Tyson

TYSON

Aspect ratio: 1.33:1

Sound format: Stereo

Reverent - though scrupulously fair - account of the life and times of champion boxer Mike Tyson. Given his conviction on a rape charge, the film is careful not to portray him as hero or villain, but paints a warts-and-all portrait of his rise to fame, the pressures of success, and the people who shaped his destiny for good or bad. Constrained by time limits, the script gallops through a succession of relevant details, alighting briefly on significant events, culminating with Tyson's (temporary) downfall in 1995. Novices will be enlightened by the chronology, while boxing fans will be entertained by director Uli Edel's straight-arrow approach to the material. He portrays Tyson's life as a circus in which he was ultimately led astray by the circumstances of his own success. In fact, the script reserves most of its venom for Tyson's ex-wife Robin Givens, characterising her as an ungrateful gold-digger who took advantage of his naivety. Production values are uniformly solid and the cast is superb: Michael Jai White does a fair imitation of the title character; George C. Scott plays Tyson's mentor Cus D'Amato through acres of gritted teeth; and Paul Winfield was surely born to play Don King!

I'll be totally honest and say when Tyson beat Trevor Berbick to become the youngest world heavyweight champion I was mesmerised by this boxer . Lightning hand speed , power and someone who livened up the rather staid and fractured heavyweight division that was being left behind in a golden age of boxing that featured Leonard , Hagler , Hearns .Perhaps the most sympathetic thing about him was his tale of why he took up boxing , of the older kids beating him up and learning how to fight to merely survive the human jungle of New York's mean streets . This however turned out to be a fairy tale and the reality was Tyson learned boxing in a reform school where he was sent to having carried a series of street robberies and where he met Cus D'Amato who effectively adopted the thug . It was D'Amato who steered Tyson from crime . As well as being a mentor he was also something a spin doctor and the myth of " poor unfortunate victim of bullying " was just that - a myth but it makes for a nice story . After all a violent sociopath is no role model , especially and ironically in the world of boxing where an audience in general and an American audience in particular like their heroes to be good guys . When D'Amato died in 1985 not long before Tyson became world champion the only calming force in Tyson's life was gone and the boxer was heading for the rocks . Before his loss to Buster Douglas there were stories of street brawls outside the ring and his fights inside the ring were often farcical . The division lacked depth and his victories were either against fighters who were past their sell by date like Larry Holmes or against opponents who'd go out of their way to merely last the distance like Bonecrusher Smith or against opponents who'd be in awe and freeze such as Frank Bruno or Carl Williams . All this was before he was convicted of rape of course

To be fair this HBO bio-pic doesn't sugar coat the boxer as much as I remember . It does point out that Tyson the child was disturbingly street wise and was heavily involved in crime " Forty convictions ? Not even Al Capone had forty convictions ! " . It also makes a point that even in his teen years Tyson had a run in over a girl and that he contracted venereal disease . Not much of a role model is he ? but at least it doesn't paint him as a victim - well until later . Enter Paul Winfield who gives an all too realistic performance as Don King , a man so greedy and exploitative that he's a walking advert for Stalinism .Winfield has a lot of fun in the role and while you might say the performance is a little too obvious it'd be impossible to play King in a subtle manner as he's one of the most flamboyant , larger than life

characters in the world today . He goes out of his way to grasp the milk cow of Tyson in his talons . This is where things start falling apart to a degree . King exploits Tyson when he's at his most vulnerable but remember Tyson is a street smart thug who one would expect to know all about King . Heck I was a skinny Scottish teenager in the 1980s living on an obscure Island and I knew all about Don King so why not Tyson ? Total greed on Tyson's part wouldn't have everything to do with it ? No of course not . . It also insinuates that Tyson fell in love with the wrong woman - Robin Givens - and this contributed to his downfall . Well if you beat up your wife you can't blame her for walking out on you . Interesting this domestic abuse seems to be played down . Oh don't tell me she was just interested in Tyson's money . None of us are privy to the marriage between Givens and Tyson but if she was after Tyson's money wouldn't she have signed a pre nuptial agreement ? The amount of negative press against Givens from this period was disgraceful and it's not like Tyson had a glittering reputation where violence outside the ring was concerned .

