I'm not a doctor, but I believe that man is breaking into a cold sweat.

A perfect complement to Leon Gast’s great boxing documentary, When We Were Kings, Soul Power chronicles the titanic 1974 fight’s companion music festival in Zaire, which coupled great African musicians with excellent African-American artists. Director Jeffrey Levy-Hinte tries to make some hay from the behind-the-scenes drama that occurs when the prizefight is delayed and the concert is briefly imperiled, but name me a huge music fest from that era that didn’t have logistical problems (Isle of Wight) or far worse (Altamont). The real story here is the performances (a pensive Bill Withers, an expansive Miriam Makeba, the ever-professional Spinners) and the racial pride that fueled the performances. The biggest stars of all, as expected, are Muhammad Ali on the microphone and James Brown on stage, both still in their primes. When Ali delivers his sermons on race in America and James Brown does his splits, Soul Power is powerful excitement.