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Biographies are a notoriously tricky medium to work with. Stick too close to the alleged truth and you come under fire for misrepresenting the person in question (George Clooney's representation of Billy Tyne in 'The Perfect Storm' for example). But should you miss out the slightly less appealing characteristics of someone, you come under fire for...well, for misrepresenting the person in question (Russell Crowe as John Nash for example). It may not be so surprising, if a little dissapointing, that Mann plays 'Ali' so straight then.

After seeing this did I feel that I had truly gained an insight into one of the most charismatic and enigmatic characters to live in the 20th century? Hell no. We never learn about his childhood (save for one scene where he travels on a segregated bus), or why he took up boxing, or what just drove him to reach the heights that he did. But for a near 3 hour movie I was never less than entertained.

'Ali' charts the three year period from 1964 to 1974 beginning with the young Cassius Clay truimphing over Sonny Liston to the mighty Rumble In The Jungle against George Foreman. Along the way it takes in Clays conversion to Islam and the taking of his new name, his friendship with Malcolm X (Mario Van Peebles), his friendship with sports commentator Howard Cossell (Jon Voight), his various marriages and the trials he has with longtime friend 'Bundini' Brown (Jamie Foxx).

Perhaps the biggest problem that people seem to have with 'Ali' is that it never burns with a passion that Ali himself did. Although I'm loathe to criticise a director I've previously had a lot of respect for I would have to lay this at Manns' door. Perhaps he was just the wrong man for the job as most of his films have a cold, almost impersonal touch. This film called for someone with a lot more heart and a little less aloofness, for want of a better word. All of Ali's relationships that are alluded to during the film, fall flat of emotion and never have the resonance that they should, the disintegration and eventual reconciliation between Ali and Brown, for example. Who exactly was Brown, and why was he so important to Ali that he forgave the fact he sold his belt? Or the fact that we never learn anything about his relationship with any of his three wives. He could have been a terrible husband, but we never know.

This flatness feels worse during the middle section. Ali's refusal of the Vietnam draft and the very serious threat of jail, or never boxing again doesn't hit the dramatic fireworks that it should. Mann also hints at what seems to be a conspiracy by the government to keep Ali out of the public eye because of his links with the Islam faith, but he fudges this issue and never states one way or the other what really happened. In a biopic we don't want suggestions, we want facts.

So despite the fact that I've just criticised the film for the last two paragraphs, why did I enjoy it so? Well for all the criticism I've just dished out to him, Mann certainly comes to life in the boxing scenes. He avoids the histronics of 'Rocky' and the bone splintering of 'Raging Bull' to deliver a graceful yet blistering portrait of the bouts of Ali. They're brilliantly sustained and edited pieces of work (the Sonny Liston fight lasts in actuality time, whereas the Rumble In The Jungle almost leaves the audience bruised) that drag you to the edge of your seat.
And despite the previous criticism for the middle section that doesn't crackle as it should, it's never less than interesting. For a 3 hour film I only checked my watch a couple of times and that's rare.

But if you're going to talk about 'Ali' and what brings it to near greatness, then you're talking about the acting. Jon Voight and Jamie Foxx are great but this movie belongs to the Fresh Prince. Despite appearing in one too many stinkers for my liking, Will Smith has always hinted at greatness. Denzel Washington must be kicking himself. Had this movie been made 10 or even 5 years ago there would have been no-one else apart from the Denz' to take on the Champ. But time catches up on everyone and for all his talent I'm afraid Washington would be too old for this part.

But Smith does more than nail the part. He inhabits Ali and not once does he 'get jiggy with it'. We always knew that Smith could hit the notes required for the infamous press conferences (the highlights of the film), he's a born comedian. But he gets everything else dead right. The swagger, the poise, the humanity in the smaller, intimate scenes. The man who storms into a training room, beats out a rhythm on bongos while singing 'The Champ is here!', and the man who sits engrossed watching termites on tv, like a child. It's an incredibly brave move for Smith- who'd want to be known as the man who failed as Ali?- and if we fail to get an insight into the mans inner workings, again it's not his fault it's Manns. Smith pitches his performance just right (he could have easily fallen into parody) and he does more than look the part in the ring. He is the part.

'Ali' is one of these films that are hard to rate. It's certainly above 'just average' but would I put it on a four star rating? Probably not, it mis-fires on one too many occasions for that. But the fact that I enjoyed it so much has to take it up a notch or two. We fail to get any true insight into the man (When We Were Kings may be your best bet for that), but we're sure given a ride anyway

link directly to this review at https://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=5690&reviewer=293
originally posted: 03/13/02 00:01:01
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