film reviews

Hot Docs 2018: TRANSFORMER (USA 2018) ***1/2

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Transformer Poster
In the summer of 2015, former US Marine and world record weightlifter Matt “Kroc” Kroczaleski was publicly outed as being transgender. The reaction was universal: her sponsors abandoned her… See full summary »

Director:

Michael Del Monte

Writers:

Michael Del Monte, Paul Kemp (story editor)

Star:

Janae Marie Kroczaleski

TRANSFORMER, the true transgender story of a muscled power lifter undergoing a sex change operation offers an unique perspective on the transgendered community and how each transition is unique to the person transitioning.  Janae (aka Matt) Kroc was as masculine as one can be prior to her transition, a world record powerlifter renowned for her masculinity. When she transitioned, she struggled with remaining true to her passions as a powerlifter while wanting to become more feminine.  The film illustrates a lesson that transitioning does not mean leaving one person behind to become another – so audiences should be prepared to be taking for quite the ride.

The film also shows the sadness at people in the world who still stupid and are unacceptable of gays or people who are different in general.  A moving while disturbing segment has protesters during an LGTT march.  These people carry just awful and nasty holding signs like LGBT (Let God Burn Them) and HOMO Sex is Sin.  Well, Kroc has admitted earlier in the film that he is still attracted to females and not men.  After the segment when the camera then focuses on Kroc back in male clothes, one certainly gains a new respect for this man – one who is able to stand up for what he believes and to challenge all the unaccepting idiots in the world, who are the ones who should burn in hell.  Director has lifted this film that could have been a freak show turn into something more insightful.

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/233416373

 

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Film Review: YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE (UK/USA/France 2017) ****

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You Were Never Really Here Poster
Trailer

A traumatized veteran, unafraid of violence, tracks down missing girls for a living. When a job spins out of control, Joe’s nightmares overtake him as a conspiracy is uncovered leading to what may be his death trip or his awakening.

Director:

Lynne Ramsay

Writers:

Lynne Ramsay (screenplay by), Jonathan Ames (based on the book by)

Stars:

Joaquin Phoenix, Judith Roberts, Ekaterina Samsonov

 

Scottish director Lynne Ramsay has been praised as one of the best living directors.  She has made excellent films the best being RATCATCHER and the last one WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN.  She got into front page news when she did not show up on the first day of shooting of ANNE GOT A GUN, abandoning the project completely and causing the producers to sue.  In YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE, Ramsay is one of the producers which means she cannot walk out on herself.  She presented the unfinished version of the film last year at Cannes winning her Best Screenplay and Joaquin Phoenix Best Actor.  Totally deserving!  The film is short at 90 minutes, concise and a marvel!  This is a dramatic thriller written and directed by Lynne Ramsay, based on the novella of the same name by Jonathan Ames.

Joe (Phoenix), a combat veteran and former FBI agent with post-traumatic stress disorder, is a hired gun who rescues trafficked girls.  He cares for his elderly mother in his childhood home in New York City.  Joe has graphic flashbacks to his childhood and past in the military and FBI.  Director Ramsay loves flashbacks as evident in her previous films, and flashbacks allow her carte blanche to do whatever she wishes to shock the audience.

The trouble starts when returning home from a job, Joe is spotted by the son of Angel, the middleman between Joe and McCleary, his handler.  Joe meets with McCleary, and expresses his concerns about his safety potentially being compromised due to Angel’s son being aware of his address.  McCleary then informs Joe of his next job: a New York State Senator, Albert Votto, has offered a large sum of money to discreetly find and rescue his abducted daughter, Nina.   

The plot thickens with a lot of people getting violently killed.  This is director Ramsay’s first thriller though death, killing and the psychology of killing has been dealt with in her previous films particularly in WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN.  But she treats this film with dead seriousness.   Her fascination with themes of grief, guilt and death is present here as in her other films – a strength in her filmmaking.  Apparent is the trauma her protagonist undergoes in the film in his path towards redemption.  

