Ali Strong; but misses the mark.

Rating: Null/10 (27 December 2001)

In going to see Michael Mann's film "Ali", I had two things working against me, I was, an still am a huge Ali fan and I just read my tenth book on the subject so I was slightly biased before hand. I had just finished less than a month ago the scalding biography "Ghosts of Manilla" by former Sports Illustrated writer Mark Kram (The Albert Goldman of sports writers). In which he basically rips Ali for two hundred pages. I don't believe the book was a fair portrayal but I am sure the "real" Ali was somewhere closer to Kram's interpretation then that of Michael Mann's.
That being said I did enjoy the movie and without question think that Will Smith was excellent. Not to be overlooked was the top-notch performances by the entire cast. I think Jamie Foxx could have easily been nominated for his portrayal of Bundini Brown. It can honestly be said that not one person was miscast or was weak in their role.
Where the movie comes up short is this movie should have been called Ali: The cliff notes. I know in any movie that several things have to be left out for time considerations. The glaring omissions are the fact that on screen we never see him avenge the Frazier loss even though he did twice, The whole Ali-Frazier relationship which really could fuel a movie in its own right. I mean I believe no pair of people brought out the best and worst of each other. They defined each other's greatness. Frazier (Played admirably by James Toney) is in the movie for about twenty minutes. Having an Ali movie without the Frazier dynamic is like having the "Untouchables" with Elliot Ness more concerned about catching Jaywalkers than Al Capone. Just a side note also; how about showing Ali getting his jaw busted by Ken Norton and suffering through eight to ten rounds (depending on who's story you believe) of torture to show his fortitude. Every newspaper in the country thought he was finished after that fight. That also lent itself to the plotline in this movie because Foreman's utter destruction of Norton left everyone wondering if Ali would even survive let alone win the title back.

Why end the movie in the same spot that the movie "The Greatest" left off. Why not end it in what really was the greatest achievement of his career in beating Frazier at Manilla. The best line I had ever heard was "they fought for the Heavyweight Championship of each other" The last great fight either would have, the crowning achievement that made Ali the greatest. If Frazier wins in Manilla do you think this movie ever makes the big screen? It becomes a Sunday night movie of the week. Not to mention that Manilla also had the personal relationship woes that the movie was trying very hard to portay.
I think the movie missed the mark in that respect. However, it is definitely worth seeing and I recommend it. I voted to give it 7 out of 10 on the database.