Phantom Punch

I saw this movie, and wondered why it was not released in theatres. It is a quite good movie, that is very thought provoking especially, concerning the circumstance surrounding Sonny Liston's death. The actor named Ving Rhames does a very good job and is fantastic in it. It amazes me, and I do not understand why the other reviewers are so negative, but if you like boxing and are a boxing history fan, this is a must see..... I thoroughly enjoyed it... And if you're a boxing fan, you probably will too... PS - Robert Townsend is a fine talent as both an actor and director... So watch it and don't be fooled by any negative reviews... :)

I've seen several movies about Muhammad Ali but I have forgotten everything I knew about Sonny Liston from those movies. Reading some of the IMDb comments tells me this movie might not be telling the whole story. In fact, the comments suggest this movie may be wrong about a lot of historical facts about a real person.

But forgetting all this, I thought this was quite a good movie. Ving Rhames gave an Oscar-worthy performance and made me believe there was more to Sonny Liston than the angry man the world believed he was. I actually didn't know anything about Liston, but once he became famous, it appeared the world hated him for defeating Floyd Patterson and being such a bad boy. But he really wasn't so bad, at least not here. Plenty of scenes show him as a gentle man trying to make a better life for himself. And as hard as mobsters try to get him to throw fights, he doesn't appear to want to.

True, he is shown getting violent because someone accuses Geraldine, a woman he genuinely loves, of being a mere hooker.

And he is unfaithful to Geraldine. But he really tries to make it up to her. And he doesn't hit her.

And Rhames doesn't give the only good performance. Stacey Dash shows intelligence and determination as the woman Liston loves. Rick Roberts is great as the prison priest who discovers Liston's tendency to get into fights could be used constructively. And the good father follows Liston's career on the outside as well, as he takes a regular church job. Nicholas Turturro does a great job as the man who seems to be in charge of Liston's career, but has to answer to higher authorities.

There is quite a lot of violence and threats of violence, and I don't mean just in the ring.

One very effective scene makes use of slow motion as well as sound editing (that's what I'll call it) that suggests Liston has been hit one too many times and things don't seem real.

Most of the music here is great, and why not? It was set in an era when music was music. Toward the end, rock and roll was taking over, and there are some signs of that here. But it's Vegas, baby! And Bridgette Wilson-Sampras is quite a singer. Very good-looking too. No wonder Liston was tempted.

The movie is not without its weaknesses. I never speculated on what was real and what wasn't, but Cassius Clay doesn't even look like Cassius Clay (though neither did Will Smith), and he hardly says a word. Clay was known for his mouth, and off in the distance we do get to hear "I am the greatest!". But Clay doesn't brag or use his colorful words. Not in this movie.

And I saw a 50-star flag. I've never seen a 48-star flag where the stars weren't in neat rows and columns, so that must be what I saw. It was still the 50s at the time.

Overall, this was a worthy effort. Unless you want to tell the truth.

If you want to see what the real Sonny was all about, watch HBO's documentary "Sonny Liston: The Mysterious Life and Death of a Champion". Its brilliant!! This movie...well not so good. Ving Rhames is great as usual. Problem is he may be a tad old for the role, plus he didn't have much to work with here. A lot of what we know about Sonny was historically inaccurate or missing. No harassment from Ali(a young Cassius Clay) before, or after the Patterson rematch. Ali (Clay) made Liston's life hell for over a year before their first fight. No scene detailing Sonny slapping Ali's face in a casino. Not even a mention of his first fight against Marty Marshall. Liston suffered a broken jaw in the fourth round before losing a close 8-round decision. But you wouldn't know it from this film. Sonny was no choirboy nice-guy for sure. But he deserves better than Phantom Punch.

Phantom Punch is directed by Robert Townsend and written by Ryan Combs. It traces the life and times of Sonny Liston, the World heavyweight boxing champion who over his career fought the likes of Muhammad Ali and Floyd Patterson. Townsend biopic traces Liston's career from 1950 to his death in 1971.

Ving Rhames, is perfectly cast as Charles L 'Sonny' Liston. Rhames gives a stellar performance depicting the boxer's tumultuous life, where dealing with the rampant racism of the day, the heavy hand of the mob, and the heavier hand of the law was part and parcel of the job. And touches on the controversy surrounding his mysterious death.

Oh how the Mighty have Fallen. Not Sonny Liston but Director Robert Townsend. The Once Promising Director who Helmed this Biopic of Heavyweight Champion Liston is Either Out of His Depth or couldn't Pull this Off and it seems like there wasn't much Effort and the Whole Thing Looks Cheap, Undeveloped, and Haphazard.

The Low-Budget is No Excuse. Much can be Made for Very Little with some Creativity and Depth of Concern. The Movie is so Muddled and Amateurish at Times that it is Knocked Down In the Opening and Never gets up. The Highlights and Lowlights of the Life of Sonny Liston are Never Explored with Compelling Cinema. It is Flat and Uninteresting and Considering the Enigmatic Liston's Private Life and His Powerful Presence in the Ring it is Mysteriously Boring.

The Phantom Punch that Cassius Clay (Ali) Threw in Their Second Fight, one of the most Controversial Knockouts in Boxing History and Ironically the Title of the Film is Hardly Examined, Explored, or for that Matter it is Glossed Over for some Unknown Reason. The Ending of Liston's Life is also Mysterious and the Mystery here is that, again it is so Rushed that it seems a Featherweight is at the Controls.

The Film isn't Awful, it is just a Mess. Considering the Material Available it is the Greatest of Concern as to why this Thing Turned Out so Ineffective. it should have been a No Brainer and it turns out to be a Non-Contender.