Movies like Facing Ali (2009)
The best movies like Facing Ali (2009) are Thrilla in Manila (2008), When We Were Kings (1996) and I Am Ali (2014). If Facing Ali hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedWhen We Were Kings (1996)7.6/10 from 264 votes
- NewestUntold: Jail Blazers (2026)Released 2026
Thrilla in Manila (2008)
On October 1, 1975, World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Muhammad Ali was in the ring with his arch rival Joe Frazier for the third time. This fight in the Philippines, which has been nicknamed "Thrilla in Manila," is considered one of the most dramatic boxing matches in history - in the words of the voice-over, "They hated each other." With the help of archive material and eyewitness accounts (including Imelda Marcos), this documentary not only reconstructs the match, but shows us what was happening behind the scenes as well.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
When We Were Kings (1996)
It's 1974. Muhammad Ali is 32 and thought by many to be past his prime. George Foreman is ten years younger and the heavyweight champion of the world. Promoter Don King wants to make a name for himself and offers both fighters five million dollars apiece to fight one another, and when they accept, King has only to come up with the money. He finds a willing backer in Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire, and the "Rumble in the Jungle" is set, including a musical festival featuring some of America's top black performers, like James Brown and B.B. King.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisI Am Ali (2014)
Unprecedented access to Muhammad Ali's personal archive of "audio journals" as well as interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends are used to tell the legend's life story.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChamps (2015)
A documentary about the sport of boxing, as seen through the eyes of champions Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield and Bernard Hopkins.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMuhammad and Larry (2009)
In October of 1980 Muhammad Ali was preparing to fight for an unprecedented fourth heavyweight title against his friend and former sparring partner Larry Holmes. To say that the great Ali was in the twilight of his career would be generous; most of his admiring fans, friends and fight scribes considered his bravado delusional. What was left for him to prove? In the weeks of training before the fight, documentarians Albert and David Maysles took an intimate look at Ali trying to convince the world and perhaps himself, that he was still “The Greatest.” At the same time, they documented the mild-mannered and undervalued champion Holmes as he confidently prepared to put an end to the career of a man for whom he had an abiding and deep affection
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
The Trials of Muhammad Ali (2013)
Brash boxer Cassius Clay burst into the American consciousness in the early 1960s, just ahead of the Civil Rights movement. His transformation into the spiritually enlightened heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali is legendary, but this religious awakening also led to a bitter legal battle with the U.S. government after he refused to serve in the Vietnam War. This film reveals the perfect storm of race, religion and politics that shaped one of the most recognizable figures in sports history.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Foreman (2017)
Cast as America’s Villain in the famed Rumble in the Jungle against Muhammad Ali, George Foreman lost one of the greatest fights in sports history. Immediately after the defeat, "Big George" fell into a spiral that made him abandon boxing and spend 10 years becoming an ordained minister following a near death experience. 20 years later on and into his 40’s, Foreman began an improbable climb back to the summit of world boxing becoming the heroic figure he’d always been destined to be, and writing one of the greatest underdog stories ever told.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Counterpunch (2017)
As boxing's popularity wanes, three fighters at different stages of their career make sacrifices to pursue their dreams of becoming champions.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCradle of Champions (2018)
Three extraordinary young people battle to change their lives through the three-month odyssey of the New York Daily News Golden Gloves - the biggest, oldest, most important amateur boxing tournament in the world.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (2004)
The story of Jack Johnson, the first African American Heavyweight boxing champion.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Baseball: The Tenth Inning (2010)
In an age of globalization and deregulation, a cataclysmic strike over money and power brings baseball to the brink; dazzlingly talented Latin players transform the sport; Cal Ripken becomes baseball's new Iron Man; and Ken Griffey, Jr. and Barry Bonds are simply dazzling. The Braves dominate the National League while the Yankees build a new dynasty. As home run totals soar, sluggers Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa smash one of the game's most hallowed records. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, players on every team must make life altering decisions about how far they are willing to go to succeed.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
McEnroe/Borg: Fire & Ice (2011)
The film chronicles their back stories, prolific tennis careers and spirited rivalry, which propelled tennis into the international sports headlines of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. In addition, McEnroe/Borg: Fire & Ice spotlights their post-tennis careers as the two men went their separate ways, with McEnroe launching a high-profile broadcasting career, while Borg chose a more private life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
On the Ropes (1999)
The story of three young boxers and their coach who is determined to guide them in a positive direction in and out of the ring.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
The Last Gladiators (2012)
In ice hockey, no one is tougher than the "goon". Those players have one mission: to protect the star players at any price. Exploring the violent world of hockey fights, Academy Award winner Alex Gibney ("Taxi to the Dark Side") looks at the world of the NHL enforcers and specifically the career of Chris "Knuckles" Nilan who helped the Montreal Canadiens win the Stanley Cup.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Macho: The Hector Camacho Story (2020)
A hard-hitting look at the rise, fall and untimely death of one of boxing's most colorful champions. Hector Camacho's dynamic speed, footwork and power made him a fighter to be reckoned with, but it was his flamboyance and showmanship that ushered in a new era in boxing. The film chronicles his epic battles inside the ring, his struggles with addiction outside of it and the mystery of the double homicide that claimed his life. It's an unflinching portrait of a fighter who transcended the sport but ultimately couldn't defeat his own demons.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
