El gran George Foreman

Finally a biographical pic on one of the most inspirational boxers of the century! I'd be lying if I wasn't hyped as hell to watch Big George, and for the most part it was exactly what I wanted!

Unfortunately, the third act was when things started to get a bit iffy, following Foremans decade long hiatus from boxing. I don't expect the film to broadcast EVERY single one of Foremans fights, but they really rushed his comeback. The training was all fine, but the Holyfield and Moorer fights were really downplayed, to the point that they used stock footage for Holyfield v Foreman. And then suddenly we are dropped into the Moorer fight with perhaps little to no buildup whatsoever. And then the film just kind of ends all of a sudden. The pacing took an absolute nosedive.

On a side note, the Jamaican accent that Foreman's wife uses was shockingly bad and killed any seriousness in a scene with her in it.

Beyond those issues, and perhaps a bit of an intrusive soundtrack at times, this is as good of a George Foreman biopic as you could ask for.

I sure learned a lot from this biographical film, and Foreman's story is like one of those fictional underdog Hollywood films, but it's true. It doesn't get much better than that. All casting and performances where excellent, especially Sullivan Jones who emulated Muhammad Ali perfectly. Even though the pacing felt a little slow at times, the 129 min runtime still flew by with the many vast sub-plots that contributed to Foreman's life story. The screenplay had great fluidity and cohesiveness to it, and was very easy to follow, albeit a little reserved. My only complaint was that I felt the action/fight sequences were filmed underwhelmingly, and could've used more dramatics and better choreography. Plus I felt they were a little too short and rushed, and the focus was more on the story than the action. I'm ok with that, because I wasn't expecting a Rocky or Creed film, but the biographical story of a legendary human being, and that's exactly what I got.

This movie covers George Foreman's life from his childhood to regaining the world heavyweight championship later in life. Foreman has had a pretty incredible life, which is why it's difficult to cover it in a two hour movie. Many seminal moments and important people in his life (besides his mother and boxing coach) seem a bit like a blur as we hurry from one important event to the next. For what it is, it's a pretty enjoyable movie with a strong performance, if a bit one dimensional, from the lead actor Khris Davis. Although brief, the boxing sequences were well done and intense. Not a fan of these bio-pics stylistically, but this is one of the better attempts to cover a rollercoaster of a life.

I have a great admiration and respect for George Foreman. Having lost the World Heavyweight title to Muhammad Ali, his comeback story is one that begs to be seen. Having almost died after a boxing match, George credited his resurrection to Jesus and became a preacher and preached on the streets first. Due to financial problems from mishandling of his funds, George was forced to get back into the ring one last time.

There's a title fight between Tommy Morrision(the real-life boxer who starred in Rocky V 1990) and Foreman that you should see. Shannon Briggs, Tommy Morrison, Evander Holyfield, Jimmy Young, and Muhammad Ali are the five boxers who have beaten Foreman. Foreman's last fight I believe was with Shannon Briggs. Briggs won by a majority decision(MD). In a total of 81 fights, George has won an incredible 76 and losing only five times. Had he boxed more this record could've been huge. He was a huge powerhouse of a boxer and only a very few could withstand his punches.

The movie deals with Foreman's life as a youngster, quickly moving into his boxing career where he faced the likes of Joe Frazier. The Muhammad Ali match dubbed the "Rumble In The Jungle" is the highlight. I believe the real actual whole match is available free to see online if you are an enthusiast. I watched Facing Ali that showed actual highlights from the fight so I did not care to see the full fight. The movie's acting, directing, sound-effects and music are top-notch. Khris Davis plays Big George and Sullivan Jones plays Ali. I thought Jones was terrific in his portrayal of the brash and arrogant Muhammad Ali dubbed "The Mouth Of The South".

Verdict: it's way better than Creed 3(2023) and of course it's based on the true life story of a "real-life" boxer.

Other boxing movies: Dempsey(1983), Brutal Glory(1989), Gladiator(1992), Fighting Tommy Riley(2004), Cinderella Man(2005).

Thanks for reading this review and as Mister Spock says, live long and prosper.

Wow, I'm also very surprised as to how few people have gone to see this in the theatre. It really is a very real, and very inspiring story. It's far too real for many of the critics it seems. Many of them seem to want heartless and flashy nowadays, or overdramatic films with a much more unrealistic heart. There's none of that here, and I'd rather watch more grounded films like this any day of the week. Personally I really didn't care much for the bloated, semi-factual and overly choppily directed Elvis film from 2022. I strongly preferred this much more real feeling story.

I still remember the night Foreman became the Heavyweight Champion of the World for the 2nd time. It was pretty much all anyone was talking about for the next while. How could it even happen? He inspired a ton of old people and a ton of kids as well. To me, Ali and Foreman are truly among histories most inspirational athletes, and more than that, just very inspirational people. They were real however, they both had flaws, but for the most part, both of them successfully overcame many of their shortcomings as well. Both men in fact did it while being greatly inspired by their faith. The film does seem a little rushed at times, as it likely needed to be. When we're dealing with a real persons life, and trying to fit all of the most important parts into a film, that just often has to be the way. Otherwise you end up with a film that's way too long. All in all, I'm certainly glad I went and saw this. Thank you George, for sharing your very inspiring story.

7/10.