Ali

Rating:
Summary: 5 stars , but only because I know about Muhammad Ali
Review: ok, I give this movie 5 stars only because I know alot about him. The guy is my all time hero. But the thing is there will be some people, peobably most people who dont know a single solitary thing about Ali, so when and if they see this movie, their going to be confused so much about Ali. The movie doesn't portray his life very well at all. The movie would have been up to 3 hours long if they portrayed his life a little better. But personally, I loved the movie, because it was about my hero. It's my favorite movie, thats why I give it 5 stars. But I give it 3 stars for the viewer who knows little about Muhammad Ali

Rating:
Summary: Just too long!
Review: I really did enjoy this movie and it's almost a sure thing that you will too. Seeing a great team of Will Smith and John Voight play the part of a great team in Muhammad Ali and Howard Cossel is extremely entertaining. When those two interact are great parts of the film, as are the boxing sequences. However Michael Mann did the same thing in this movie that he did to The Insider in 99'. He made it about 15-25 minutes too long! I mean there are parts in the theatre where i just couldn't help but say shouldn't this be over. Some scenes are just dragged out too long. There is a specific one where ali (smith) is running through a town in africa and all these people are chanting his name. Think Rocky but make it fives times longer. It is touching but just over done, as are several other parts of the movie. It is a good film but it just could have been better and should have been an oscar contender. You might sit through it once but it's not worth a second watch.

Rating:
Summary: Overambitious, stretched, but worth a watch.....
Review: ...if there is nothing better on. Let me first say that I am a fan of both Ali, and Will Smith. I'm not old enough to remember the Ali of this film, so many of the events were new to me or seen with more detail than I knew.

I have to say that since I idealize Ali, I walked away from this film with less admiration for him, not more(due to the portrayal of his womanizing).

Will Smith gives a surprising performance and proves he can do more than spoofs and humor. Jamie Foxx gives an even greater performance.

My favorite scenes took place during the rumble in the jungle. Some were drawn out, but enjoyable.

My least favorite aspect of the film was the portrayal of Ali and Malcolm X. Malcolm is one of my American heroes, but at one point, I had to ask myself,"Is this Malcolm X, the sequel, or Ali?" Way too much time was spent on Malcolm X, and this character, not Ali dominated his scenes. Of course, one could say Peebles dominated the scenes over Smith.

Go see it. Or rent or buy it. It's not an oscar winner, but it's not a b-movie either. It is an interesting and somewhat informative portrayal of this icon.

Rating:
Summary: Epic life, not-quite epic movie
Review: Overall I was impressed with "Ali," the biopic of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. Director Michael Mann brings to vivid life many episodes from the life of the man formerly known as Cassius Clay. However, for me these episodes did not add up fully; I felt like the film did not attain the true epic stature it aspired to.

Nonetheless, "Ali" is a compelling and entertaining film that combines superb production details, a fine cast, and other noteworthy elements. Will Smith and Jon Voight have both earned much rightful praise for their respective performances as Ali and sportscaster Howard Cosell. Smith will, in my opinion, never again be seen merely as an actor for "popcorn" flicks: in Ali we see the triumphant breakthrough performance of a dramatic leading man. Voight's total transformation into Cosell is amazing; if I didn't know beforehand that he was playing the role, I don't think I would have recognized him. Although Smith and Voight seem to have gotten most of the praise (and award nominations!), I would like to personally celebrate Mario Van Peebles for his portrayal of Malcolm X. I found his to be a very moving performance.

Perhaps Ali's life is simply too big to fit into a movie; maybe an extended miniseries would have made a better vehicle by which to tell his story. As a student of comparative religion, I felt in particular that the story of Ali's Islamic faith was not explored enough. Still, "Ali" the film is an impressive achievement, and well worth seeing.

Rating:
Summary: Floats like a butterfly and stings like one
Review: Excuse me? "His uncanny re-creation of Ali's most famous weapon, his mesmerizing voice?" One of my biggest criticisms of this film is that Smith doesn't sound anything like Ali. It's almost as if someone said, "Listen, Will, your voice isn't close to Ali's so don't even try. Just let your acting do the talking."...

I won't dwell on the historical details of the film. As it was said in another review, the film tries to cover so much history that it ends up covering nothing. We get headlines instead of stories.

In short, this film has very little punch.

