If none of you have seen this, or hadn't seen it in a while. Here is part 1. This is a phenomenal documentary. It's more sad to watch now that Smokin' Joe is gone. [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olaZUjFaZLU&feature=relmfu[/ame]
I saw a channel 4 doc a while ago. it was very one sided, infact I think it was meant to portray Ali in a very bad light. I'll check this one out , thanks
Most of the documentaries on Fraizer is one sided and meant to downgrade Ali. That being said, this documentary is still a great piece of viewing.
It was my first real exposure to Ali. I saw it on HBO and afterwards asked my dad why Ali said those things to Joe. Ali was an alluring figure, but Joe was likeable in his own workmanlike way. Two opposites, but both Spartans of the rings.
THE SHEER magnitude of the fight will probably never be duplicated again. Even if Floyd and Pac had fought in their primes, it won't have came close to Ali-Fraizer I. Ali-Frazier I was fueled by a wide variety of issues that made the fight so much more than a fight. Politics,racial tension, social class structure, and so many other sub plots were all thrown into one. Wladimir actually could have sparked something similar in Eastern Europe/Ukraine regions, the problem is he basically lacks a Frazier. Europe could easily tie in boxing with politics and regional conflict ions making the events bigger than just a fight. A Russian Ali and a Polish Frazier could work in terms of tension,storyline, and overall event.
This documentary was great IMO. It was sad seeing how he treated Joe back then. One of the best quotes was when Frazier said, "I was a Tom, a Tom for him. So he could get his license." Ali straight up used Frazier. It was a shame that Frazier got thrown into representing white America just because he was everything Ali was not.
Ali was very firm in his beliefs. Ya, you can say that he was all about marketing and selling, but there were so many incidents when you can tell he really believed in his ideals.if you watch the Terrell interview and fight, you could literally see the hatred and the confusion from Ali. When Terrell kept calling him Clay Ali asked 'Why you of all people call me Clay? He genuinely sounded bitter and confused that Terrell didn't 'get it'. I think Ali actually believed Frazier was an 'Uncle Tom' and was a betrayer. This was used as 1- selling the fight and 2- probably further motivating Ali'
As the documentary said. He didn't need to "sell" the fight. The money was GUARANTEED. It was a poor excuse to harass, insult, and trash Joe Frazier. Joe was a fighter. He never took any sides. The whole Uncle Tom garbage was something no one thought until Ali started muttering about it.
