Ali (film)

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Ali

"Ali" movie poster
Directed by Michael Mann
Produced by Jon Peters, James Lassiter, Paul Ardaji
Written by Michael Mann
Eric Roth
Stephen J. Rivele
Christopher Wilkinson
Starring Will Smith
Jon Voight
Jamie Foxx
Mario Van Peebles
Ron Silver
Jeffrey Wright
Jada Pinkett Smith
Music by Pieter Bourke, Lisa Gerrard
Cinematography Emmanuel Lubezki
Editing by William Goldenberg, Lynzee Klingman, Stephen E. Rivkin, Stuart Waks
Distributed by Sony
Release date(s) December 25, 2001
(United States)
Running time 159 min/165 min (director's cut)
Language English
Budget $107 million
IMDb profile

Ali is an Academy Award nominated 2001 biographical film which tells the story of boxer Muhammad Ali. It stars Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, Jon Voight, Mario Van Peebles, Ron Silver, Jeffrey Wright, Mykelti Williamson, Jada Pinkett Smith, Nona Gaye (in her film debut), Michael Michele, Joe Morton, Giancarlo Esposito and LeVar Burton.

Contents

[edit] Writing and Production

The movie was written by Gregory Allen Howard, Stephen J. Rivele, Christopher Wilkinson, Eric Roth and Michael Mann. It was directed by Mann.

It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Will Smith) and Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Jon Voight).

The original script by Howard and also Rivele was significantly modified by Roth and Mann. Howard was originally commissioned to write an Ali script by producer Jon Peters in 1994, but it was never produced.

[edit] Premise

The film focuses on the first turbulent decade of the boxer’s professional career, featuring his capture of the heavyweight title from Sonny Liston, conversion to Islam, criticism of the Vietnam War and banishment from boxing, return to fight Joe Frazier in 1971, and lastly his reclaiming the title from George Foreman in the Rumble in the Jungle fight of 1974. The movie also discusses the great social and political upheaval in the United States following the assassinations of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. The film also shows the man’s private side: his numerous wives and failed marriages, and his friendships with Malcolm, broadcaster Howard Cosell, and other important figures.

[edit] Reviews

The film had mixed reviews with the acting being well received by critics in general. Director Spike Lee said during an interview for ESPN that he could not understand how a boring movie could be made about one of the most exciting figures of the 20th century.[citation needed] Lee had been in the running to direct the film but Sony and Will Smith opted to go with Mann instead.

Time Out London gave the film an all-round positive review, stating, "from the virtuoso opening to the climactic re-creation of Ali's 1974 Zaire bout with George Foreman, Mann achieves a thrilling mix of action and analysis, exploiting and transcending both boxing movie and biopic conventions with a master's ease."[1]

On the other hand, Roger Ebert derided the film with two stars, and mentioned, "it lacks much of the flash, fire and humor of Muhammad Ali and is shot more in the tone of a eulogy than a celebration."[2]

Ali holds a 67 percent "fresh" rating at Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.3 rating at the Internet Movie Database with 13,514 votes.

[edit] Box office

In its opening weekend, the film grossed a total of $14,710,892 in 2,446 theaters. As of December 8, 2006, the film has grossed a total of $87,713,825 worldwide.

After the theatrical version was released on DVD, Mann revisited his film again with a new cut. He took out approximately 20 minutes of footage and put 30 minutes of previously unseen footage back in. The director claimed that the politics of the times are more the focus.

[edit] Trivia

  • Will Smith spent approximately one year learning all aspects of Ali's life. These included boxing training, Islamic studies and dialect training (to help him speak like Ali). Smith has said that his portrayal of Ali is his proudest work to date.
  • One of the selling points of the film is the realism of the fight scenes. All of the boxers in the film are in fact former or current world heavyweight champions. It was quickly decided that 'Hollywood fighting' - passing the fist (or foot) between the camera and the face to create the illusion of a hit - would not be used in favor of actual boxing. The only limitation placed upon the fighters was for Charles Shufford (who plays George Foreman). He was permitted to hit Will Smith as hard as he could, so long as he didn't actually knock the actor out.
  • In a few episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Will imitates Ali, which earned him notice in preparation for the movie.
  • Although rumor says that Smith converted to Islam after completing the biopic Ali in November of 2001, he still remains Christian.
  • Smith had to gain a significant amount of weight to look the part of Muhammad Ali. His current physique is due to the weight gains he had to make for "Ali".

[edit] Academy Awards

Award Person
Nominated:
Best Actor Will Smith
Best Supporting Actor Jon Voight

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.timeout.com/film/77686.html
  2. ^ http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20011225/REVIEWS/112250302/1023

[edit] External links


Films directed by Michael Mann
Thief • The Keep • Manhunter • L.A. Takedown •The Last of the Mohicans • Heat • The Insider • Ali • Collateral • Miami Vice
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