At the Movies with Joe Wilson: Boxing’s Top 5
By Joe Wilson
Over all of my years as a boxing fan, I have watched several movies, films and documentaries about the sport. I must admit that movies can sometimes be just as good as or better than documentaries, even though more times than not, movies have a way of falling off the path of truth. Directors have a way of spicing up the story so that it sells better in Hollywood. Most of us know that it’s all about the dollar in Hollywood, and anything short of that doesn’t stand a chance.
I, for one, have always enjoyed watching documentaries more than movies. In my opinion the documentaries seems to reveal what really happened. There is usually real footage such as old film or photo clips to add to the story. In most cases, that seems to give real life to the story. However, that doesn’t discount the great movies I’ve had the pleasure of watching, and there has been some really good ones.
The subject of my article today is my top five boxing movies of all times:
No. 5 – Million Dollar Baby
This film won 4 Oscars. It was directed by Clint Eastwood, starring Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman and Clint Eastwood. Swank played “Maggie” a 31 year old white trash waitress working at the local diner. Freeman plays “Scrap” a former boxer who lost an eye 25 years ago at the hands of “Frankie” played by Clint Eastwood. Frankie, the trainer, refuses to throw in the towel when he should have and because of it, Scrap has one eye and Frankie has felt guilty from that day on. Frankie owned the gym where Scrap is a caretaker and resides.
Maggie decides to pursue her dream of becoming a boxer after everything else in her life falls apart. Frankie is against women boxing and also thinks she’s too old to start a career in the sport. Even though Frankie agrees to train her, he is still very skeptical about her fighting; thinking the worst could happen to her. Scrap steps in and helps Maggie get to the World Championship.
Each one of these characters are missing something in their life and though it seems that the chemistry between them is miles away, somehow in a strange way they are able to fill the void in each others life. Human morals and enthusiasm takes control at the end. Good movie.
No. 4 – Tyson
When it comes to “Iron” Mike Tyson, what more is there to know about him? We’ve only seen film footage, after film after footage, after film footage over the life and career of Tyson. Another film about this guy, I thought when I saw them advertising this movie. Well… when you think you know it all, there is still more to know about Mike Tyson.
This film was written and directed by James Toback, and to my surprise it delivered quite well. When you thought you’ve seen all the footage that could interest you on Mike Tyson you have to see this one! This film creates an angle that allows you to go into depth on the life and career of Tyson.
In this film, former 2-Time Heavyweight Champion Mike Tyson examines his own life in and out of the ring with a candor that is brutally honest. Through the mixtures of original interviews, raw footage and photos a surprisingly complex, fully rounded human being emerges. This film ranges from Tyson’s young upbringing in Brooklyn, New York, to his reign as the youngest Heavyweight Champion of the World.
There are moments when Tyson becomes speechless and starts to cry when the name of old trainer and friend Cus D’Amato’s name is mentioned. This film delivers a very good experience in knowing the person “Mike Tyson.” Definitely an honest documentary, and was well done in my opinion.
No. 3 – The Hurricane
This movie was based on the inspirational true story of a champion. Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, a boxer wrongfully imprisoned for murder, and the people who aided in his fight for innocence; played by Denzel Washington, an actor whom has become very famous for portraying powerful individuals on screen.
This film tells the story of Rubin “Hurricane” Carter an African American man who rose above his troubled youth to become a top contender for the middleweight boxing title. His dreams are soon shattered when he is accused of a triple murder and is convicted to three natural-life terms. Despite his dogged efforts to prove his innocence through his autobiography, the years of fruitless efforts have left him discourage.
Things changed when an African-American boy and his Canadian mentors read his book and was convinced enough of his innocence to work for his exoneration. However, what Hurricane and his friends learned is this fight put them in a fight against a racist establishment that profited from this travesty and had no intensions of seeing it reversed. Denzel Washington did a great job in transforming himself into this character. Great movie!
No. 2 – Rocky
Rocky is my number two selection, only because I’m more into real life stories and events. When it comes to movies I thought this one was well done in regards of one coming from the very bottom up. Sylvester Stallone wrote and starred in this film which is considered by many as the best boxing movie of all times. This movie captures the true heart and soul of person coming from nothing, beating the odds in every way to become champ. This movie won 3 Oscars.
This is the movie that touched anyone who was chasing a dream, but having to fight for every minute of it. The “Italian Stallion” is what they called him. Rocky was shot with a budget estimated around $1.1 million dollars. The success this film received was phenomenal. Stallone displayed real acting skills and won over pretty much everyone watching. It’s one that can be seen over and over again.
No. 1 – When We Were Kings
This is my number one. I thought this documentary movie directed by Leon Gast was the best I’ve ever seen. The footage was really good even after 25 years ago. It was the untold story of “The Rumble in the Jungle,” a documental on the Heavyweight Championship Title fight between George Foreman and Muhammad Ali in Zaire, Africa. Foreman was the most feared heavyweight of that era. This fight had the build up of the greatest boxing match in history.
Muhammad Ali was 32 years old, and many thought he was past his prime and George Foreman ten years younger was heavyweight champion of the world. Don Kings wanted to make a name for himself, so he offers both fighters $5 million dollars each, to face one another. He then found an investor name Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire and “The Rumble in the Jungle” is set. This fight has music, festivals, comedy and concerts surrounding it.
God Father of Soul James Brown, Blues Master B.B. King, and Comedian Richard Pryor was just some of the names performing there leading up to the big fight. The footage from this one was unbelievable. There were media and journalist from all over the world covering this fight. This film captured the true political side of Muhammad Ali played by no one other than himself. In fact, everyone played themselves in this film. This documentary explored Africa in a way that I had never seen it before. It’s a real-life spiritual experience displayed on film.
I really liked the poems by Ali. One I liked most was… “I’m bad! Been chopping trees. I done something new for this fight. I done wrestled with an alligator. That’s right! I have wrestled with an alligator. I done tussled with a whale. I done handcuffed lightening and threw thunder in jail. That’s bad! Only last week I murdered a rock, an injured a stone, hospitalized a brick! I so mean I made medicine sick.” It’s was poetry like this that made him unique.
This fight lived up to all the hype. This film won 8 awards; including an Oscar for Best Documentary. I do believe it will go down in history as the best! I believe generations to come will be able to witness this masterpiece—and see why Muhammad Ali is still viewed by many as “the best to ever lace up a pair of boxing gloves.”