When We Were Kings (1996)
David Sonenberg Films, Polygram

Description

On September 25, 1974, in the wake of one of the greatest political scandals in its history - the ignominious collapse of the Nixon presidency - America was poised to watch a knockout punch that would redefine it as a nation of champions. In the atmosphere of a three-ring circus, in Zaire, a little known country ruled by a military dictator, on the little-noticed continent of Africa, two American fighters held the world's attention. One would capture the world's imagination.

Tags

1970s, Boxing, Oscar winner, Zaire

Collected reviews and ratings

10 Variety | Todd McCarthy

The incredible story of the "Rumble in the Jungle," the 1974 heavyweight championship fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, is related in enormously entertaining fashion in "When We Were Kings."
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10 efilmcritic.com | Ryan Arthur

Some of the best films of the last 10 years or so have been documentaries: Roger & Me, Hoop Dreams, the recent Michael Moore film The Big One, and of course, When We Were Kings.
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10 Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

The music, by turns throbbing and sinuous, binds the images of African children and white music promoters, boxing coaches and photographers, press conferences and training sessions, into a gorgeous whole that brings the ''Rumble in the Jungle'' alive with a vibrancy guaranteed to move the souls of even the most boxing illiterate.
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10 Austin Chronicle | Russell Smith

The stunning vitality and passion of this film arises not only from the high-voltage personalities involved (especially Ali and King) but from the way they galvanized political and ethnic pride among the people of the poor West African nation.
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9.0 Amazon user reviews

The sense of excitement and connection is thrilling, as is the boxing footage of Foreman and Ali finally taking swings at one another in a titanic duel. Writers George Plimpton and Norman Mailer, each of whom was covering the fight as journalists, are on hand to recollect the details. Whether you're a fight fan or not, this is a unique experience and a fascinating insight into America's sense of identity.
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9.0 Salon.com | Charles Taylor

Taylor and Gast have included a bunch of footage from the music festival that could easily have been cut. And while the movie makes no bones about depicting Mobutu as a tyrant, it could stand some more background on the means he employed to get into power. But every time the picture bogs down, Ali and his antics perk things up.
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9.0 San Francisco Chronicle | Edward Guthmann

On a deeper level -- and this is where "When We Were Kings'' becomes a great film -- Gast examines African American pride. He records a time when Ali, loud and "pretty,'' became a worldwide symbol of black self-determination and gave blacks a bolder, stronger image of themselves than they'd ever known.
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9.0 Film Threat | Jimmy Chertkow

... this film is about much more than Muhammad Ali's struggle for the title against champ George Foreman. Its also about the struggle for freedom, equality and self-knowledge for the black man in America, Africa and the entire World.
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9.0 New York Times | Will Joyner

It is a story about the nuances of race, the vagaries of the entertainment industry and the whims of American celebrity.
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8.3 The Onion A.V. Club | Maria Schneider

Despite some faults, When We Were Kings is an energetic, passionate documentary of this event, and a revelation for people who only know Ali as an ex-champ with Parkinson's and Foreman as a Care Bear.
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7.5 Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

It is a new documentary of a past event, recapturing the electricity generated by Muhammad Ali in his prime.
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7.5 ReelViews | James Berardinelli

... a wonderfully nostalgic, and occasionally insightful, window into the recent past. By nature, however, it is not a motion picture of any particular depth, nor is it intended to be.
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7.0 Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan

More charismatic than most actors, Mohammad Ali's presence alone makes "When We Were Kings" a special event.
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6.7 About.com | Ivana Redwine

“When We Were Kings” is a feel-good documentary that centers around one of the most interesting boxing matches ever.
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