Trailer Review: Tyson

Given his ongoing preoccupations with characters who are into drugs, crime, sexual aggressiveness, and stories that cross the lines of race and social class, it was only a matter of time until James Toback made a documentary about his pal and sometime collaborator Mike Tyson. And yet, Toback's most recent choice of subject matter seems to exemplify what's lacking in many of his films. In his best work- particularly Fingers and his screenplay for Karel Reisz's The Gambler- Toback depicts intelligent men who are being torn asunder by their baser impulses. Yet in lesser Toback films such as Black and White and Harvard Man, the more sensationalistic stuff (sex, drugs, crime) dominates the proceedings, leaving little room for Toback's philosophical or poetic side. I fear that, with Tyson in front of the camera, the same will happen with this latest film, and reviews from last year's festival scene haven't exactly laid this fear to rest. That said, I hope I'm wrong- Tyson is one of the most galvanizing sports figures of our time, and his life certainly warrants a cinematic treatment that takes a complex, gloves-off approach. But is Toback the director to give us that film? I have my doubts.