Phoenix delivers a remarkable performance similar to the one he did in Paul Anderson’s INHERENT VICE.  That role appears to have prepped him for the role of Joe in this film.  Judith Roberts is also memorable playing Joe’s mother.

In WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN, Kevin, in the final scene tells his mother that he finally discovers the reason he murdered his schoolmates in the gym.  When asked what the reason is, Kevin remarks that he had forgotten.  YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE also contains a remarkable ending and a bright one (not to be revealed in this review.)  A remarkable ending for an even more remarkable film.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1APnf3Y_W8

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Film Review: THE RIDER (USA 2017) ***1/2

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The Rider Poster
Trailer

After suffering a near fatal head injury, a young cowboy undertakes a search for new identity and what it means to be a man in the heartland of America.

Director:

Chloé Zhao

Writer:

Chloé Zhao

Stars:

Brady Jandreau, Tim Jandreau, Lilly Jandreau

 

The film’s title THE RIDER tells it all – what Chinese director Chloe Zhao’s film is all about.  The film centres on a rodeo hopeful’s life after his dreams are dashed following a serious rodeo accident.

The audience sees the pain right at the very start when Brady Blackburn, a South Dakota cowboy (Brady Jandreau) manually takes off the medical staples from his wounds. The accident is seen from a video recording, the audience obviously spared the gore and blood.

Zhao emphasizes the claustrophobic life of Brady, despite having the open ranges.  He lives with his often drunk and gambling father and mentally challenged sister, Lilly (Lilly Jandreau).  His few friends provide him a drinking outlet but it is the rodeo that makes Brady, the man.  If a cowboy cannot ride, then what good is he?  These be Brady’s own words. With his injury his brain is sensitive and riding rodeo might be the end of him.

Zhao shows Brady’s outlets for his anger.  One is the breaking in of a wild horse, named Apollo.  It is sad that the horse has to eventually be euthanized as a result of a nasty accident.  In another outlet, Brady wrestles one of his young buddies, James but ends up unable to control his inner anger.

Brady Jandreau, a wrangler in real life does an ok acting job, but his riding and horse handling that are more important.  Zhao stays away from any romance in her story.

Zhao builds good characterizations.  The father is not a one sided cardboard has been.  Despite his constant arguments with his son, it is shown at the end that he understands Brady and his decisions.  Brady’s anguish, anger and decisions are also well displayed.  The horse training and rodeo segments are effectively shot and exciting enough.  Joshua James Richards captures the landscape of the open areas of the west, where horses run free.

For a female, Zhao captures the male world of male cowboys surprisingly well.  There are only few female characters like Lilly and the absent mother.  Female directors are fond of making their male characters cry on film.  Brady does burst into tears at his breaking point in the film.  Rather than showing his weakness, it shows his desperation.  He also has to work at a supermarket to support his family.  Like her previous feature SONGS MY BROTHERS TAUGHT ME, she blends in the real life of her character actors into the characters of her story.  This results in a sort of documentary but realistic feel in the film.

It is clear throughout THE RIDER that Zhao’s film is an artistic, well thought out process.  She does not resort to cheap sentiment.  There are few outbursts in confrontations.  Dialogue is simple and effective.  Zhao is fond of long slow takes to capture the mood of a segment.

THE RIDER premiered at Cannes Directors Fortnight Section to rave reviews. It is easy to see why.  Simple storytelling, a good human story and one dealing with nature makes this an excellent film.

Cannes Clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbhO6MkO78U

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Film Review: TRUTH OR DARE (USA 2018) ***

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Truth or Dare Poster
Trailer

A harmless game of Truth or Dare among friends turns deadly when someone — or something — begins to punish those who tell a lie or refuse the dare.

