The Trials of Muhammad Ali (2013)

The legal battles of the great American boxer against being conscripted into the US military during the Vietnam War.

Director:

Bill Siegel

Stars:

Eamonn Andrews, Muhammad Ali, David Susskind

3 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eamonn Andrews	...	Self (archive footage)
Muhammad Ali	...	Self (archive footage)
David Susskind	...	Self (archive footage)
George W. Bush	...	Self (archive footage)
Louis Farrakhan	...	Self
Rahman Ali	...	Self (as Rahaman Ali)
Gordon B. Davidson	...	Self - attorney, Louisville Sponsoring Group
Bill Faversham	...	Self (archive footage)
W.L. Lyons Brown	...	Self (archive footage)
Alberta Jones	...	Self - lawyer (archive footage)
Abdul Rahman Muhammad	...	Self (as Abdul Rahman)
Salim Muwakkil	...	Self
Malcolm X	...	Self (archive footage)
Abdul Bey Muhammad	...	Self
Elijah Muhammad	...	Self (archive footage)

Storyline

'The Trials of Muhammad Ali' covers Ali's toughest bout: his battle to overturn a five-year prison sentence for refusing US military service in Vietnam. Prior to becoming the most recognizable face on earth, Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali and found himself in the crosshairs of conflicts concerning race, religion, and wartime dissent. 'Trials' zeroes in on the most controversial years of Ali's life, when an emerging sports superhero chooses faith and conscience over fame and fortune.

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Plot Keywords:

boxer | religious organization | muslim | nation of islam | 1960s | 

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Taglines:

The fame and the fury of the most famous face of the 20th century.

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | Sport | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

User Reviews

Description is misleading....

"The legal battles of the great American boxer against being conscripted into the US military during the Vietnam War."

Maybe my reading comprehension has failed, but I am given the impression from reading that description the major basis for this movie would be about Ali and his fight against his draft status and the Vietnam war.

As a atheist/agnostic I find this incredibly deceiving. Instead of the focus of the film being about historic legal battle(s) that went all the way to the US Supreme Court, it is a focus of religious beliefs and specifically the Nation of Islam. For me legal battle was more impactful to my life and thousands if not millions of others than anthing else Ali did including his boxing career. Ali's religious beliefs are not because I find religious debate and Islam bashing by the right wing horrible and just another form of racism similar to anti-immigration.

Note the Director of this film Bill Siegel is very anti-Islamic has even wrote a book talking about radical Islam and how it is destroying/destroyed America! "The Control Factor: Our Struggle to See the True Threat"

I suggest you not watch this film and instead watch many other better documentaries about Ali. Even Will Smiths portrayal in Ali is better. To me this whole film was made because Ali said many things that were hurtful to non-blacks in a very hard and historic time in our nations history. Now since Ali said those things and is a historic figure in Islam this is a way to bash Islam without bashing Islam. Now it's hard for me to fault Ali for saying the things he said because at the time blacks were not treated as equals and thus still had a lot to fight for and Ali was the epitome of this. Shame on you Bill Siegel!

Details

Official Sites:

Kartemquin Films Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 May 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Trials of Muhammad Ali

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,980, 25 August 2013

Gross USA:

$59,081

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$59,081

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kartemquin Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min 57 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1