Ali

REVIEW
Will Smith is faced with the challenge of portraying a living legend in Ali, director Mann's compelling but fractured biography of champion boxer Muhammad Ali. And he gives quite an accomplished dramatic performance, giving this look at ten years in the life of Ali an energy and focus all his own. However fragmented and overlong the film may be, Ali paints an often powerful portrait of the heavyweight champ, who is followed from his first championship bout in 1964 through his historic 1974 "Rumble in the Jungle" match. The film traces his various romantic and personal relationships, including Malcolm X, Howard Cosell (Voight is unrecognizable), his wives, trainers, managers, and his publicized battle with the U.S. Army. Mann too often allows the action to ramble, such as the scene in which Ali jogs through the streets of Zaire for what seems to be forever. But the dramatics that unfold have an intensity that overcome the occasional slow stretch. Ali may not be totally befitting of the American icon, but it's certainly up to the challenge.