Director:

Jeff Wadlow

Writers:

Jillian Jacobs (screenplay by), Michael Reisz (screenplay by) | 3 more credits »

 Stars:

 Lucy Hale, Tyler Posey, Violett Beane
The film title is not Truth or Dare but BLUMHOUSE’S TRUTH OR DARE.  With reason!  The game played is a Blumhouse, the film horror company’s version of the game in which players will die a very violet death if they do not tell the truth or do a dare.
The premise of the game is simple enough but the script takes the audience into a much thicker plot.  College student Olivia (Lucy Hale) wishes to use her spring break to further her work with people.  She being the heroine of the film, has to be the one to be self sacrificing to do good for mankind.  Her partying best friend, Markie (Violett Beane) convinces her to go with the gang to Mexico instead as in her words: ‘the final spring break before life tears us apart.”
In Mexico, they stumble across a missionary ruin and coerced into playing Truth or Dare by a stranger, Carter (Landon Liboron).  When it is his turn to play, Carter reveals the real truth he is there with the group – to force them into playing with death involved.  Of course they disbelieve him, till the gang starts dropping dead one by one when they do not follow the rules.
The plot follows the predictable path though to the script (written by Michael Reisz
Jillian Jacobs, Chris Roach and Jeff Wadlow) has quite a few inspired twists.  The group or in this case, Olivia the heroine has to figure out the way to remove the curse and to halt the game.  The film’s ending is too ambitious for its own good an ends up being an unbelievable let-sown, judging from the response of the audience at the promo screening.
The film follows a few general rules of the typical horror film.  The corky self-centred assholes are the first to go.  All the deaths are gross enough, with the audience at the promo screening gasping aloud.  There is more character development in this film and when one of the victim dies, some of the audience is actually brought to tears.  This is a rarity in horror flicks – and a good thing.  The film also contains a brilliant anti-message.  Olivia is told off by her friend, Markie to stop thinking about others and to start thinking about herself (in order to survive).
The young actors are all believable enough as party animals brought to their senses.  The best actor of the lot is Canadian Hayden Szeto who brings his gay Canadian character, Brad to life.  He was last seen in EDGE OF SEVENTEEN.  One flaw in the plot is his character saying that he is studying in the States to be away from his father though his father turns up as a cop in the U.S. where he is studying at college.  Another is the absence of the characters’ parents except for Markie’s and Brad’s.  I have never known any Asian to be called Brad.
Blumhouse has made three box-office and critical successes with SPLIT, HAPPY DEATH DAY and the phenomenal GET OUT.  BLUMHOUSE’S TRUTH OR DARE seem to have got the lowest rating so far of the four films on Metacritic.  The reason is that the film has more story and character development than the average horror flick with no false alarms or cheap jump out of the seat tactics common to films of this genre.  Horror fans do not like their horror formula tampered with.  Still this Blumhouse film which cost $3.5 million to make is estimated to draw $15 million at the box-office which will make it as another successful Blumhouse film.

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Hot Docs 2018 Capsule Review: LAILA AT THE BRIDGE

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Laila at the Bridge Poster
Set against the backdrop of the drug war in Afghanistan, Laila at the Bridge is the story of an Afghan woman working against all odds to care for the thousands of men and women addicted to …See full summary »

Directors:

Elissa Sylvia Mirzaei, Gulistan Mirzaei

 

The bridge in Kabul, Afghanistan is a filthy and disgusting place.  Smelling of human faeces and vomit, this is the makeshift dwelling of hundreds of homeless Afghanistan drug addicts.  

As the difficult to watch (for reason of its material and harsh depiction of human hardships) film informs at the start, 90% of the world’s opium is grown in the country with more than 11% of the population addicted.  Laila is the Mother Teresa who brings the addicts home, feed, clothe and more important, try to get them clean and to stay clean. 

This is her story.  Laila is shown as a dedicated mother of sorts but not without faults.  She can be too forward, loud, and bossy, especially when trying to get government aid for her exploits.  The film shows two crucial scenes at the bridge, one with her distributing  limited food and the other searching through the rubbish for a convert.  The film ends on a note of hope with her possibly having a way to get funds for her project.  

