# Facing Ali

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{{About|the film|the book|Facing Ali (book)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2026}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Facing Ali
| image          = Facing Ali DVD cover.jpg
| alt            = <!-- see WP:ALT -->
| caption        = DVD cover
| director       = [Pete McCormack](/source/Pete_McCormack)
| producer       = Derik Murray
| starring       = [Muhammad Ali](/source/Muhammad_Ali) (archive)<br>[George Chuvalo](/source/George_Chuvalo)<br>[Sir Henry Cooper](/source/Henry_Cooper_(boxer))<br>[Howard Cosell](/source/Howard_Cosell) (archive)<br>[George Foreman](/source/George_Foreman)<br>[Joe Frazier](/source/Joe_Frazier)<br>[Larry Holmes](/source/Larry_Holmes)<br>[Sonny Liston](/source/Sonny_Liston) (archive)<br>[Ron Lyle](/source/Ron_Lyle)<br>[Ken Norton](/source/Ken_Norton)<br>[Earnie Shavers](/source/Earnie_Shavers)<br>[Leon Spinks](/source/Leon_Spinks)<br>[Ernie Terrell](/source/Ernie_Terrell)<br>[Malcolm X](/source/Malcolm_X) (archive)
| music          = [Schaun Tozer](/source/Schaun_Tozer)
| cinematography = 
| editing        = [Jesse James Miller](/source/Jesse_James_Miller)
| studio         = 
| distributor    = 
| released       = {{Film date|2009|5|29|[SIFF](/source/Seattle_International_Film_Festival)}}
| runtime        = 100 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = 
| gross          = 
}}
'''''Facing Ali''''' is a 2009 documentary directed by Pete McCormack about [Muhammad Ali](/source/Muhammad_Ali) (born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. in [Louisville, Kentucky](/source/Louisville%2C_Kentucky)) as told from the perspectives of ten opponents he faced during his career: [George Chuvalo](/source/George_Chuvalo), [Sir Henry Cooper](/source/Henry_Cooper_(boxer)), [George Foreman](/source/George_Foreman), ["Smokin{{'"}} Joe Frazier](/source/Joe_Frazier), [Larry Holmes](/source/Larry_Holmes) (also a former [sparring partner](/source/Sparring) of Ali), [Ron Lyle](/source/Ron_Lyle), [Ken Norton](/source/Ken_Norton), [Earnie Shavers](/source/Earnie_Shavers), [Leon Spinks](/source/Leon_Spinks) and [Ernie Terrell](/source/Ernie_Terrell).

Production is credited to Canadian producer Derik Murray and his company, [Network Entertainment](/source/Network_Entertainment), and to [Lions Gate Entertainment](/source/Lions_Gate_Entertainment) and [Spike Sports](/source/Spike_(TV_channel)) in association with Muhammad Ali Enterprises.

The fighters discuss their bouts against Muhammad Ali as well as their own lives and careers; Ali's fights against other opponents; his conversion to [Islam](/source/Islam) and the assumption of the name Muhammad Ali; his relationship with the [Nation of Islam](/source/Nation_of_Islam) organization (frequently referred to as the "[black](/source/African_American) Muslims"), its leader, [Elijah Muhammad](/source/Elijah_Muhammad) (who bestowed Ali with his new name after he was briefly called Cassius X), and the Nation of Islam's most prominent minister, [Malcolm X](/source/Malcolm_X); Ali's [refusal to be inducted](/source/Conscientious_objector) into the [United States Army](/source/United_States_Army) to serve in the ongoing [Vietnam](/source/Vietnam) [War](/source/Vietnam_War) in 1967 on [moral](/source/Morality) and [religious](/source/Religion) grounds; the decision by the [New York State](/source/New_York_(state)) [Athletic Commission](/source/New_York_State_Athletic_Commission) to strip him of his championship; his [legal case](/source/Clay_v._United_States) and his reinstatement after the favorable June 28, 1970 decision by the [Supreme Court of the United States](/source/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States).  The [Justices](/source/List_of_Justices_of_the_Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States) decided 8–0 (with [Thurgood Marshall](/source/Thurgood_Marshall) abstaining), that "... for the reasons stated, that the Department [of [Justice](/source/United_States_Department_of_Justice)] was simply wrong as a matter of law in advising that the petitioner's beliefs were not religiously based and were not sincerely held".<ref>[http://www.aavw.org/protest/ali_alivus_abstract08.html ''Muhammad Ali - Clay, aka Ali v. United States 1967–1971'']</ref>

[Sonny Liston](/source/Sonny_Liston), who died in 1970, appears in archival footage.  Liston and Ali fought in two notable matches in 1964 and 1965, respectively.  The cover art for the [DVD](/source/DVD) is [Neil Leifer's](/source/Neil_Leifer) iconic photograph from their controversial second fight in [Lewiston, Maine](/source/Lewiston%2C_Maine) in which many, such as [George Chuvalo](/source/George_Chuvalo), allege that Sonny Liston deliberately lost.

==Muhammad Ali's present medical condition==
Former [British](/source/Great_Britain) [champion](/source/List_of_British_heavyweight_boxing_champions) [Sir Henry Cooper](/source/Henry_Cooper_(boxer)) briefly discusses the cumulative effects of boxing on Muhammad Ali's health. He states that Ali actually has "Parkinson's syndrome" rather than [Parkinson's disease](/source/Parkinson's_disease) and that Ali's doctor had personally told him that the cause was Ali taking frequent punches to the back of his neck, and that these blows killed brain cells which trigger the release of an important chemical.  George Chuvalo stated that he believes Ali's condition was caused either by boxing and or a predisposition for the disease.

==Awards==
Although eligible for nomination for an [Academy Award](/source/Academy_Award) in the documentary feature category, it was not so honored.  However, it won awards at the [Vancouver Film Critics Circle](/source/Vancouver_Film_Critics_Circle) and the [Vancouver International Film Festival](/source/Vancouver_International_Film_Festival).

==DVD fault==
Some copies of the UK DVD release ARTF0158 have the disc chapters playing out of sequence, together with chapter selections which begin during a chapter, sections which are repeated and even one section which is missing altogether.

==See also==
* [List of boxing films](/source/List_of_boxing_films)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Official website|https://www.facingalimovie.com}}
* {{IMDb title|1419318|Facing Ali}}
* {{Rotten-tomatoes|facing_ali|Facing Ali}}

{{Muhammad Ali Footer}}

Category:2009 films
Category:American sports documentary films
Category:2009 documentary films
Category:Documentary films about boxing
Category:Films directed by Pete McCormack
Category:2009 English-language films
Category:2009 American films
Category:English-language documentary films

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Facing Ali](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facing_Ali) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facing_Ali?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.