They say that there are only a handful of characters who are instantly recognizable the world over; they mention characters like Sherlock Holmes and Tarzan and Superman- but Holmes and Lord Greystoke and Kal-El are all make-believe. Muhammad Ali wasn't. Last night, around Midnight, I heard the news that he'd Moved On. For me, Muhammad Ali filled a gaping void in my life; he was a Role Model I could look up to (unlike my alcoholic father)- a man who Practiced what he Preached. Along with the likes of Charlton Heston and Bruce Lee and writers like Richard Matheson and Harlan Ellison and dozens of comic book writers and artists, Muhammad Ali taught me what it was to be a Man. He brought the posturing of professional wrestling to the all-too-real world of professional Boxing and made it work. He even fought and beat The Man of Steel, Superman, in an illustrated story rendered by none other than Neal Adams himself (who I came to think of as "the Muhammad Ali of comics"). Something VITAL has been Lost in this World, and we're never going to see his Like again. I remember seeing an interview with Ali, who was watching footage of himself as a young man: in the clips, he was announcing his Greatness to the World at the top of his lungs- and backing up his braggadocio against some of the most dangerous fighters in Heavyweight Boxing history (surely no God ever faced such Monsters!). "I sure was somethin', wasn't I?" he mused. Indeed.

It's 1974 Zaire. President Mobutu Sese Seko and Don King organize the Heavyweight championship fight between the 32 year old challenger Muhammed Ali and the much younger murderous champion George Foreman. Ali is assumed to be pass his prime and the definitive underdog. It is the "Rumble in the Jungle". It's also suppose to have a music festival featuring James Brown and B.B. King.Muhammed Ali's charisma is undeniable. This movie soaks in all of his charms and power. I wouldn't say the documentary gets behind his overwhelming persona but the audience gets a small glimpse. This is simply Ali in the greatest of his greatness. I also love the music.

This is the Oscar winning documentary about the legendary boxing bout between Muhammad Ali, the challenger and George Foreman, who was the reigning world heavy weight boxing champion of the time.The match became popular as "Rumble in the Jungle". it was held at Kinshasa, Zaire. Both the fighters were blacks. However, Ali was revered as a demi-God because he had spoken about the atrocities which the African Americans were facing in the US and had refused to go and fight in Vietnam. He was considered a true representative of the blacks.George Foreman, as the documentary says, was "blacker than Ali". But still he was taken as the white devil incarnate.The match was promoted by Don King. the President of Zaire decided to give the financial rewards to the fighters as he planned to use the bout to promote his country and his despotic rule.the build up to the fight and then the fight itself have been captured perfectly. there are glimpses about Ali's interaction with the citizens of Zaire who constantly urge him to "Ali, Boma Ye" which means "Ali, Kill Him".The movie is very gripping and shows the human face of the Gods of the Gloves. Two thumbs up.

I don't believe the film is as flawed as some of the previous reviewers have stated. The footage was all from the early 70's and in that sense this is truly a film of it's time. This is a time and a place that doesn't exist any more, and even Zaire doesn't really exist anymore, its now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. When Ali and Foreman fought it was a dictatorship under Mobutu, who wanted a spectacular sporting event held in his country. For me, the musicians, and the black culture elements are nothing more than an interesting backdrop of a superbly talented athlete trying to overcome almost insurmountable odds. Again and again we are reminded of the lack of belief in the Ali camp as Foreman destroyed one heavy bag after another. The key moment of the film for me can almost (but not totally) be encapsulated in Norman Mailer's anecdote at the end of the first round, where he claims he could see Ali looking within himself, and slowly concluding that this was THE moment in his life. Ali was standing in a ring with a man he knew he could not bully, who was stronger than him, could hit harder than he could, and was as determined to force his will on Ali as Ali was determined to do likewise. There is no purer moment of epiphany captured in any documentary I have yet seen. Here was a man out-gunned in almost every department, who with a combination of pure skill, guile, determination, athletic prowess and self belief, managed to overcome a ferocious and worthy opponent. Foreman cannot go without mention. Every David needs his Goliath. He was awesome in ability and dignified in manner. He had destroyed both Joe Frazier and Ken Norton in spectacular fashion in the eighteen months before this fight and was at the top of his game. People would do well to remember Foreman was still knocking people out until 1997, when he KO'd Lou Savarese in the 12th round. They surely don't make 'em like they used to. Nobody except Ali believed he could overcome such an opponent. And what the documentary reveals to us is that in his darker moments, even he had doubts. He did not, however, let them stand in his way. This documentary is absolutely inspirational in almost every department. The fact that Ali was also a man of the people and recognised the dignity of African's in spite of their grinding poverty adds yet another dimension to this wonderful film, and to the man himself. As George Plimpton so concisely said "My God, the man's a politician too!" A truly great film , about a spectacular moment frozen in time, and a truly great leading man in Ali. I cannot close without commenting on the effect this loss had on Foreman. It hurt him deeply, and there is no one more pleased than I that he came back and shook the world a second time many years later.