The film is also made more alive by examining a few addicts in detail, one of whom is Laila’s brother who is presently clean and helping her, after 25 years of addiction.  A very eye-opening documentary set in a  country with a culture North Americans know very little about.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=it8INQaTcB0

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Film Review: FINDING YOUR FEET (UK 2017) ***

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Finding Your Feet Poster
Trailer

On the eve of retirement a middle class, judgmental snob discovers her husband has been having an affair with her best friend and is forced into exile with her bohemian sister who lives on an impoverished inner-city council estate.

Director:

Richard Loncraine

Writers:

Meg Leonard, Nick Moorcroft

Stars:

Timothy Spall, Joanna Lumley, Imelda Staunton

 

(Warning: This review contains a spoiler which is highlighted in bold italics at the end.  Skip it if you intend to watch the film.)

As the title of the film implies FINDING YOU FEET refers to finding ones footing in life with dancing helping along the way.

When the film opens Sandra Abbott (Imelda Staunton) is about to become a Lady, thanks to the success and fame of her husband, Mike (John Sessions).  They have enjoyed a good long marriage together till this party, where she catches him red handed kissing her friend in the dark.  She abandons him, distraught and shows up at the council flat of her bohemian sister.  No need to guess that she is then taught how to behave like a less haughty human being as well as to enjoy the simplicities of life, which includes attending the sister’s dancing class.  She also gives love a second chance, in the form of Charlie(Timothy Spall), who’s wife Lily (Sian Thomas) is suffering an advanced stage of Alzheimer’s at a nursing home.

Three great performances to be entertained here by Oscar Nominee Imelda Staunton (Mike Leigh’s VERA DRAKE), Timothy Spall and Celia Imrie .  These performances distract from the facts that the film is not really funny nor are there many funny parts, nor is the script particularly bright. But the charm of the actors come across quite effectively for the audience not to notice the film’s shortcomings.  Absolutely Fabulous’s Patsy (Joanna Lumley) lends her hand in the role of a five time divorcee offering advice for Sandra.  Lumley is the only real comedienne in the cast.  Staunton and Spall are known more for their serious comedies.  Director Loncraine has made comedies in the past as in Michael Pailin in THE MISSIONARY but also more serious films as RICHARD III and in one of my favourite films, BRIMSTONE AND TREACLE with a young Sting making his acting debut.

The dance performance supposedly shot at Piccadilly Circus is sufficient spirited.  London is shown in her Christmas splendour as Sandra ad Charlie take on the London lights during a romantic fling.  The two make a believable couple coming to terms with their own personal troubles.  It is this human feature of the script that makes the film work despite the script’s flaws.  The film obviously leads towards the typical happy Hollywood ending which is a real shame, since it is so manipulative and obvious as to what is going to happen.  (Spoiler alert:  But the last straw, almost unforgivable is the literal leap of faith Sandra takes to be with Charlie.)

The dance metaphor which reflects Sandra getting on back to her feet after her matrimonial disaster works quite well, though it can hardly not be noticeable.  Sandra gets back into the dance groove, together with her old cronies with a few solid but simple choreographed numbers to old tunes like Rockin’ Robin and newer numbers like La Freak.

FINDING YOUR FEET is an old folks Harlequin romance that goes through all the usual obstacles and predictability of finding true love lifted slightly by the presence of both Imelda Staunton and Timothy Spall.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-Cp6ba2Y0g

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Capsule Review Hot Docs 2018: CHEF FLYNN

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Chef Flynn Poster
Ten-year-old Flynn transforms his living room into a supper club using his classmates as line cooks. With sudden fame, Flynn outgrows his bedroom kitchen, and sets out to challenge the hierarchy of the culinary world.

Director:

Cameron Yates

Stars:

Flynn McGarry, Meg McGarry, Paris McGarry

 

Documentary CHEF FLYNN picks 10-year old Flynn as is subject when Flynn first transforms his living room into a supper club using his classmates as line cooks. With sudden fame, Flynn outgrows his bedroom kitchen, and sets out to challenge the hierarchy of the culinary world.  

