DVD Review: Ali
Written by: Kage Alan

Film Rating: B-
DVD Special Features: N/A

          I read on IMDB that Will Smith passed on having Spike Lee direct "Ali" and instead wanted Michael Mann.  Honestly, it took balls for Mann to direct this, so I'll give him credit right up front where credit is due.  I also
have to give the filmmakers credit for not turning this into a "Rocky" clone,
even though this movie is based on true events.  Instead of being about the
sport of boxing, it's about the boxer or at least a period of 10 years in his
life.  I don't know that much about Muhammad Ali, so I'm not really able to
distinguish what's been exaggerated from what's actually true.  Just letting
you know.

The film begins when Ali (Will Smith) wins his title at the early age of 22
(I believe that was the age they said), then focuses on a number of
difficulties that arise thereafter.  His first marriage is a bust, the
government takes notice of his relationship with Malcolm X (Mario Van
Peebles), he's drafted and his license to box is suspended when he refuses to
enter into the Service, he's prosecuted and then suspended from the Muslim
religion.  That's a whole lot of stuff to happen to one man.  Throughout each
ordeal, though, is Ali's simple desire to fight and have the recognition he
earned no longer be denied him.

The film's strength lies first and foremost in the performances here.  I
wouldn't have known I was looking at Will Smith had I not read the credits
because this man lives and breathes the character to the point I had no doubt
in my mind that I was watching Ali.  Smith proves beyond any shadow of a
doubt that he can do more than look charming and provide a comic edge.  One thing I never knew or had heard about before was the relationship between Ali and Howard Cosell (Jon Voight).  Despite the tough nature of the business both men are in, there is so much love and respect there that I think the film would have been poorer had it been left out.  Jon Voight is
unrecognizable under the makeup, but his talent shines through wonderfully.
It's no wonder at all why Smith and Voight were nominated for Oscars.

I also didn't recognize Jeffrey Wright as "Howard Bingham", Ron Silver as
"Angelo Dundee" or Paul Rodriguez as "Dr. Ferdie Pacheco" right away either.  There's a lot of talent in this film and it had great potential.   
Unfortunately, "Ali" suffers from the one thing I believe Spike Lee would
have given it; a heart.  The film jumps around from one vignette to another
without bothering to link them.  Because of this, any depth that is achieved
is quickly discarded and rarely gone back to or followed up on.  I'm really
quite surprised by this because Director Michael Mann isn't known for making
this kind of glaring error.  There has been a lot more covered and achieved
in films with a 2½ hour running time than there was here.  I can understand
the decision to not make "Ali" a biography about his life, but there's little
information give about his childhood, so we have no roots to start with.  
Information like this would help viewers early on.  Even the problem with his
roving eye for the ladies isn't even seriously addressed until the last third
of the movie and it would have provided for tension throughout had we been
told it earlier.

I was overjoyed that somebody finally gave Mario Van Peebles a meaningful
role in a film because he's much better than the "B" movies he's been given
thus far.  However, the character he plays, Malcolm X, is so vague and
underwritten that his place in the film doesn't have nearly the impact it
should.  Again, I believe this is a fault of the writing and not the actor.
Jada Pinkett Smith and Vanessa Williams have throwaway roles and aren't
allowed to flex their acting muscles at all either and they could have really
added to the picture.

There were two things I'm glad "Ali" didn't completely gloss over and those
are the politics behind religion (which occurs in every religion, I'm sure,
and NOT just the one portrayed in this movie) and his dealings with Don King.
Despite any character flaws that "Ali" might have had, religion was
important to him and Smith delivers some fantastic lines after his suspension
was lifted about how he never stopped praying and thinking of himself as a
Muslim.  I wanted to cheer!  My first thought about Don King is that he
couldn't have been too pleased with how he was portrayed in the film.  Then
again, if he's still the same way now, he probably doesn't give a crap.  Both
of these issues added some much needed dimension to the movie.  I only wish
there had been more of them.

The Anamorphic Widescreen video quality on the disc is very good and I
couldn't detect any grain or other flaws at all.  Audio quality is also
decent.  Neither the video nor the audio draw attention to themselves because
this isn't an effects movie.  The viewer is immersed in the story, so the
only real way one is going to notice either of these is if there's a major
problem, which there isn't.  Unfortunately, the only extras to be found are
in the form of three trailers.  One is for "Ali", the other for "Spiderman"
and the final one for "Men In Black II".  "Ali" definitely could have
benefited from an audio commentary with Michael Mann and Will Smith.  Maybe in the future...

I didn't know what to expect before watching "Ali", so I tried to keep an
open mind.  It's obvious that Smith put a tremendous amount of effort into
this project and his hard work really paid off, only I wish the script had
helped him along better than it did.  The film had a wonderful supporting
cast, a great soundtrack and a lot of talent behind it.  It's also obvious
after watching it that Ali does indeed deserve respect.  None of us are
perfect, so whatever character flaws he possesses, one still cannot deny him
the accomplishments he spent his life achieving.

Kage holds degrees in Creative Writing, as well as Film & Video. He has been featured in a Life Journey Tele-Course, published poems in several national anthologies, been a contributor to The Third Coast Magazine and written several novels. kage@modamag.com This site is a