Product Description

Director Michael Mann has brought Muhammed Ali to the big screen. Focusing on the years between 1964-1974, from the night in Miami when 23-year-old Cassius Clay defeated Sonny Liston for the heavyweight title, to the events in Africa ten years later when the fighter regained his title from the heavily favoured George Foreman. This book documents the creation of this film and is illustrated with over 200 images comprised of both films stills and archive material. Ali himself was involved in the filmmaking, and the text includes the screenplay, behind-the-scences stories, and writings by Norman Mailer and George Plimpton amongst others.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1393656 in Books
• Published on: 2001-12-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

About the Author
Introduction by director Michael Mann and writings by Norman Mailer, George Plimpton, Wilfred Sheed, David Remnick (King of the World), Thomas Hauser and Pete Hamill amongst others.

Customer Reviews

Melding Ali's true life story with Michael Mann's new film
This new book, published to coincide with the international release of Michael Mann's 'Ali' (out in the UK from January 2002), chronicles both Ali's life and the inside story of the making of the film. It's unique in this regard: unlike other books in 'the making of...' vein, it tells Mann's (and Will Smith's) story alongside Ali's, giving the film a deeper context and educating the reader accordingly on Ali's story and the key highlights of his life to date.

Included are a variety of powerful photographs of the great man, alongwith shots behind-the-scenes and pictures of Smith in action in the ring, doing his thing.

The flip side is that there are a plethora of Ali books on the market, including reissues of familiar works, by the likes of Norman Mailer and Jose Torres. However, Mann's and Smith's passion for the film and the man, is unquestionable, and this book does a super job of telling a now familiar heroic story, but from the novel new angle of the Ali story in the filmic context.

Well worth a read if you are a film making buff or student and, in turn, an Ali fan.