Norman Mailer,
George Plimpton,
Spike Lee, Malik Bowens, and
Thomas Hauser were interviewed for the film in the 1990s. These interviews describe the historical importance of the fight, the
questionable ethics of locating the fight in Zaire and accepting funding from the brutal
dictator Mobutu Sese Seko, the fight itself, and, particularly, the interviewee's impressions of Ali. The interviews are accompanied by many news clips and photos to summarize Ali and Foreman's careers leading up to the Rumble. During the buildup to the fight, Ali is shown trash-talking Foreman and talking about his beliefs regarding
Africans and African-Americans in more private settings. He speaks of the inherent dignity of the native Africans and his hopes for African-Americans in the future. His relationship of mutual love with the people of Zaire is contrasted with Foreman's awkward and unsuccessful efforts to build his own popularity. Promoter
Don King is seen working on his first big promotion. Performers such as
James Brown,
B.B. King, and
The Spinners are seen performing at
Zaire 74, the "black
Woodstock"
soul music festival that was supposed to accompany the fight, but ended up preceding it by a month because Foreman was injured in training and the fight was delayed (the festival is more fully documented in the 2008 film
Soul Power). The film culminates with footage of much of the fight itself, interspersed with analysis of Ali's repeated use of the "right-hand lead" in the early rounds (a rarely used punch in professional boxing because it opens the boxer up for easy counterattacks, which Ali surmised would make it the punch for which Foreman was the least prepared) and his famous "
rope-a-dope" strategy. This technique entailed Ali taking heavy blows from Foreman over several rounds while using his quick reflexes and the ropes to lessen their impact, which wore out Foreman. Ali knocked out Foreman in the eighth round, regaining the championship taken from him seven years earlier for his refusal to be
drafted into the
United States Army during the
Vietnam War. A soundtrack album for the film was released in 1997. It features live festival performances, in addition to new music by
Zelma Davis, the duet "When We Were Kings" performed by
Brian McKnight and
Diana King, and "
Rumble in the Jungle", the final recording done by
The Fugees, in a collaboration with
A Tribe Called Quest,
Busta Rhymes, and
John Forté. ==Awards and recognition==