What a load of rubbish! I hated 95% of this film!!!

Rating: 3/10 (26 February 2002)

The only good thing about this film is the few boxing matches that are included, the rest is complete crap!
I'm sorry, I know I'll upset a LOT of people by voicing my opinion, but hey, it's MY review, I can say what I want.
Will Smith, at times great, at other times absolute crap. He can't do drama at all, and neither can Michael Mann direct it. The hand-held camera technique, to lend the film a kind of 'documentary' feel was really making me dizzy and I almost walked out 5 times. I think the only reason I sat through the entire film was so I could see the final fight, the infamous 'Rumble in the Jungle'.
I'm sorry, I just didn't like this film. It felt like a very very loooooooong film, and all the pointless music and cabaret scenes were truly irritating. I wasn't even moved emotionally when Malcolm X was murdered, when I felt I SHOULD have been crying my eyes out!! Alas, the director and the cast and the hype amounted to nothing in my eyes.
I hope Smith DOESN'T get the Oscar, he doesn't deserve it. Yes he may have trained for months on end, and got Ali's mannerisms, but he didn't do anything for me.
But hey, that's MY review, and don't be foolish enough to trust my word, go and make up your own mind. And another thing, I went into this film with almost no expectations, and I have to say, I felt awful coming out of the cinema, I was robbed of my money! Oh well...
3/10 - and that's only for the glimmer of potential from Smith, and the opening/final boxing matches.
Erm...Enjoy!