Release Date:
March 27, 2009
MPAA Rating:
R
Running Time:
90 min.
Suggested Smoking Method:
Crack Pipe... no offense Mike

Tyson
Reviewed by Tsunami

I admit to being a big Tyson fan before watching the documentary “Tyson.” I unfortunately was too young when he was in his prime, but I do remember when he got out of jail (boxing was still quasi relevant then). I remember vividly as my friends and I rooted for Tyson to beat the crap out of Holyfield on that now infamous night where he had a craving for some blackened ear. There was always something about this guy that fascinated me, I think as a child it was his ridiculous high pitched voice that won me over.

A lot of documentaries are pretty lame and leave my high mind drifting to faraway lands; “Tyson” had my attention throughout. The whole documentary was just Iron Mike telling his life story. Watching this movie stoned you feel like Tyson is your patient and you are his shrink. The main thing I like about Tyson is that he never comes off as remotely phony. The dude just doesn’t give a fuck and that’s evident in everything he says.

This story doesn’t follow the prototypical documentary guidelines, which is to present multiple sides of a subject. It is simply Tyson in his own words, which is all I wanted to hear; especially because I believed every word he said and I had no desire to hear the haters. When you admit to beating bitches, winning the world championship while suffering from gonorrhea from either a “prostitute or promiscuous young women (wrap that shit up Mike),” along with many other law breaking discretions it is much more believable when you deny an accusation. He denies ever raping Desiree Washington and I don’t know why but I believe him yo.

There’s no question about it, Tyson didn’t just smash faces… Some of his sexual exploits were pretty hilarious especially coming out of his mouth. A lot of people give Tyson shit that he blew through hundreds of millions of dollars, but he has a good reason for that. He never thought he’d live to be 40 and he needed all the “leeches sucking his blood," which made some sort of sense when you hear him tell it.

At the end of the movie I was amazed at how quickly Tyson’s entire life was covered. I felt like I had a better understanding of perhaps one of the most misunderstood athletes of all time. After all the bad shit he did in the past you have to respect the guy. He went from being a childhood criminal in Juvy, to the most feared boxer of all time on nothing but talent and determination. He made a lot of mistakes in his life, but I’m glad to say that unlike a lot of other celebrities, he doesn’t hide away from his past. Sure a lot of people will apologize for things they regret, but Mike is more honest in his reflective approach than most people are in their apologetic one. I respected the hell out of Tyson at after this movie because his almost nirvana like state of mind amazed me. Here was a guy who had it all and lost it all, but is happier than he’s ever been because he’s made peace with his own mental demons.