IMDb RATING
7.2/10
4.1K
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Unprecedented access to Muhammad Ali's personal archive of "audio journals" as well as interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends are used to tell the legend's l... Read allUnprecedented access to Muhammad Ali's personal archive of "audio journals" as well as interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends are used to tell the legend's life story.Unprecedented access to Muhammad Ali's personal archive of "audio journals" as well as interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends are used to tell the legend's life story.
- Awards
- 2 nominations total
Muhammad Ali
- Self
- (archive footage)
Rahman Ali
- Self
- (as Rahaman Ali)
Odessa Clay
- Self
- (archive footage)
Cassius Clay Sr.
- Self
- (archive footage)
Joe Martin
- Self
- (archive footage)
Garry Jawish
- Self
- (archive footage)
Angelo Dundee
- Self
- (archive footage)
Henry Cooper
- Self
- (archive footage)
Khalilah Camacho Ali
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Belinda Boyd)
Sonny Liston
- Self
- (archive footage)
Ed Herlihy
- Newsreel narrator
- (archive footage)
- (voice)
Bill Russell
- Self
- (archive footage)
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Lew Alcindor)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
I have attached my latest affiliate with him but he is quite hard working and managing director of the same thing as well and the fact is that something that I have to be honest and constructive comments on the basis of the information contained within this period and the fact is that the information contained in the film 🎥 📼 are new and interesting and exciting and very much appreciate the effort is made to the point of the resume and cover letter ✉ and he is being put together the show for others but deep down ⬇ he is fine with the following and the people and not snub att all I knew another side of him.
Of course some can argue whether Ali was that so great or not (each one has your own conclusion), but the main point here is that this is really a very good movie and worth to be watched.
The movie is very educational for those who just arrived from Mars and know nothing about that remarkable character, and very enjoyable to the ones already familiar with Ali's career. Whatever it is your case, the movie will catch your attention by covering some important moments of Ali's career mixed with some of his personal life.
Throughout the film, there are testimonies of people who were present in the life of Muhammad Ali during his time as a great heavyweight fighter in boxing. This includes coaches, editors, journalists and family members, describing memorable passages of the life of Ali at that time.
Beyond that, there is no way to deny he was one of the greatest figures from the past century, far beyond the sport scenario, and with a great story above all.
The movie is very educational for those who just arrived from Mars and know nothing about that remarkable character, and very enjoyable to the ones already familiar with Ali's career. Whatever it is your case, the movie will catch your attention by covering some important moments of Ali's career mixed with some of his personal life.
Throughout the film, there are testimonies of people who were present in the life of Muhammad Ali during his time as a great heavyweight fighter in boxing. This includes coaches, editors, journalists and family members, describing memorable passages of the life of Ali at that time.
Beyond that, there is no way to deny he was one of the greatest figures from the past century, far beyond the sport scenario, and with a great story above all.
Where do you begin assessing such an individuals inspirational story?
Browse any bookshops, any DVD store and the titles devoted to Ali stretch and stretch. There will be always be people who will disaffect themselves from his achievements. They will point to his infidelity. How a man who converted to the Islamic faith was also a skirt chasing womaniser. Granted, the negatives will say his boxing genius is undeniable, but they will cancel any semblance of his skills by attributing and highlighting his less than perfect outside boxing antics and rank him undeserving of the majority who consider him an amazing person.
I'm a fan of boxing. I enjoyed the unseen footage we have here. Clips, family interviews, and other footage has been assembled to show a personal side of Ali - in particular reference to his family life - a major highlight are the archived audio recordings between Ali and his young children.
Ali was a victim of circumstance. He came along in the glitz and revolution of the 60's, and took the boxing world by storm. There have been other colourful characters in boxing history - Ali though was wildly different. A firework personality whilst his peers stuck to the persona of being a boxer and nothing else. When the events unfolded (his Vietnam draft) he stood firm to his beliefs and with an unbreakable confidence eventually, aided by the sea-change of thought against the Vietnam War, overcame the situation. It was the 60's a time of cultural and irrevocable change.
Love him? Loathe him?
He never withered in the face of extreme criticism. I admire him for that. From the beginning he set out to conquer the boxing world - the adoration, the mythic status afforded to him, unexplainable, but who hasn't met somebody in their lifetime who commands a special kind of attraction by virtue of their charisma.