Like most docs on a subject that runs out of material, it gets distracted with other issues such as, in this case, the mother’s filming obsession, Fynn’s relationship with his family (father and sister) and his new restaurant’s opening night.  But when the camera is on the young chef prodigy, it gets the most interesting.  To director Yates’ credit, he ties the other issues to Flynn’s culinary duties. 

 Flynn’s culinary creations look marvellous on screen though this fine dining experience may only be suited for the rich and wealthy.  Still, it is a rewarding experience to see a talented youth (seen through the ages of 10-15) experience both the highs of his talent and pains of growing up too quickly.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvaouhB0qzc

 

 

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Interview with Festival Director Frances-Anne Solomon (CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF))

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The CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF) celebrates the talents of established and emerging filmmakers of Caribbean heritage who practise their art across the Caribbean Diaspora worldwide – including Canada and the Caribbean, Europe, the Americas, Africa, China, India and the Middle East. CTFF presents a multi-ethnic mix of exciting and dynamic films that showcase diverse shared stories and cultures.

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    • Matthew Toffolo: What is your film festival succeeding at doing for filmmakers? 

    Frances-Anne Solomon: CaribbeanTales International Film Festival is the only annual Caribbean film festival in Canada. We focus on promoting filmmakers of colour and celebrating the talents of established and emerging filmmakers of Caribbean heritage worldwide. Over the past 13 years we have built an incredible community of filmmakers through not only our festival but our various support programs such as the CaribbeanTales Incubator that now has a 5 year production deal with Flow, our accelerators that take place around the world in places like south africa, belize and cuba , our short film challenges for emerging talent, our production slate, and our year-round screening series and partnerships. We love to watch our filmmaking community grow — and know that we have had a part in helping to build careers and talent.

    What would you expect to experience if you attend the festival this year (2018)? 

    Our festival theme this year is ‘Light It Up’. We are programming films that inspire change and push boundaries, films that are speaking to the changes we want to see in the world. It’s a call to action. A call to arms. A call that’s been ringing out for a long time and Caribbean filmmakers are answering that call in force. We’re asking them to focus their light on all the changes in the world, to showcase their vision of change and spread their message, to lead the way. The world can be a dark place, but we can look at that darkness and say ‘Light it Up.’ Our festival runs across 10 days and cinema-goers will have a chance to see a broad spectrum of films from around the region and the diaspora, with themes ranging from legacy and culture, women of colour creators, revolution, environment, LGBTQ plus many more.‬

    What are the qualifications for the selected films? 

    The director, producer, writer or lead character in the film needs to be be of Caribbean heritage. We accept feature-length films, short films or web-series and the project can be any genre, including documentary, fiction – drama, thriller, comedy, scifi/horror or animation. Filmmakers can submit through our website www.caribbeantalesfestival.com

    Do you think that some films really don’t get a fair shake from film festivals? And if so, why? 

    Programming is a complicated and difficult task, and yes often certain films may never be seen because they don’t fit into the program or the programmers aren’t in touch with the issues of various communities. However, the world is changing and we are thrilled to see more focus on filmmakers of colour, especially women. CaribbeanTales was founded and is run by women of color so this issue is close to our heart. We started the festival at a time when there was a need to focus on people of colour and we have been working steadily for 13 years to change the way festivals are programmed and what films get to be seen by a wide audience through not only our festival but our distribution platform www.caribbeantales-tv.com. 

    What motivates you and your team to do this festival? 

    It’s the absence of a platform for our work and realizing that the way to solve the problem was for us to create that platform ourselves and to show the work that we believe in. One year, someone approached me and suggested that since I had so much content they would work with us to set up a film festival. After that first festival experience, I thought, this could solve all of our problems – of visibility and access. We were making films and they were not being shown anywhere. So we created the platform and we solved our own problems. I like to think that we started a movement. It’s about being inspired by work that reflects different expressions of our reality.  

    How has your FilmFreeway submission process been? 

