Muhammad Ali Video Tapes
Young Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, captivated the
world in the early 1960s by giving interviews that were bizarre works
of performance art. He taunted his opponents and proclaimed to any
who would listen, "I am the greatest." This is a peculiar video that
consists almost entirely of footage of Ali's bravura performances as
interviewee. There is virtually no fight footage, and almost no
narration, but that hardly matters. What sportscasters in the 1960s
realized is that if you put a microphone in front of Ali, that alone
guaranteed great entertainment. Before winning the heavyweight title
from Sonny Liston, Ali gleefully proclaimed, "I'll go pop, pop, pop and
dance away so fast he'll think he's surrounded." His predictions, which
were often offered in rhyme (as in "Sonny Liston will be mine in round
9"), were outrageous in their day, and they hold up as being utterly
entertaining in the present era, when athletes are corporations, not
characters. Ali's inspired interviews were a zany one-man show, and
in the old black-and-white interviews in this video, we see again how
his athletic grace in the ring was matched only by his playful genius at
the mic. --Robert J. McNamara
Decades ago, documentary filmmaker Leon Gast attempted to
complete a feature about the 1974 "Rumble in the Jungle"
championship bout between boxers Muhammad Ali and George
Foreman in Kinshasa, Zaire. Sundry complications, though, held up
the project until its release in 1996. It was well worth the delay. From
Gast's perspective of modern history, the six weeks Ali and Foreman
were forced to spend waiting in Africa for their fight to take place now
looks like an important moment in America's cultural understanding of
African American roots. In a nutshell, Ali had been stripped of his
heavyweight champion title because his opposition to the Vietnam
War-era draft had landed him in prison. Reigning champ Foreman
agreed to a Don King-promoted match in Kinshasa, but after all
parties got there the fight was put off. Gast captures the charismatic
Ali, in the ensuing days and weeks, going out among the people and
getting to know them while the more reclusive Foreman keeps to his
own company. Meanwhile, King brings over black American artists
such as James Brown and the Spinners to mix it up with African
musicians. The sense of excitement and connection is thrilling, as is the
boxing footage of Foreman and Ali finally taking swings at one another
in a titanic duel. Writers George Plimpton and Norman Mailer, each of
whom was covering the fight as journalists, are on hand to recollect
the details. Whether you're a fight fan or not, this is a unique
experience and a fascinating insight into America's sense of identity.
--Tom Keogh
From Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide
Highly entertaining, Oscar-winning documentary about the classic
1974 ``Rumble in the Jungle'' matchup in Zaire of heavyweight
champions Ali and Foreman. Film chronicles the preparations for the
fight, and its postponement, enabling us to learn more about The
Greatest in his prime than a more conventional account could ever tell
us. Full of fascinating observations from the participants as well as
contemporary observers like Mailer, Plimpton, and Lee. Gast spent
twenty-three years trying to bring this film to fruition; it was well worth
the wait.
Copyright© Leonard Maltin, 1998, used by arrangement with
Signet, a division of Penguin Putnam, Inc.
Also available on DVD
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