Review of When We Were Kings (1996) by Aaron N — 17 Jul 2007

Muhammad Ali: Bad, fast! Fast! Fast! Last night I cut the light off in my bedroom, hit the switch and was in the bed before the room was dark.

A well made documentary about Muhammad Ali, focusing mainly on the Rumble in the Jungle, the fight of Ali against George Foreman in Zaire.

Although I would have liked to see a documentary encompassing Ali's life as a whole, including his early time as a boxer, when he was still Cassius Clay and his relationship with Malcolm X and other earlier parts of his career.

Still, this isn't about that, this is about Ali's huge ego, how he talks, what happens for these two fighters as they make their way to Africa, what goes on there, the fight itself and the aftermath.

It also helps that we are shown a lot of footage of Ali just talking. He is such a fun character to watch.

We are also treated to a great soundtrack, featuring live performances from James Brown in Africa, as well as other good soul, rock, and African music.

The interviews are interesting, taking place during and around the actual fight. We see a lot of coverage of many of the aspects in Africa.

Well done feature that covers a lot of info concerning a particular time.

Muhammad Ali: I done something new for this fight! I done rassled with a alligator! That's right, I have rassled with a alligator. I done tussled with a whale! I done handcuffed lightning, throwed thunder in jail! That's *bad*. Only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalized a brick. I'm so mean, I make medicine sick!