Don King: Only in America

Even if you don't like Don King, you gotta give it up for Ving Rhames in this movie. He is an able portrayer of Don King, from looks to personality (heck, he made Don King a little likable!) The movie gave insight into a sport that you either love or hate - boxing, as well as a look into Don King's history. It made for good viewing and I found myself howling at certain points. A bonus for me happened at the end, during a three second stretch in which my boyfriend's head passed as he walked behind Ving Rhames and Vondie Curtis-Hall at LAX!

I would definitely give this movie a 10!

Ving Rhames, a largely unknown actor, whom most would remember from Pulp Fiction, gives his role of Don King all he's got, and it really does pay off. It results in one of the decade's best telemovies, leaving the viewer hating yet strangely drawn toward the eccentric King.

It revolves around King's rise to stardom through strongarm tactics. His violent itchy trigger finger deals it's wrath to anyone who gets in the way, and it's his no nonsense approach to boxing which gets him where he is.

The story is revealed through flashbacks, being narrated by an older King. Those are the film's funniest moments. Watching Rhames strut around the ring, whilst smoking a huge cigar and speaking in a near-scream make for extremely humourous moments. Rhames' conviction to the part makes King a character that's both funny and threatening at the same time. He relishes in hyperbole, taking the good with the bad and seeing what you get.

The idiosyncrasies and mannerisms of King are all portrayed masterfully, right down to the wavy Kramer hairstyle. Each of the supporting characters are great, but, watching Jaleel White (that guy from 'Family Matters') play Muhammed Ali just reminds you too much of his sitcom character.

It's a highly satisfying, yet powerful movie. One of the telemovies which can be recommended, which is a rare occasion. This would be a wise choice if Saturday night's viewing is not up to standard.

Nine out of ten.

BEFORE DIVING INTO THIS BIOPIC...... ..... FIRST...Let us FOCUS on the Title's Content and Context:

"Now if you all didn't have Don King...You'd have to invent him!", proclaims a larger-than-life Don King at the end of this Biopic. Moments later we see the standard, "Some scenes or events have been changed or altered for dramatic effect" biopic disclaimer clause. Makes you wonder just how much is really 'TRUE' and how much is Production invention! (Possible HBO payback for Pay-per-View deals that haven't gone so well?) Do the words "Conflict of Interest" mean anything to anybody?

HBO movies are invariably a 7* to 10* experience for me...Especially biotics.(OOPS! Decided to let this typo stand...Has a rather ironic/sardonic ring to it, wouldn't you say?) ONLY IN AMERICA was not up to HBO's usual standard of excellence. Since 5.5* is not an option, 6* is what you see above. What kept America somewhere in the barely OK zone, as opposed to not at all, were the numerable pop-cultural nostalgic moments, events and personalities, in addition to the behind-the-scenes story itself.

For AMERICA to have really soared, it required a top-notch performance from Ving Rhames. Although there were some scenes where he does really shine, unfortunately, a lot of his acting seems more like something of a caricature, a crude parody of the real thing! That Rhames won a Golden-Globe for his portrayal of King simply baffles me! Sorry, his performance just doesn't seem that great to me! Putting it mildly, HBO presents an extremely unflattering portrait of Mr. King: A back-stabbing, foul-mouthed, self-aggrandizing, utterly ruthless, oft-times buffoonish and chronically malapropistic speaker. (Although he did show improvement on this score as the years passed) But, pop-culturally speaking, you can't deny there's a lot going on in America! Apparently, most people seem to like this film a lot more than I did...So, try it if you will!

....ENJOY / DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in ENGLISH... o en ESPAÑOL, are most welcome!

Ving Rhames is a truly amazing actor and always gives a wonderful performance. I always think of him as electronic expert Luther Stickell in the Mission Impossible movie series with Tom Cruise. In this film, he tackles a very challenging role and pulls it off magnificently! He should have gotten an Emmy for his outstanding work as a true American monster Don King. Don King was inducted into the boxing hall of fame recently, can you believe that? Someone said that is like burying Benedict Arnold in Arlington Cemetary. Don King did not hold anything remotely resembling an honest job until he was 40 years old and went into boxing promoting. He was nothing but a common criminal. He was a numbers runner for the Clevland syndicate and killed two men. In the first case, it was ruled justifiable homicide, in the second case it was more despicable. This man beat another man to death on a public street in front of many eyewitnesses. He literally kicked him to death until his brain ruptured. For this crime he only served a few years in prison. Rhames made me laugh in this film with his amusing portrayal of King's flamboyance and colorful use of words, but there is nothing funny about this man and the damage that he did to boxing. The most horrible thing that he did, and I WANT EVERYONE READING THIS ON IMDB TO HEAR THIS!!!LISTEN TO WHAT I AM SAYING. In 1980, Muhammad Ali came out of retirement to fight Larry Holmes in an effort to become the only man to ever regain the title three times. Before this fight, Ali had to have a physical at the Mayo clinic which is one of the finest clinics in the US. They sent a report of their findings to Don King and he supressed this report and let the fight go on. They found out that Ali literally had a hole in the membranes surrounding his brain. He admitted that he had tingling in his hands and slurring of his speech. All they would have to do is listen to tapes of him from ten years before to hear how his voice had changed. He couldn't do simple things like hopping or touching his nose with his finger (the things police have people do to take a DUI test). Don King talked of how much he "loved" Ali. IF HE LOVED HIM SO DAMN MUCH WHY OH WHY DIDN"T HE CANCEL THE FIGHT. King was so powerful do you think that he couldn't have done it. Eddie Futch was one of the legendary trainers in boxing. He trained Joe Frazier and said he loved him like a son. In the third fight he had with Ali in Manilla, Eddie stopped the fight because he knew Frazier was blind and couldn't defend himself. Keep in mind, he thought Frazier was ahead on points and it was the last round. That is a true gentleman and that is what Don King should have done with the Ali Holmes fight. Ali suffered a horrible beating that was unbearable to watch. Sylvester Stallone said it was like watching an autopsy on a living person. Ali was damaged even more by this fight and it was all because of a scumbag named Don King. Don King is a monster and he is like a Frankenstein monster because we made him and we let him get away with it. Joe Louis must be turning in his grave!!!!!

The life of boxing promoter Don King was/is so varied and complicated that I would have thought that a low budget TV movie would struggle with it. But hats off to the producers and HBO, while not having fortunes to spend they have covered most of it competently and in Ving Rhames they have a fantastic star performance. In fact it is hard to tell him from the real thing!

As we know, boxing has a seamy side, but King seems to the kind of person that pushes the boundaries of even this biz. His silver tongue (he did a lot of reading in prison) tricks many a young boxer in to signing or doing what he wants.

From jailhouse to courthouse to penthouse Don has a quality that many an eel would admire. Somehow he always comes back from any setback and seems to be able to actually to turn anything to his own advantage. If you didn't know a lot of this was true you would call it over-the-top!

His early life as a numbers runner is not glossed over, although he portrays himself as being in the "hope business" and doing people a big favour. Even in charity he thinks of only one thing - himself.

This is great black (in more senses than one) comedy and provides many belly laughs - his treatment of Larry Holmes is a gem, even turning up with a contract on this honeymoon!

You don't have to be a boxing fan to enjoy this movie, but it helps. Boxing scenes are well recreated and the star performance by Rhames (who usually plays straight-ahead bad guy roles) is worth tuning in for all by itself. Very enjoyable and far more entertaining than many boxing films with several times the budget.