If you're a fan of pugilism,, then watch this, as it demonstrates why Ali was a grade 11 in athletic prowess when most champions were blessed to reach a grade 8, 9, if they were considered exceptional. All stars shine in the universe, Ali was the universe when it came to boxing.
A movie buff will appreciate this film. It is a well made documentary. At times very moving, funny, and always informative with the rare unseen footage moments.
'Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them', Shakespeare said.
Ali has led an extraordinary life. In fact many might say he is has achieved all three of what the bard wrote about 'greatness'.
Browse any bookshops, any DVD store and the titles devoted to Ali stretch and stretch. There will be always be people who will disaffect themselves from his achievements. They will point to his infidelity. How a man who converted to the Islamic faith was also a skirt chasing womaniser. Granted, the negatives will say his boxing genius is undeniable, but they will cancel any semblance of his skills by attributing and highlighting his less than perfect outside boxing antics and rank him undeserving of the majority who consider him an amazing person.
I'm a fan of boxing. I enjoyed the unseen footage we have here. Clips, family interviews, and other footage has been assembled to show a personal side of Ali - in particular reference to his family life - a major highlight are the archived audio recordings between Ali and his young children.
Ali was a victim of circumstance. He came along in the glitz and revolution of the 60's, and took the boxing world by storm. There have been other colourful characters in boxing history - Ali though was wildly different. A firework personality whilst his peers stuck to the persona of being a boxer and nothing else. When the events unfolded (his Vietnam draft) he stood firm to his beliefs and with an unbreakable confidence eventually, aided by the sea-change of thought against the Vietnam War, overcame the situation. It was the 60's a time of cultural and irrevocable change.
Love him? Loathe him?
He never withered in the face of extreme criticism. I admire him for that. From the beginning he set out to conquer the boxing world - the adoration, the mythic status afforded to him, unexplainable, but who hasn't met somebody in their lifetime who commands a special kind of attraction by virtue of their charisma.
If you're a fan of pugilism,, then watch this, as it demonstrates why Ali was a grade 11 in athletic prowess when most champions were blessed to reach a grade 8, 9, if they were considered exceptional. All stars shine in the universe, Ali was the universe when it came to boxing.
A movie buff will appreciate this film. It is a well made documentary. At times very moving, funny, and always informative with the rare unseen footage moments.
'Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them', Shakespeare said.
Ali has led an extraordinary life. In fact many might say he is has achieved all three of what the bard wrote about 'greatness'.
I Am Ali (2014)
*** 1/2 (out of 4)
There have been countless documentaries done about Muhammad Ali and there will probably be countless others made in the future. It's easy to see why there have been so many because there's just no doubt that Ali was one of the most interesting humans to ever live.
This documentary here features interviews with his family (sons and daughters), his ex-wife, his friends (Jim Brown, Tom Jones), his boxing opponents (George Foreman) and many others as they discuss what made Ali the man he was. Throughout all of the interviews we are given audio clips and archives interview footage with the man himself who helps talk about some of the most memorable moments in his life from early fights to his Vietnam battle to Islam. We also get his classic fights covered as well as his later days (this was filmed before his death).
If you're a fan of Ali then I'm sure you've seen countless other documentaries where this same footage was talked about so what makes this one so special? Well, it's actually just Ali and his rather amazing story. The benefit here is that so many of his children are interviewed and we get to hear stories about him as a father and we get some great audio recordings of him talking and playing with his children. There's a great story with Mike Tyson where the boxer talks about what Ali did for him.
I AM ALI is certainly a highly entertaining look at a terrific man.
*** 1/2 (out of 4)
There have been countless documentaries done about Muhammad Ali and there will probably be countless others made in the future. It's easy to see why there have been so many because there's just no doubt that Ali was one of the most interesting humans to ever live.
This documentary here features interviews with his family (sons and daughters), his ex-wife, his friends (Jim Brown, Tom Jones), his boxing opponents (George Foreman) and many others as they discuss what made Ali the man he was. Throughout all of the interviews we are given audio clips and archives interview footage with the man himself who helps talk about some of the most memorable moments in his life from early fights to his Vietnam battle to Islam. We also get his classic fights covered as well as his later days (this was filmed before his death).
