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shanster [ 1.0 ]
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This movie ranks so low because ALI himself was so much better. I thought Will Smith was not even trying to be Ali, just a boxer. The only point was for a little historical perspective that made me want to learn about Joe Frazier and the other opponents of the time.
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Dancing_P [ 6.0 ]
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Michael Mann is getting very good at making technically-proficient films that I can safely and comfortably not give two shits about. His biopic of Muhammad Ali (or rather Ali's most important ten years, career-wise) seems like it could be a terrific film but Mann's cold and calculated approach put it more along the lines of history's most expensive newsreel. Will Smith does a commendable job conveying Ali's charisma and physicality but the film spreads out so much that the larger than life figure of Ali gets lost in the shuffle. There are few filmmakers who can knock 'em out like Mann can - it's got the same punch vitality as his best work but a formless script that ultimately says very little about Muhammad Ali.
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Jeff_Wilder [ 5.5 ]
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Easily Mann's weakest effort. I get the sense that he was basically a hired gun on this one and it shows. Will Smith is okay in the title role although I personally feel that Terrence Howard would have been a better choice. The main problem with the film is that I didn't learn anything about Muhammed Ali that I couldn't just as easily have learned from reading his Wikipedia entry.
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jeff_v [ 7.0 ]
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This one has its moments, but mostly its unfulfilled potential. Much of the running time is spent on the fights, which are technically impressive but don't make for an interesting story. The opening sequence is promising, with some excellent cross-cutting and the hint the the film will weave together racism, boxing, religion and entertainment in a thoughtful way, but it doesn't quite deliver. Ali's personal life is somewhat glossed over, and his central contradiction, that he's a devout Muslim politically but a poor Muslim when it comes to his womanizing, is only briefly paid attention. The acting is fine, Will Smith is credible and charismatic (if still a little slight to be in the ring with some of the bruisers he faces). Jamie Foxx does a nice turn as Ali's troubled, colorful cornerman. Jon Voight gives a dead-on impersonation of Howard Cosell, but it doesn't feel like there's a person lurking underneath that mask.
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Tomcat [ 1.0 ]
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If it wasn't for Will Smith's performance this movie would be getting a zero. This is simply one of the worst movies I have ever seen. The wrong movie to do about the greatest boxer of all time.
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| Weighted Rating | : 5.7 |
| No. Ratings | : 10 | |
| No. Reviews | : 5 | |
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