The movie set out to tell the story of Mohammed Ali through the eyes of 10 of his more noteworthy opponents and did a commendable job at that. Ali's story is well documented, however, and there's not much info we don't already know from a historical perspective. The unexpected (and perhaps unintended) beauty of this movie is in the honesty, humor, wisdom, sadness and humility of the 10 boxers who tell the story. Particularly compelling parts include: George Chuvalo discussing what it was like to lose 2 sons to drug ODs and a wife so distraught over it that she committed suicide; Joe Frazier finally breaking down and being moved to tears over Ali's current condition; Ernie Shaver's outright admiration for Ali and confessing that Ali truly did win their fight (he originally claimed he was robbed); Ken Norton's personal revelations about being down and out before the fight and the new lease on life his fight w/Ali gave him; and Ron Lyle's sage wisdom on not letting what many claimed to be a BS stoppage that denied him the HW title make him bitter and instead embracing the celebrity and opportunity his fight w/Ali provided him for the rest of his life. These are just a few but there are many more. I found myself compelled by the stories these 10 great fighters told (except for Ernie Terrell)and the movie left me with a new found respect and admiration for all of them. Even my wife, who is no kind of sports fan, absolutely loved it.
I can't imagine any boxing fan who sees this film not putting it at or near the tippy top of their favorite boxing movie list
I can't imagine any boxing fan who sees this film not putting it at or near the tippy top of their favorite boxing movie list