I Am Durán (2019)
The story of four-time World Champion Panamanian boxer Roberto Durán. A one man wrecking-ball who took on the world, transcended his sport and helped inspire a nation to rise up against its CIA funded dictator to achieve independence. From his days shining shoes on the street, to packing out arenas across the world, this is the story of modern Panama and its most celebrated child.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Chasing Tyson (2015)
Evander Holyfield knew he could never earn the respect he craved until he defeated Mike Tyson. When the two finally fought, the world witnessed not one, but two of the boxing's most memorable fights.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Icarus (2017)
While investigating the furtive world of illegal doping in sports, director Bryan Fogel connects with renegade Russian scientist Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov—a pillar of his country's "anti-doping" program. Over dozens of Skype calls, urine samples, and badly administered hormone injections, Fogel and Rodchenkov grow closer despite shocking allegations that place Rodchenkov at the center of Russia's state-sponsored Olympic doping program.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStop at Nothing: The Lance Armstrong Story (2014)
A portrait of the man behind the greatest fraud in sporting history. Lance Armstrong enriched himself by cheating his fans, his sport and the truth. But the former friends whose lives and careers he destroyed would finally bring him down.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKlitschko (2011)
Klitschko tells the captivating story of the boxing worlds most famous brothers: Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko. From the socialist drill of their childhood in the Ukraine, and their first successes as amateurs, to their move to Germany and subsequent rise as international stars on the verge of holding the championship titles of all five boxing federations (Wladimir secured this with his unanimous World Boxing Association win against David Haye on July 2nd, 2011). Along the way they experience defeats and setbacks, low points and triumphant comebacks as well as conflicts with each other. Exciting conversations with companions and opponents, including the very first with the Klitschkos parents, give insight into their personal lives, plus never-before-seen footage of the draining preparations for a fight, and the spectacular boxing matches. Director Sebastian Dehnhardt composes an intimate and fascinating portrait of two exceptional athletes who are, before all else, brothers.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTyson (2008)
Director James Toback takes an unflinching, uncompromising look at the life of Mike Tyson--almost solely from the perspective of the man himself. TYSON alternates between the controversial boxer addressing the camera and shots of the champion's fights to create an arresting picture of the man.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUndefeated (2011)
Set against the backdrop of a high school football season, Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin’s documentary UNDEFEATED is an intimate chronicle of three underprivileged student-athletes from inner-city Memphis and the volunteer coach trying to help them beat the odds on and off the field. For players and coaches alike, the season will be not only about winning games — it will be about how they grapple with the unforeseeable events that are part of football and part of life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUntold: Jail Blazers (2026)
Volatile players. Criminal charges. National headlines. Portland's championship-caliber NBA team implodes spectacularly in this unflinching documentary.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Crips and Bloods: Made in America (2009)
With a first-person look at the notorious Crips and Bloods, this film examines the conditions that have lead to decades of devastating gang violence among young African Americans growing up in South Los Angeles.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Unbeatable Bruce Lee (2001)
A look at the life of superstar Bruce Lee.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Night Will Fall (2014)
When Allied forces liberated the Nazi concentration camps in 1944-45, their terrible discoveries were recorded by army and newsreel cameramen, revealing for the first time the full horror of what had happened. Making use of British, Soviet and American footage, the Ministry of Information’s Sidney Bernstein (later founder of Granada Television) aimed to create a documentary that would provide lasting, undeniable evidence of the Nazis’ unspeakable crimes. He commissioned a wealth of British talent, including editor Stewart McAllister, writer and future cabinet minister Richard Crossman – and, as treatment advisor, his friend Alfred Hitchcock. Yet, despite initial support from the British and US Governments, the film was shelved, and only now, 70 years on, has it been restored and completed by Imperial War Museums under its original title "German Concentration Camps Factual Survey".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press (2017)
The courtroom and publicity battles between the superstar wrestler and the notorious website explode in a sensational trial all about the limits of the First Amendment and the new no holds barred nature of celebrity life in an internet dominated society.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTony Hawk: Until the Wheels Fall Off (2022)
A wide-ranging, definitive look at Hawk’s life and iconic career, and his relationship with the sport with which he’s been synonymous for decades, featuring unprecedented access, never-before-seen footage, and interviews with Hawk and prominent figures in the sport including Stacy Peralta, Rodney Mullen, Mike McGill, Lance Mountain, Steve Caballero, Neil Blender, Andy MacDonald, Duane Peters, Sean Mortimer, and Christian Hosoi.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMatangi / Maya / M.I.A. (2018)
Drawn from a never before seen cache of personal footage spanning decades, this is an intimate portrait of the Sri Lankan artist and musician who continues to shatter conventions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)
Documentary about legendary Paramount producer Robert Evans, based on his famous 1994 autobiography.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Facing Ali?
The closest matches to Facing Ali are Thrilla in Manila (2008), When We Were Kings (1996) and I Am Ali (2014). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Facing Ali?
People who watched Facing Ali most often go on to Thrilla in Manila (2008), When We Were Kings (1996) and I Am Ali (2014).
What is the highest-rated movie like Facing Ali?
When We Were Kings (1996), rated 7.6/10 by 264 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Facing Ali?
Untold: Jail Blazers (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Facing Ali?
Yes: Thrilla in Manila (2008), When We Were Kings (1996) and I Am Ali (2014).
How are movies similar to Facing Ali chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Facing Ali, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.