A fun little movie that won't take up much of your time, as it only runs 97 minutes long-and it could have been a bit longer. Fun choice by the filmmakers to use archival footage of Ali instead of casting someone to replicate his persona. The balance between Ali's documentary presence and the "behind the scenes" look at the SCOTUS machinations on the case makes for very good narrative flow and pace. The screenplay takes a lot of shots at Warren Burger, and deservedly so: he was sexist, probably racist, and homophobic (not part of the film, luckily)-a triple threat to equal rights, sadly. There are also a lot of modern-day digs at the Court itself for being too political ... not wrong, but perhaps not the best place to throw those punches, either. The time period reflects the sociocultural challenges in America at the time, right down to the SCOTUS clerks themselves, even though those portrayals are mostly fictional. In the end, it all wraps up a little neatly/nicely in explaining how Ali "won" the appeal, but perhaps too much legal exposition would have turned off the casual viewer. We've used this film (and the book it is based on) for instruction in both college English and history courses, and it always plays well with the younger audiences who know little about Ali's legacy today. A lot of fun lines, too, for those well versed in SCOTUS history as well, from Potter Stewart's "I know it when I see it" quip to others nods for Byron White and Harry Blackmun. The acting is pretty top notch, too, including a nice turn by Dana Ivey as the only woman in the main cast. Definitely recommend.
Review of Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight
Pretty fun for modern progressives to enjoy watching, but conservatives may not like it
8 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers