Movie Review: Battle of the Sexes

Battle of the Sexes is a 2017 biopic about the famous tennis match of the same name between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs. It stars Emma Stone and Steve Carell, and was directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. King (Stone) is one of the top players in Women's tennis, but the ageing Riggs (Carell) claims he could beat any women at the sport. With the upcoming match looking to be one of the most important in the sport, the pressure is on for both of them.

With a movie like this, the characters are it's heart. Stone plays King with charm and vigour - she's really started to show her range in her last few films, and why she is known as one of the greatest actresses of her generation. Carell plays Riggs as someone who you might almost feel sorry for, so comedic that you can't take him seriously and with a surprising depth in how he interacts with his wife and youngest son. It's hinted - almost outright stated - in the film that the male chauvinist pig thing is an act for the cameras. The other female tennis players featured in the film are well-cast and work together well as an ensemble. It is pointed out in the film that even though they compete on the pitch, off the pitch they are supportive of one another. Honestly, I wish they could have had more screentime.

I have to dedicate some portion of this review to talk about King's relationship with who was in the film her hairdresser, Marilyn, since it is almost as important as the match itself. I am not the person to comment on whether it was good representation, however. I didn't know that King liked the same sex, and her work for LGBT rights. From what I understand, they largely embellished the relationship.

I can't quite put my finger on it - maybe it's just the technology and fashions of the time giving it this style - but the movie feels like a film from the 70's. Not just one that was set then, one that was made and shot then. Also, the staging of the tennis match makes it feel like a epic real-life tennis match with the boring bits cut out, where you don't know the outcome. I found myself wanting to jump up in my seat and cheer.

In fact, if this movie has a fault, it is the fact that the result of the match is both known to history and so obvious in the film that it can take some of the tension out of watching. But it still works as a "how we got here," to the point where the movie could have opened with news of King's victory.

I've talked before about how the circumstances in which you watch a movie can influence your perception of it, and this was the first movie I ever watched on my own at a cinema. I found that I could really get lost in the movie, and I wasn't worried about whether the person next to me was enjoying it.

I would recommend this movie to professional sports players, and aspiring professional sports players and tennis fans. However, I am not particularly a fan of any sport myself, so this is by no means the only groups this film might appeal to.