(Review of theatrical release)

Rating:
Summary: What a waste!!
Review: This movie was at best a 90 minute flick but with all long drawn out boring "Music video" type parts, it stretched out to over 2 1/2 hours. Ali, in my opinion, is an interesting character, but the way this [movie] was put together was not worth the ticket price or even a rental price. If you have 2.5 hours to kill, and have seen everything else,get 3 other people to chip in a dollar each and rent it......... just keep the ffwd button close at hand.

Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENCE
Review: This is was GREAT movie! As a matter of fact it was the best movie I've seen in a while. I love the way the movie gives a more personal view of Malcolm X. I feel that Will Smith did a wonderful job. I'm ready for this movie to come out on vhs so I can own it!!!!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Will Smith Flops
Review: I went to the movie theatres expecting this great movie, because that is what Will Smith usually gives us. The first hour and a half was very choppy and didn't have any sort of flow. The last hour and a half made some sort of sense. I would recommend to rent this at home and not waste your 7 bucks. Ali turned out to be a very long-winded, not-exciting movie and I almost felt like walking out.

Rating:
Summary: I am a Will Smith fan
Review: The movie focuses on the time between when a young Cassius Clay first wins the Heavyweight Championship of the World from Sonny Liston and when a 32 year old Muhammad Ali regains the Championship from George Foreman at the Rumble in the Jungle. The movie focuses less on Ali in the ring and
more on his life outside. You see the multiple marriages, his conversion to Islam, his fractured relationship with Malcolm X, and most importantly his battle with the United States Courts when Ali refused to serve in Viet Nam.
Michael Mann directs this in his usual visual intense style. If you have ever seen a production by Mann (Miami Vice, The Last of the Mohicanns, and The Insider to name a small few) you know that he deals with a variety of colors to focus the movie and the scenery tells the story almost as much
as the script.
The acting is superb by almost everyone involved in the movie but a few people really stand out. Will Smith proves that Robert De Niro is not the only one who will gain weight by packing about 20 to 30 pounds of muscle on his frame and then completely immerses himself in the cadence and style
of Ali's speech. Few actors today would seem to have the capability to spout off some of Ali's tirades as Will does. Jamie Foxx does an incredible job as Bundini Brown. His breakdown on drugs and the fight back to sobriety shows that this former In Living Color co-star can handle a great deal more
than we originally thought. The surprise of the movie was Jon Voight. People have portrayed Howard Cosell before but Voight actually becomes him. He sounded like Cosell and the make-up job was so detailed that I had to look a couple of times before I was able to actually recognize Voight. The relationship between Ali and Cosell is played up on many levels showing how
each actually helped catapult the other into the levels of stardom that they reached.
The movie is very, very well done. The script was tight and didn't stray into too many areas that would have dragged the movie down. The direction was on top and the dialogue was rapid fire and concise.

Rating:
Summary: The champ loses his belt
Review: A "bio-pic" of Muhammad Ali's life seems like a no-brainer. Why, right off the top of our heads, many of us can spout an Ali story or two. In fact, that is where the first problem occurs.

The screenplay focuses on a narrow portion of the fighter's life: The time between his first title bout with Sonny Liston and his first title bout with George Forman. Mixed in there is Cassius Clay's announced conversion to Islam, his refusal to obey the draft and several broken marriages. But what happened before he turned 22? And what of the many years afterwards? His first Olympic experience where he supposedly sold his medal? And what of his last experience at the Olympics, stricken with Parkinson's disease and lighting the torch at the Atlanta games? But, that wasn't the movie that Director Michael Mann (The Insider) made...

Mann has often been a stylish director and that 'showy' edge makes this bio-pic look like an Oliver Stone film, which makes you doubt it's believability as Stone usually has an agenda, making his decisions suspect. The same can be said for some of the 'controversial' moments in Ali. Never to say that Sonny Liston directly cheated to try and beat Ali, the filmmakers 'suggest' but don't actually address the issue. And Ali's involvement with Malcolm X (Mario Van Peebles in a great performance) is also nondescript. And what of Ali's friendship with Howard Cosell (John Voight under more make-up than he wore in "Pearl Harbor")? Where they really close enough that Howard would call him at home?

Anyway, that is the story they told. Totally bulked up, Will Smith does a credible job as the boxer. But, it is more of an impersonation that a three dimensional characterization. The same can be said for his three wives.

ALI is an interesting biographical film that rests uncomfortably with Ali's political and social impact rather than his athletic impact.

My next question: If they make a bio-pic about George Forman, will it get into his grill?