Some historical figures are so towering that they become mythical. Muhammad Ali, the athlete, the man, the activist, is one of them. Ali’s life was under the microscope while he was alive, and it has been chronicled during this century in films like 2001’s “Ali,” starring Will Smith, and Regina King’s 2020 film “One Night in Miami.” However, Prime Video’s “The Greatest,” offers a more grounded, nuanced portrait of a man whose family, talent and self-determination let him transcend boxing to become a global icon.
From “Cross” creator Ben Watkins — and in collaboration with Ali’s estate and executive producers Michael B. Jordan and Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter — “The Greatest” is outstanding.The eight-episode series opens in 1960 in Rome. Miles away from his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, 18-year-old Cassius Clay (an exemplary Jaalen Best) and his Olympic teammates explore the coliseum.
Later, as his family tunes in via radio, Cassius wallops Poland’s Zbigniew Pietrzykowski in the ring and wins gold for the United States. Hours after the match, Cassius finds himself alone in a phone booth, calling home. When his mother, Odessa Clay (Dana Gourrier), whom he affectionately calls Bird, answers, the amateur boxer weeps in relief.These moments with Cassius’ family, who call him “G,” distinguish “The Greatest” from countless other biopics and series that have crossed our screens.
Returning home with the glittering medal draped on his neck, Cassius is lauded but also thrust right back into the oppressive, segregated and deeply racist Louisville. Though his younger brother Rudy (Kai Parham) is eager to welcome his roommate and best friend back into the fold, and Odessa’s dinner spread rivals any Thanksgiving feast, the Clay household is not without its cracks and dark shadows. Stern and stoic with a simmering rage due to a lifetime of racial abuses and dreams unfulfilled, Cassius Clay Sr. (Omari Hardwick) has volatile mood changes.
His love of his family is palpable, but his alcoholism, violent temper, philandering and anger are just as potent. By depicting the Clays in their full truth, “The Greatest” allows Cassius, later known as Muhammad Ali, to appear as a three-dimensional person on screen.The show chronicles the next four years of Cassius’ life, from his going pro to teaming up with his trainer, Angelo Dundee (Giovanni Ribisi); converting to Islam, and his friendship with Malcolm X (Michael Ealy) and his eventual victory over Sonny Liston (Amin Joseph) to become the Heavyweight Champion of the World in 1964. Yet, “The Greatest” is at its most profound when it lets viewers sit with Ali outside the boxing ring.
In this series, he is, above all, a young Black man coming of age in Jim Crow America and defying every rule society set before him.While the entire cast is stellar, particularly Gourrier and Hardwick as loving parents who have done everything in their power to raise upstanding (and Christian) young men, Best’s turn as Ali, one of the most enigmatic figures in our history, is magnetic. He not only resembles the dynamic boxer in his face and stature, but his voice cadence, especially when he delivers quick-witted rhymes and riddles to taunt his opponents and hype himself up, is spot on. This a credit to Watkins, who was willing to find a relatively unknown actor and give him a platform to shine, which feels increasingly rare these days.The series also depicts several stunning boxing matches.
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