Disgracefully when the rape case was done and dusted there were those commentators who were quite happy to fling more innuendo about the rape victim crying rape due to Tyson's wealth etc . The bio-pic does seem to suggest that we're supposed to make up our own mind if Tyson was guilty or not but the fact that a jury who sat in court all day everyday and listened to all the evidence from all sides found Tyson guilty of rape so there's no ambiguity involved - Tyson is a rapist and to suggest otherwise is a disgrace to both the victim and the rule of law

I do feel a bit sad at the former champion's situation, and how he was led astray by fame and Wealth. It is a point,that if we desire to achieve greatness,we have to earn it by work.The bars are made by the man,Himself;This confused and misunderstood athlete is only to blame, because He refuses to change His World,His Life.In the movie, we see his tough exterior is rough,He does not trust or rely on the guidance of others.He does not move forward when tough times arise(such as death of trainer,surrogate mom)

There is an old fable of a "Phoenix rising out of the ashes it dwells in".As a role model for children, celebrities must dwell on past mistakes and learn what Society requires of them.I believe how they achieve a reputable name, is based on the impressions of others.

I really enjoy this movie every time I watch it. I think everything in Tyson is just right. The actors are perfect, the music is perfect, the script is perfect, and the boxing scenes are perfect. I really liked how this movie starts out with Tyson as a young hood and shows him become a champion. I liked the scenes with Tyson and Cus D'Amato. I don't think they could've got anyone better to play Cus than George C. Scott. He looks exactly like him in this and his acting was great. Everyone was great here, but I think people should give a lot more credit to Michael Jai White. I don't know what everyone was looking for. When I watch the movie I forget it's an actor playing Mike Tyson. He doesn't look exactly like him, but he really comes across as him. Michael Jai White deserved a Golden Globe nomination for his performance.

This movie also tries to show you the other side of the stories you heard about Tyson. You probably heard about how Tyson got fresh with Teddy's niece, but this movie shows you that maybe Jamie was going after Mike. You probably heard stories from Robin Givens, but this movie shows how deceptive she really was and how she took advantage of Mike. You probably heard stories about Don King. This movie shows what a jerk he was. It doesn't show it as much as his biopic does, but you get a pretty good idea. You probably heard that Tyson was convicted of rape, but this movie leaves it up to you. It doesn't prosecute him.

I also liked how the movie shows how Mike Tyson isn't the heartless fiend you think he is. It shows that he could love. He loved his mother, he loved Cus D'Amato, he loved Jim Jacobs, he loved Robin Givens, and he loved pigeons. When he loses these people, his life starts to go downhill. The movie also shows Mike Tyson isn't made out of stone. He really was nervous at times and he wasn't always strong, especially when Cus died.

There's really nothing you could say is wrong with this movie. It does everything it's supposed to and pushes all the right buttons. I even thought the fight scenes were great. They were accurate and staged beautifully. My favorite part is when Tyson fights Michael Spinks. You want to know what Tyson was all about watch that fight.

This movie was great for an HBO movie, but I still can't understand why a movie hasn't been released to theaters about Mike Tyson. Maybe they'll make one years and years from now. The movie Ali was just a blown opportunity and a waste of time. If anyone does make a Mike Tyson movie it better not be like that.

I don't just like this movie because I'm a huge Mike Tyson fan. If you took a person that despised Mike Tyson and told them to watch this they would probably end up understanding him by the time the movie's over. It shows who Mike Tyson truly was. I stress the word "was" because the man you see today is not Mike Tyson. The Mike Tyson I saw in this movie would've never lost to Evander Holyfield, or any other fighter that beat him today. The man I saw would've never bit Holyfield's ear, or did any of the things he does today. The Mike Tyson I know is the one I saw beat every challenger in sight. The Mike Tyson I saw knocked out Michael Spinks in 90 seconds. That is the only one I will ever see.

This is a made-for-TV flick about Iron Mike. As people have already commented there are several memorable and incredible performances given here. Scott is, to my mind, one of, if not the greatest American actor who lived in the last century. Along with Jason Robards, Jack Lemmon, Jimmy Cagney, and today Kevin Spacey. (Yes, I said it, Kevin ranks right up there with the all-time champs. Don't believe me? See the movie he did with Annette Benning and Chris Cooper, then watch the Kaizer Soze flick. Unfortunately it is late and titles are escaping me.....)

So Scott steals the movie cursing and arguing and screaming his lungs out. By the way, after his death, it was rumored that D'Amato had forced Iron Mike to perform oral sex on him when Mike was a young boy under Cus's tutelage. True or not, it would certainly explain a lot....Paul Winfield as Don King is a great match. His performance is much more believable here than Ving Rhames's would be several years later on in "King". Tony LoBianco is good to as Jim Jacobs who for years managed Tyson. Jacobs incidentally was a jack-of-all-trades, winning the US Handball Championship for Men, having the greatest private collection of fight films ever collected, and being an expert on comic books. Talk about your Renaisannce guys. The only weak link is Michael Jai White. He doesn't really capture the caged-animal intensity of Iron Mike during his glory years. Tyson incidentally, should really consider making a film about his own life with actors of his choosing. Overall a good effort by some extremely talented actors.