Marketic It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Salubfoto It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

zkonedog The life of Muhammad Ali (both inside and outside the ring) is one of the most fascinating in all of sports or US history. At times, this movie captures those moments. Sadly, it doesn't catch nearly enough of them, focuses on the wrong things, and ends up a bloated, ponderous exercise in preachy film-making.For a basic plot summary, "Ali" opens with Cassius Clay (Will Smith) defeating Sonny Liston (Michael Bentt) to become the boxing heavyweight champion of the world. Shortly after this event, Clay falls in the Muslim Brotherhood, befriending such figures as Malcolm X (Mario Van Peebles) & Herbert Muhammad (Barry Shabaka Henley). He also begins a romantic relationship with Sonji Roi (Jada Pinkett Smith) that is often tumultuous due to Ali's interpretations of the Muslim faith. Entering the prime of his fighting career, Ali is then drafted into the Vietnam War, which he refuses to participate in. As a result, he is stripped of his boxing license and not even able to leave the country. After years of fighting the U.S. government, Ali is finally able to be reinstated, where he gets the "Fight of the Century" with Joe Frazier (James Toney) and then the "Rumble In The Jungle" against George Foreman (Charles Shufford).Judged purely on film-making and directing, "Ali" isn't even a three-star effort. It is overly preachy when it comes to the "political stuff", and director Michael Mann uses such a weird style. About every 20 minutes or so, there is an extended musical sequence, all of which (besides maybe the opening one) only serve to grind the intensity of the film to a complete halt. Every time the action starts to progress again...it's back to another strange interlude.There are two other problems with the film that are quite glaring:1. There is nothing (at least in terms of style) that director Mann really gets right during the film. The political side of things is definitely important to the Ali story, but in this case it is preachy and over-the-top. Then, when it comes to the boxing fare, there are too many historical inaccuracies to consider even those scenes a true success. Maybe those who know nothing about Ali won't care, but those who have a little background will be appalled to hearing Ali's famous poem used before the Frazier fight instead of Liston, or seeing Ali & Frazier getting buddy-buddy with each other before their fight (in reality, Frazier couldn't stand Ali until very late in his life when some amends were made).2. For a movie titled "Ali", this should have focused on the entirety of Ali's life. That would have made for a much better story. Ali had a very interesting childhood, and also had some genre- defining moments late in his life as well. Those areas weren't even sniffed in this adaptation, which is a shame, as the film instead to give so much valuable time to the political/religious side of things.I'm sure by now you are probably wondering why I can even give this film three stars. Well, the main reason is because Will Smith turns in perhaps the greatest acting performance I have ever seen...bar none. He IS Ali in this picture, plain and simple. The times (sadly rare as they are) where Smith is given the chance to rant and rave like Ali once did are easily the best parts of the film. His interactions with Howard Cosell (played by Jon Voight) are also special.Also, the fight scenes are probably the most well-done boxing action I've even seen in a film. The fights manage to be both dramatic and realistic at the same time, which is no easy task in such a violent (yet also very tactical) sport.Overall, though, "Ali" is first and foremost a disappointment. Even a three-star rating probably holds some personal bias of how much I simply WANT the film to be better than it is. While Smith's iconic Ali performance will certainly stand for ages, it's sad that it has to be surrounded by such sloppy film-making. I would suggest "When We Were Kings" or "Facing Ali" for a much better nod to Ali's unique career and culture-defining role in American society.

brooksrob1 This movie has been out for nearly 15 years and I just now, in 2016, just finished it. I am truly stunned by how amazingly well the movie captures that era and it pulls no punches with its portrayal of those characters in the background of the champ. As well, the mechanization's of the US gov in coordination of the media, sports and the nation of Islam and their social engineering...This movie is more than about Ali, It's filled with many layers. I am lucky to have been a teen when the Rumble in the Jungle happened. Of course, our media did what they do...Carried the water, besmirched an "enemy of the state"... There are so many instances of the collusions between these powerful self interest...But...If you haven't seen this movie yet, Like I hadn't...You will be as surprised as I as to how great it is! Special mention to Jon Voight...I saw Cosell his whole career...His portrayal of him was so spot on...He did him perfectly! A new angle on the 60's and 70's... race relations, government malfeasance, mob influence, Islam ...Brilliantly done.

SnoopyStyle It's a biopic of the great boxer Muhammad Ali (Will Smith). It starts in 1964 when still as Cassius Clay defeats Sonny Liston for the heavyweight championship. Malcolm X (Mario Van Peebles) befriends the young fighter. He is outspoken, converts to Islam joining the Nation of Islam, and becomes the world wide icon. Jon Voight makes a nice turn as Howard Cosell.Muhammad Ali is such a big personality. Possibly nobody could ever do him justice. Certainly nobody could ever live up to the legend. Will Smith is probably the only one who could make the attempt. The fact that he didn't embarrass himself is a big win. It is a surprise that director Michael Mann made this movie. It doesn't have the kinetic energy of his other movies. It's such a dour performance. Will is playing it with simmering anger every second of the movie. He's great with Ali's voice, but it doesn't have any joy in it. Will is good hitting that same note over and over again. I just wish he hit other notes in his performance. 'When We Were Kings' is a superior movie for comparison. This is a good biopic not not much more.

Prismark10 In the USA, Mohammed Ali is still a divisive figure, even to people who probably not even alive when his boxing career was in its decline.To others outside the USA he is universally acknowledged as a hero, someone who transcended his sport to become a universally popular hero.Michael Mann takes up the challenge to try to tweak out the various facets of Ali and show someone who is not an easy subject to capture but his boxing of course makes the narrative easier.The film ends with the Rumble in the Jungle when he beat Foreman, we go through the period when he could not box because of his stance against Vietnam and of course his earlier rise to become champion of world heavyweight boxing and his alliance with the Nation of Islam.Mann as expected does not go through the straight biopic, he elicits from Will Smith a great performance which was Oscar nominated, Jamie Foxx as Bundini Brown should had also got recognition and Jon Voight under heavy make up is unrecognisable and got a best supporting Oscar nod.Mann took an auteur's approach to his subject, its narrative style was not too popular at the time of its release, mainly because everyone have their own ideas as to how the film of the man should be like. Yet Mann provides enough flourish to let has have enough of a flourish of this legendary boxer.