Siki (1992)

M'Barick (Louis) Fall of Senegal rose to international fame shortly after World War I as the first black boxing world champion in the middle heavyweight. In a sensational fight in 1922 he defeated the French idol Georges Carpentier. Barely three years later--now known as 'Battling Siki'--he violently met his fate in New York. The tragic end of a short but remarkable career. For almost seventy years, the legend of Siki still lives on on three continents. Different visions of a colorful existence: Siki as an invincible African hero; Siki as the intelligent 'savage' from the jungle; Siki as the dandy and womanizer. Using unique historical film and photo material, interviews with journalists and biographers and testimonies from living contemporaries, Niek Koppen paints an authentic picture of this mythical personality.