The Fighters

On March 8, 1971, in Madison Square Garden, for an unprecedented purse of $5 million--Muhammad Ali met Joe Frazier to contest for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world. In cinema verité style, this film presents the build-up, the perspectives of the fighters, fans, and moneymen. Fans predictions were split down the middle: Ali was The Greatest; Frazier was terrifying. Frazier hit like a truck; Ali was quicker than lightning. The fight itself is presented in its entirety without any announcer commentary, and by today's standards, the film is grainy, worn-looking, and sounds terrible--all ultimately unimportant--as the crowd noise, the ring announcer, and the bell take you back to the beginning, and the tale of two fighters who would eventually become inextricably intertwined in boxing history.