Throughout When We Were Kings there is a constant duality between Muhammad Ali’s well favored embracement of African culture and George Foreman’s disgraceful contentment with staying an outsider. The film highlights the importance of African-Americans accepting and learning their African roots by showing us the good and bad of the famous “Rumble in the Jungle”. The film proves that an underdog such as Ali can win against a man larger and stronger by enforcing a home court advantage. We cheer for Ali because he is a “real person” and seeks a connection with the natives of Zaire unlike Foreman. Ali illustrates that embracing your “people” and heritage is winning and can overcome bad odds (Gast,
