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Universal acclaim - based on 28 Critics What's this?

User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 26 Ratings

  • Starring: Mike Tyson
  • Summary: Tyson is acclaimed indie director James Toback's stylistically inventive portrait of a mesmerizing Mike Tyson. Toback allows Tyson to reveal himself without inhibition and with eloquence and a pervasive vulnerability. Through a mixture of original interviews and archival footage and photographs, a
    startlingly complex, fully-rounded human being emerges. The film ranges from Tyson’s earliest memories of growing up on the mean streets of Brooklyn through his entry into the world of boxing, to his roller coaster ride in the fun house of worldwide fame and fortunes won and lost. It is the story of a legendary and uniquely controversial international athletic icon, a figure conjuring radical questions of race and class. In its depiction of a man rising from the most debased circumstances to unlimited heights, destroyed by his own hubris, Tyson emerges as a modern day version of classic Greek tragedy. (Sony Classics)
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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 28
  2. Negative: 0 out of 28
  1. 100
    A documentary with no pretense of objectivity. Here is Mike Tyson's story in his own words, and it is surprisingly persuasive.
  2. Reviewed by: Whitney Borup
    80
    If you’re not really interested in Mike Tyson as a boxer and a person, the film doesn't give you much to go on. This is a movie called Tyson and it is about Mike Tyson – and nothing else.
  3. It's a sympathetic portrait of a complex man driven by an anger that still bubbles beneath the surface.
  4. Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    60
    It's a movie that's thought-provoking without being intelligent and candid without being truthful. The same aesthetic choices that Toback seems convinced will set his documentary apart are also what diminishes its credibility.

See all 28 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 15
  2. Negative: 0 out of 15
  1. MikeD
    10
    Excellent documentary on Mike Tyson. Very engaging and will keep you glued to the movie. This movie humanizes a man that has been misunderstood by the public since Day 1. Collapse
  2. John
    10
    I saw this movie months ago. I re-lived the joys of a dominant boxer, and humiliation of a broken man I felt the heat break, and saw the train wreck. You are mesmerized by his accounts of story telling. The tale seemed to end too-soon, especially with the recent passing of his young daughter, and marriage a few days later you have to wonder, what he was feeling and thinking, but not feel suprised at all. Expand
  3. It was an interesting movie and it did a good job giving us insight on one of the greatest boxers of all time. Tyson is definently worth watching if you are a fan of Mike Tyson or boxing in general. Expand
  4. JayH.
    4
    It's certainly a well crafted documentary and has excellent use of past footage. But bottom line is I was completely bored. I have no interest in Mike Tyson, I could not understand some of what he was saying in his interviews since his English consists primarily of heavy accented mumbling. It does delve into his persona, revealing an unexpected side of him, but I still couldn't care less about him. Expand

See all 15 User Reviews

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