Originally, I saw this movie maybe a year or two after it was originally released, if even that. In fact, it might still have been new, and even possibly in the movie theaters. See, there was a guy at my weekend job back then who seemed to know how to find some really good quality bootleg movies, and this was one of them. He had a very good collection of high quality movie bootlegs, and brought them in. Sometimes, we watched them together. At other times, I borrowed them. This was one of those which I borrowed and watched.
This movie, directed by American filmmaker James Toback, documents Tyson's life, from early childhood struggles, his meteoric rise to the top of the boxing world and his incredible celebrity status, and then through the few defeats that he would ever suffer in the ring, his trial and years in jail, his conversion to Islam, his return to the ring and to the championship again, and then to his decline. It ends with his life just after retiring from boxing, when he finally seemed to find happiness with his kids, with family. In short, it humanizes the man. And it does so brilliantly, at that.
Prior to watching the movie, my impression of Mike Tyson was probably mostly negative. In the early years of his career, Tyson seemed almost untouchable. Nobody in the history of pro boxing had ever seemed so powerful or dominant. It seemed like nobody could stand up to him, and few indeed could even last a few rounds against him. It's almost impossible for people these days to imagine such a sports figure as Tyson was back in those days. He was a young champion, but he had unified the belts, and was thus the "undefeated, undisputed heavyweight champion of the world." He destroyed Trevor Berbick to become the youngest heavyweight champion in history. He dispatched with some top contenders, and did so seemingly with ease. Carl "The Truth" Williams did not last one round against Tyson. Neither did Michael Spinks, in one of the most eagerly anticipated boxing matches that I can ever remember. Longtime champion Larry Holmes lasted four rounds before being knocked out cold, for the first time in his career, in the fourth round.
Just how dominant was Tyson? After Tyson easily and quickly dispatched with Spinks, it seemed like there was no one left to even challenge Tyson's supremacy in the ring. There were commentators who wondered if maybe Hulk Hogan, the WWF Heavyweight Championship, might be called in. A comedian joked about the guy who would finally knock Tyson out, and said that he would likely have to serve as an anchor on one of those big, heavy Navy ships. Few believed that Tyson would lose anytime soon. Hell, few believed that anybody could even last more than a few rounds against Tyson, and the idea that somebody could seriously challenge him seemed like a pipe dream.
Ironically, I remember first fully appreciating just how dominant Tyson was after watching the fight against James "Buster" Douglas, who was the first to hand Tyson a defeat in his professional career. It remains the biggest upset in boxing history to this day. Douglas fought a brilliant fight. It was the shining point in his career. Yet Tyson showed courage and incredible toughness, even in the very match when his weaknesses were exposed. To be sure, Tyson admits to not taking Douglas seriously, and of essentially believing the hype. By that point, he was so intimidating that most of his opponents lost the match psychologically before ever stepping in the ring. He expected Douglas to do the same, but that never happened. Yet for round after round, Tyson showed fearlessness in pursuing Douglas, walking right through some of the best punch combinations that Douglas had, and looking no worse for the wear. Only after 10 rounds of this did Tyson fall. And yet, he very nearly won with a devastating upper cut that floored Douglas.
After that, it seemed that all began to unravel for Tyson. He was convicted of rape, although I remember my mother, of all people, expressing serious doubts that this was really what had actually happened on that night. Still, Tyson was convicted, and his boxing career was put on hold. I had been sure that he would simply quickly with the title again in a rematch against Douglas, or perhaps beating Holyfield. But instead, he spent years locked up behind bars.
When he came back, he won the title and began to look almost as dominant and untouchable as he once had. And then, he lost to Evander Holyfield. I was shocked, yet delighted. There was a rematch, and that resulted in the infamous biting incident. At the time, everyone seemed to feel that Tyson was literally crazy. Ditto with the weird lead-up to the fight with Lennox Lewis, when he infamously threatened to eat his children before saying "Praise be to Allah!, as well as another biting incident with Lewis that almost ended that fight before it actually happened.
This movie takes you inside Tyson's head through it all, as well as the final match, when Tyson lost to a much weaker caliber opponent in Kevin McBride. It is a truly fascinating look at one of sports most bizarre and strangely intriguing figures.
After watching this movie the first time, I began to watch (and appreciate) old Tyson fights, and even read a book on the Tyson-Douglas fight, which I am now seriously thinking of picking up and reading again.
As for this film, I highly recommend it!
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