishment, story development finally started, if in the least of the name. Ali starts to receive consequences for his constant flirtation and multiple relationships with women, and a backlash for his abrupt name change from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali. His valued relationships start to fall apart, as arguments begin and marriages are divorced. The public is shocked by his name change, and even his fellow boxers refuse to call him by his new name, which causes violence from the champ, as he wants to be acknowledged as Muhammad Ali from now on. That said, this development still presents no clear point. At first sight, one may feel that the writers are trying to show that Ali is an overly emotional man, and one who cannot control his actions. But with his management of his boxing game and schedule, and his ability to beat others in the ring with an unemotional, calculating, and orthodox boxing style, one could say otherwise. The multitude of contradicting messages in this film, make the filmmakers' message unclear and befuddled. There are also many scenes of dialogue with Ali, in which he is shown to sport a cold and un-rash attitude, which make his character undeveloped and lacking of a certain perspective. Another example of trying to keep true to history, is Ali's boxing style. While there is accuracy in showing Smith fighting with an orthodox style, due to the mundane-ness of it, being strategically timed jabs that wear the opponent down over time, contrast to powerful punches all over the place, mainstream audiences may feel that Ali is less of a champion than he really is. This historical realism brings down the emotional response of the audience. The filmmakers try to put in too much of the "docu" in docudrama, and seem to have forgotten that they had to make this logical as a story. Despite the many different facets of personality in a person, due to the film being a story, they should have explored one main aspect of Ali's character, and shown how it has affected his life. Smith's portrayal of the character is true to the real Champ, but it's historical realism bogs down the story, as it is more difficult to explore Ali's emotional journey. The events portrayed in this movie may be accurate, as is the attitude and character of Ali, but they don't communicate anything as a story.
All in all, however, unless you're a fan of Will Smith, or are really interested in this period of time for blacks in America, you should not watch this film. The action scenes are boring, most of the time Ali's just talking and unrealistically flirting, and though it fleshes out some parts of the racism, it's not worth spending two and a half hours watching it for just that.

Float like a butterfy, sting like a bee.
2008-04-03 - Ali DVD

Will Smith is eerily like Ali. It's like Cassiuss Clay is playing himself. I remember watching Clay fight in the Olympics and Smith has him down pat. I'd admired Ali for being willing to go to prison for his convictions instead of fleeing to Canada like all the other bed-wetting, Mommas boys who opposed the War in Viet Nam. Jon Voight is good as Howard Cosell, who was a nobody until he weaseled his way into Ali's life. I understand that Smith and Voight both received Academy Award nominations for their roles in this move. I wonder how Smith "bulked up" for this role.

Highly recommended for fans of Will Smith, Jon Voight, boxing the way it use to be, and Cassius Clay, aka Mohammed Ali.

Gunner April, 2008




Good film that could have been great
2008-03-25 - Ali is a good film that could have been great. Will Smith plays Ali with great passiond vigor. Micheal Mann direction and cinematography is some the best work he has ever done, but the film drags in its second half and ends on a dry note. I think the film should ahve covered Ali's whole life not just ten years that were covered in the film. Until The Purusit Of Happyness, this was Will Smith's best performance as he gives the auidence the charmisa and charm that he displayed in Six Degrees Of Seperation. Ali is by no mean's a GREAT film but it is a good one.