Team Khan

Co-directors Blair Macdonald and Oliver Clark train their lens on Amir Khan, a 28-year-old British WBA world light-welterweight boxer. The handsome, sharp-dressed athlete relies on a team that includes his father, uncle, and brother, all of whom accompany him to Las Vegas for his 2014 bout against Devon Alexander. After his win, Oscar De La Hoya proclaims Khan to be among the top three boxers in the world. Khan also triumphs against Chris Algieri, but afterward wonders if it isn’t time to start planning for retirement. In the wake of the 2004 Olympics, Khan felt like his childhood got fast-tracked. "I missed it all," he says, "because I was in the public eye." When he isn’t competing, Khan lives in Bolton with his Brooklyn-born wife and daughter. During the film, he also travels to Pakistan to visit his home village and to offer support after a deadly Taliban attack (here, Khan is treated like a rock star). Although he hopes to fight Floyd Mayweather, the latter retires before Khan gets the chance. Instead, he faces Mexico’s Canelo Álvarez in a match that does not go as planned. Before the fight, Khan quips that it could be the last for the two of them "if Donald Trump becomes President." In a very real sense, Khan’s team includes Muslims across the globe eager to see him reclaim his world champion status. The Álvarez fight would not turn out to be Khan’s last fight, but the filmmakers make it clear that he’s risking his health and possibly even his marriage if he continues. An interesting sports profile with larger sociopolitical overtones, this is recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)