I Am Ali

Of course some can argue whether Ali was that so great or not (each one has your own conclusion), but the main point here is that this is really a very good movie and worth to be watched.

The movie is very educational for those who just arrived from Mars and know nothing about that remarkable character, and very enjoyable to the ones already familiar with Ali's career. Whatever it is your case, the movie will catch your attention by covering some important moments of Ali's career mixed with some of his personal life.

Throughout the film, there are testimonies of people who were present in the life of Muhammad Ali during his time as a great heavyweight fighter in boxing. This includes coaches, editors, journalists and family members, describing memorable passages of the life of Ali at that time.

Beyond that, there is no way to deny he was one of the greatest figures from the past century, far beyond the sport scenario, and with a great story above all.

Many people comment on this documentary based on their thoughts of Ali, and I think it is wrong. You may think whatever you want about him, but this title is for the documentary of him, that's not the place to argue his personality or whatever.

The documentary had very rare tapes and it was definitely worth watching. However, I did not like how his influence on people was covered, because many stories were short and out of context. The setup of the documentary was also quite straightforward, and it could be done a thousand times better. For instance, you can see how The Last Dance of Michael Jordan was setup, and this storyline here is not just satisfying.

All things aside, it was worth watching the human part of Muhammed Ali with its beauty and ugliness. He is one of the greatest legends of all times, and this documentary will definitely have a place in any collection about sports.

Muhammed Ali is still a divisive figure in the USA. Lot less so in other parts of the world. In 1999 he was voted the greatest sportsman of the 20th Century by a BBC sports review programme. Ali got more votes than the rest of the top 10 sports personalities combined.

We now live in a day when sportsmen thank their business managers, accountants and stand up for something only when it has been first approved by their publicist.

It were different days back then and Ali divided America and rest of the world by changing his name, religion and refusing to be drafted into the US army and go fight in Vietnam.

There is nothing new here but it is a good documentary if you know little of Ali and wanted to understand and know more of the man.

Ali does not appear apart from old film footage. However there is an emphasis on his personal and family life by way of various audio recordings he made which he gave to one of his daughter's which is new. You also get to see the usual stuff like his exploits in the ring, his politics, religious conversion etc.

The film does show us a little of this complex even contradictory man. Veronica Porsche confirms that she was seeing Ali while he was still married. He had children from many women but wanted his kids to know each other and seems to have maintained good relationships with his ex wives.

There is good use of soul music, it is good to hear from members of his family, past and present as well as other celebrities. It is not ground breaking but a good introduction of Ali.

Where do you begin assessing such an individuals inspirational story?

Browse any bookshops, any DVD store and the titles devoted to Ali stretch and stretch. There will be always be people who will disaffect themselves from his achievements. They will point to his infidelity. How a man who converted to the Islamic faith was also a skirt chasing womaniser. Granted, the negatives will say his boxing genius is undeniable, but they will cancel any semblance of his skills by attributing and highlighting his less than perfect outside boxing antics and rank him undeserving of the majority who consider him an amazing person.

I'm a fan of boxing. I enjoyed the unseen footage we have here. Clips, family interviews, and other footage has been assembled to show a personal side of Ali - in particular reference to his family life - a major highlight are the archived audio recordings between Ali and his young children.

Ali was a victim of circumstance. He came along in the glitz and revolution of the 60's, and took the boxing world by storm. There have been other colourful characters in boxing history - Ali though was wildly different. A firework personality whilst his peers stuck to the persona of being a boxer and nothing else. When the events unfolded (his Vietnam draft) he stood firm to his beliefs and with an unbreakable confidence eventually, aided by the sea-change of thought against the Vietnam War, overcame the situation. It was the 60's a time of cultural and irrevocable change.

Love him? Loathe him?

He never withered in the face of extreme criticism. I admire him for that. From the beginning he set out to conquer the boxing world - the adoration, the mythic status afforded to him, unexplainable, but who hasn't met somebody in their lifetime who commands a special kind of attraction by virtue of their charisma.

If you're a fan of pugilism,, then watch this, as it demonstrates why Ali was a grade 11 in athletic prowess when most champions were blessed to reach a grade 8, 9, if they were considered exceptional. All stars shine in the universe, Ali was the universe when it came to boxing.

A movie buff will appreciate this film. It is a well made documentary. At times very moving, funny, and always informative with the rare unseen footage moments.

'Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them', Shakespeare said.

Ali has led an extraordinary life. In fact many might say he is has achieved all three of what the bard wrote about 'greatness'.

People can say what they want about Muhummad Ali (Marcellus Cassius Clay) and as he once said himself "They say that the Concorde jet may soon be retired, but jets will continue to fly, and once I retire boxers will continue to box, but they will always remember the Greatest". Ali's legacy is more than what he was able to accomplish in the ring over a 21 year (1960-1981) professional boxing career. Ali's legacy will live on through the many books and documentaries such as I Am Ali.

This documentary on the life and legend of Muhummad Ali was developed with the contributions of Ali's personal audio library. It certainly reflects the extraordinary appeal that Ali exuded with not only his loyal fans, but more importantly with his children, his wives and even his greatest and toughest opponents. Ali liked to tape his telephone conversations with his children when he was away from them, and he told his children when they were older that they would grow to appreciate these intimate conversations by telephone with the passing of time and with their own maturity. My own personal opinion on why Ali may have taped these intimate telephone conversations with his children was because he may have been weary that just like the fate that struck great men such as Martin Luther King, the Kennedy brothers and even John Lennon, Ali may have feared that his mortality was imminent and that he could be assassinated at any time for his outspokenness against the war in Vietnam, for his love and pride for his black heritage and for finding the Muslim religion. Thank goodness for the worlds people that Ali continued to fight, and he continued to send his message and share his love and passion for family, as this documentary reflects.

As his children said in this film, my father Ali may have fathered many children from different wives, and girlfriends, but he never hid his infidelities and he insisted that all his children periodically meet with one another for family gatherings when he was not boxing or training. Even his ex-wives expressed their love for Ali and that he was a man apart from all others. And what he said he meant.

I have watched countless hours of historical footage on Ali and although this may not be as good a documentary as the 1997 documentary Muhummad Ali The Whole Story, I still gleaned new information about this boxing legend regarding the great respect opponents such as Joe Frazier, George Foreman and Cleveland Brown football icon Jim Brown had for Ali. George Foreman's comments about his "rumble in the jungle" in Zaire Africa are priceless. George explains that during this fight he pounded on Ali mercilessly for six rounds (and George was in his fighting prime) and what does Ali do at the start of the seventh round? He whispers in George's ear during a clench, "is that all you got George?". George tells the camera now that "yeah, that was just about all I had" and then he laughs about the incident. These are the insights that many Ali fans love to hear about and this film has several that are worth watching from the mouths of his family members and closest friends.

Ali is to this day still the most recognizable face around the world, and even with his speech impediment caused by 30 plus years of living with the debilitating Parkinson disease Ali still makes personal appearances when he is feeling up to it. Everyone seems to have a story or two about Muhummad Ali, a memory from bygone years of a great fight such as the Thrilla in Manila, or the Rumble in the Jungle, but one day hopefully while Ali is still alive one of the major movie or television studios will agree to produce a deserving 10-12 part mini series on the life of Cassius Marcellus Clay/Muhummad Ali from his early childhood, through his 21 year boxing career, and his subsequent living with Parkinson disease. I believe this mini-series would break all previous television viewing records.

I rate this documentary an 8 out of 10. Ali is who he is, but in many peoples' minds Ali "IS" and always will be "The Greatest!"