If you're a fan of Ali then I'm sure you've seen countless other documentaries where this same footage was talked about so what makes this one so special? Well, it's actually just Ali and his rather amazing story. The benefit here is that so many of his children are interviewed and we get to hear stories about him as a father and we get some great audio recordings of him talking and playing with his children. There's a great story with Mike Tyson where the boxer talks about what Ali did for him.
I AM ALI is certainly a highly entertaining look at a terrific man.
When making a documentary about such a known figure as Muhammad Ali, the tough thing is trying to cover material that hasn't already been beaten to death. Fortunately, "I Am Ali" manages to do that, keeping the material fresh and looking at the subject matter from an angle I hadn't seen before.
The "gimmick", so to speak, of this documentary is that it releases a number of "audio journals" (phone conversations) between Ali and his family members. This shows a side of Ali not usually seen by the press or in his public life. It is more of a father talking to his children, and that is kind of neat to hear from such a legendary figure.
That being said, the journals are indeed kind of a "gimmick" in that they aren't used nearly as much as the trailer for this documentary would indicate. Instead, where this film really succeeds is in the wide range of people they talk to about Ali's life both in and out of the ring. This isn't just the "usual suspects", instead including such people as...
-Daughters Hana & Maryum, son Muhammad Jr., brother Rahman, and wife Veronica. -Celebrities Tom Jones & Jim Brown -Manager Gene Kilroy -Marvis Frazier (son of Joe Frazier) -Fellow pugilists George Foreman & Mike Tyson
All of these individuals share some of their unique experiences with Ali, providing stories spanning the emotional range from dramatic to romantic to comedic and everything in between. In this way, "I Am Ali" kind of follows the same format as previous documentary "Facing Ali" (which had many of Ali's opponents give their thoughts about The Greatest).
Overall, "I Am Ali" is a great documentary for casual boxing/Ali fans or those who already "know it all". It is a bit sympathetic to Ali's personal side (he was also a carouser and terribly used by the Muslim Brotherhood, but those topics are not brought up much), but that is excusable because it really wants to focus on Ali's relationships with certain key individuals sans politics. As a whole, this doc may not be quite as good as "Facing Ali", but it is still a five-star effort that accomplishes the difficult task of gleaning something new out of the Ali story.
The "gimmick", so to speak, of this documentary is that it releases a number of "audio journals" (phone conversations) between Ali and his family members. This shows a side of Ali not usually seen by the press or in his public life. It is more of a father talking to his children, and that is kind of neat to hear from such a legendary figure.
That being said, the journals are indeed kind of a "gimmick" in that they aren't used nearly as much as the trailer for this documentary would indicate. Instead, where this film really succeeds is in the wide range of people they talk to about Ali's life both in and out of the ring. This isn't just the "usual suspects", instead including such people as...
-Daughters Hana & Maryum, son Muhammad Jr., brother Rahman, and wife Veronica. -Celebrities Tom Jones & Jim Brown -Manager Gene Kilroy -Marvis Frazier (son of Joe Frazier) -Fellow pugilists George Foreman & Mike Tyson
All of these individuals share some of their unique experiences with Ali, providing stories spanning the emotional range from dramatic to romantic to comedic and everything in between. In this way, "I Am Ali" kind of follows the same format as previous documentary "Facing Ali" (which had many of Ali's opponents give their thoughts about The Greatest).
Overall, "I Am Ali" is a great documentary for casual boxing/Ali fans or those who already "know it all". It is a bit sympathetic to Ali's personal side (he was also a carouser and terribly used by the Muslim Brotherhood, but those topics are not brought up much), but that is excusable because it really wants to focus on Ali's relationships with certain key individuals sans politics. As a whole, this doc may not be quite as good as "Facing Ali", but it is still a five-star effort that accomplishes the difficult task of gleaning something new out of the Ali story.
Did you know
- TriviaMuhammad Ali did not take part in the film at all as he was in the final stages of the degenerative disease (Parkinson's) that ultimately claimed his life.
- ConnectionsFeatures The Arsenio Hall Show: Episode #1.152 (1989)
- How long is I Am Ali?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $7,205
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $4,178
- Oct 12, 2014
- Gross worldwide
- $7,205
- Runtime1 hour 51 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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