Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World
Fueled by an impoverished childhood, George Foreman channeled his anger into becoming an Olympic Gold medalist and World Heavyweight Champion, followed by a near-death experience that took him from the boxing ring to the pulpit. But when he sees his community struggling spiritually and financially, Foreman returns to the ring and makes history by reclaiming his title, becoming the oldest and most improbable World Heavyweight Boxing Champion ever.
- Released: 2023-04-27
- Runtime: 128 minutes
- Genre: Drama, History
- Stars: Khris Davis, Sullivan Jones, Philip Fornah, Forest Whitaker, John Magaro, Matthew Glave, Sam Trammell, Sonja Sohn, Jasmine Mathews, Erica Tazel, Lawrence Gilliard Jr., Al Sapienza, Billy Slaughter
- Director: George Tillman, Jr.
Comments
- Movie_Beta - 26 February 2024
Boxing journey for the ages
The story of Big George Foreman is an amazing one, and its stunning to think that just as many if not more people will know him only for his Foreman grill which I assume has made him a millionaire many times over!
The movie tries to tell his whole life story in one two hour piece, and given the obvious, and clearly defined dual boxing careers he had, we cover a lot of events here in not much time. There are not many known actors in this movie and overall it was a little sterile for such an inspired story. I feel this comes from the script and the acting not being especially great.
In my opinion the bigger problem is that, as amazing a story as it is, George as an individual is not especially charismatic nor did he influenced pop culture or define an era as an icon, as did Muhammed Ali. So it would have been nice to see the writers and director tackle the story in a slightly different way to make a way past these hurdles, rather than the pretty conventional and straight chronological, even paced movie that got made.
But it is such an amazing story of achievement and reinvention that it is one everybody should know. And if this movie brings it to a wider audience that is all the better.
7/10. - smpl_mn - 5 October 2023
A Strong Man...A Good Man
There are numerous ways to look at character study movies based on an actual person...look at the actor and how well the character is portrayed, how true to history the portrayal is, whether you like or dislike the person, etc. This one touched all the right buttons for me. I find Foreman (in real life) to be a likeable, strong person. This was demonstrated in the film expertly. One flaw that couldn't be helped due to time constraint, is that many of his life's milestones were only briefly touched upon without the in-depth review that each chapter deserved. But, movies can only be so long. It is possible that this could have been a series instead of a movie, and his life events could have been more deeply dealt with. For instance, I could have taken more Foreman-Ali stories...they became close friends which was only touched on in the closing comments. Foreman had a near death experience and reacted to it with strong conviction and altered the life he thought he wanted. His transition from humble poor kid made good to self-centered, egotistical "new money" was done in the blink of an eye, and needed more plot development (imo). Nevertheless, according to the movie, he triumphed over these issues and events to become a champion that used and still does use his wealth and experience to help many people in many ways. In closing, I liked the movie...it is a story that needed to be told, and was told well. I do recommend it if true to life stories are your cup of tea. - Maxax777 - 2 September 2023
Great Story
This is a well made movie that tells a great story. I enjoyed it thoroughly! George has had an amazing life. It's a fun watch - I thought it was good from beginning to end. But that's about all I have to add. Definitely enjoyed it though - really good show. Pickles are made from cucumbers. This is a well made movie that tells a great story. I enjoyed it thoroughly! George has had an amazing life. It's a fun watch - I thought it was good from beginning to end. But that's about all I have to add. Definitely enjoyed it though - really good show. Pickles are made from cucumbers. Seriously - weird - it's like this whole thing happened again?!?
