I live in Houston, George Foreman was born and raised in Houston. So I have a natural connection to his story, and this movie. Plus I am a few years older than Foreman, I remember the 1968 Olympics where as a teenager he won the Gold medal in boxing, defeating a highly favored Russian boxer. And walking around the ring afterwards holding the tiny USA flag in one hand. I also remember him from commercials selling the George Foreman Grill.
However I really didn't know anything about his upbringing in a rough neighborhood, Houston's Fifth Ward, his dropping out of high school, his joining the Job Corps for training, and how he got attracted to boxing in the first place. This movie is well-made and it covers all that and more.
It also shows that Foreman is a good example of a highly paid professional athlete who trusts another person to take care of his wealth, invest for him wisely, but doesn't take an interest in auditing his finances periodically. Poor money management is what led him to hawk his Foreman Grill and to return to prize fighting even after he became a preacher. He needed to pay the bills.
On a positive note, in 1999 he sold his interest in the Foreman Grill for $137 Million, so he came out of that pretty well. And the movie touches on the initial rivalry with Ali that eventually turned into a life-long friendship between the two.
George Foreman is an interesting fellow, this movie is worth watching. I saw it at home on DVD from my public library, my wife skipped because she is not a fan of boxing.
However I really didn't know anything about his upbringing in a rough neighborhood, Houston's Fifth Ward, his dropping out of high school, his joining the Job Corps for training, and how he got attracted to boxing in the first place. This movie is well-made and it covers all that and more.
It also shows that Foreman is a good example of a highly paid professional athlete who trusts another person to take care of his wealth, invest for him wisely, but doesn't take an interest in auditing his finances periodically. Poor money management is what led him to hawk his Foreman Grill and to return to prize fighting even after he became a preacher. He needed to pay the bills.
On a positive note, in 1999 he sold his interest in the Foreman Grill for $137 Million, so he came out of that pretty well. And the movie touches on the initial rivalry with Ali that eventually turned into a life-long friendship between the two.
George Foreman is an interesting fellow, this movie is worth watching. I saw it at home on DVD from my public library, my wife skipped because she is not a fan of boxing.