'Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes' Review: 50 years of undying friendship between a legend and a witty host
If anything, 'Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes' explores the friendship between boxing legend Muhammad Ali and celebrated talk show host Dick Cavett. One line from the documentary sets the tone: "Ali was always my friend, from the moment we met." Cavett tells this to director Robert S Bader. The documentary set to debut on HBO on February 11 narrates the story of Ali and his 50-year friendship with Cavett. That he hosted Ali 14 times on his late-night show is ample proof.
Randy Roberts, the biographer, aptly terms Ali as the "first product of the television age". The man could tame his opponents in the ring as well as have you in splits. There was a great element of thigh-slapping humor and playing his part in all this was Cavett. "He was much smarter than he let on," says Cavett in one of the scenes where the audience is treated to his poems in 'The Jerry Lewis Show' on December 7, 1963.
Viewers will find this immersive and thoroughly enjoyable. Also, watching an advance screener provided by HBO gave us every reason to revisit those tapes that capture Ali's meteoric career. The documentary is more than just picturing the life of the boxer. Rather, it is about the bond the two share and how it all began. Cavett wrote a few fun poems for Ali back in the days when he was still called Cassius Clay and he remembers the pugilist delivering those lines impeccably.
The 90-minute documentary has a few clips before it switches into a proper recollection and narration tale. Also coming in is the angle where Cavett believed in giving black celebrities an equal opportunity to voice their opinions.
'Godfather of Harlem' fans will take a liking as the documentary captures the time when Ali renounced his name, Cassius Clay. There are some parallels that could be drawn with 'The Trials of Muhammad Ali'. There are a few top talking points that could be highlighted — starting off with Ali's refusal to join the military to serve which led to him being suspended and his staunch belief in the nation of Islam.
Then there's the recollection of events where Cavett tells Bader about Ali's final days and his battle with Parkinson's. However, what matters the most is the documentary serving as an example to the absolute entertainment the tapes brought to the people. A charismatic boxer and a witty and brilliant host. It also shows how comfortable Ali was in front of the camera and how unafraid he was of talking about his thoughts and beliefs.
'Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes' is directed by Bader and written by Bader and Cavett.