    As a programming team it has been wonderful, in that, our comments and thoughts are very visible and accessible. We aren’t necessarily finding an audience on Film Freeway but those who have submitted have noted that it has been a smooth process.

    Where do you see the festival by 2023? 

    Our festival has been blessed with an incredible, dedicated community of Caribbean diaspora, who attend regularly. What we’d like to see in the next few years is to expand our audience into the younger diaporia community both in Toronto and around the world. We are so inspired by the change that is occurring and we feel we have a voice in that. We’re hoping to partner with more top media and corporate sponsors who understand our mission. We’d also like to expand our Short Film Challenges so that we can provide enhanced funding and support to the film community and eventually create a feature-film fund for emerging filmmakers.

    What film have you seen the most times in your life? 

    The Piano by Jane Campion just blew my head right off. It’s an epic post-colonial female-driven story, just the kind of film I see myself making really. A heroic journey, in which the hero is a woman who traverses wild and challenging terrains and triumphs in the end. A mother daughter story in which each saves the life of the other. A complex tale. I loved how interior and quirky the story was. The only thing I’d change is of course the ethnicity of the central character – I seek to tells stories of women of color. But it was a great starting point for me in my own journey.

    In one sentence, what makes a great film? 

    For me a great film is one where  the audience can dive into the lush emotional world of memorable characters, and a central character who dreams and dares passionately. A great film is one that packs an unforgettable emotional punch. 

    How is the film scene in your city? 

    Toronto has a truly vibrant and engaged film community. There are so many outlets for filmmakers to connect with the film scene here, from screenings, workshops, panels and more year-round. In the last couple of years we have seen a dedication towards gender parity from the top down, which has really increased the amount of female filmmakers being seen and heard. There is a strong filmmaking community of colour as well, we have festivals dedicated to every country and ethnicity you can think of. We all interact with one another, creating a wonderful community of support. 

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    Interviewer Matthew Toffolo is currently the CEO of the WILDsound FEEDBACK Film & Writing Festival. The festival that showcases 20-50 screenplay and story readings performed by professional actors every single month. And the FEEDBACK Monthly Festival held in downtown Toronto, and Los Angeles at least 3 times a month. Go to http://www.wildsoundfestival.com for more information and to submit your work to the festival.

Film Review: BEIRUT (USA 2017) ***

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Beirut Poster
Caught in the crossfires of civil war, CIA operatives must send a former U.S. diplomat to negotiate for the life of a friend he left behind.

Director:

Brad Anderson

Writer:

Tony Gilroy

Stars:

Rosamund Pike, Jon Hamm, Mark Pellegrino

 

Set in the 1980s during the Lebanese Civil War, BEIRUT is a fictional action film centring on a former U.S. diplomat who returns to service in the city of Beirut in order to save a colleague who is held hostage by the group responsible for the death of his family.

Unlike films dealing with hostage situations like 7 DAYS IN ENTEBBE and ARGO, BEIRUT deals with the next best thing.  It is a fictional story based on a true event – the hostage taking during the Olympics in Munich.   While the lead is no super spy like James Bond, he is the next best thing, a diplomat that has revenge on his agenda, as in the Liam Neeson TAKEN films.  BEIRUT benefits from a script by Tony Gilroy who penned the BOURNE films and more important, also directed one BOURNE film and the excellent MICHAEL CLAYTON.  There are shades of MICHAEL CLAYTON in BEIRUT with the main character similar to the George Clooney character and a strong supporting female character here played by Rosamund Pike.  

The film opens in 1972 at a posh party thrown by  Mason Skiles (Jon Hamm), a U.S. diplomat living it up in Beirut with his wife Nadia (Leila Bekhti).   They have no children of their own, and so they adopt and treat 13-year-old orphan refugee Karim (Yoav Sadian Rosenberg) as family.  Karim serves hors d’oeuvres.  During a posh cocktail party, however, uninvited guests bring unwelcome news: Not quite so alone in the world as he’d pretended, little Karim has an older brother.  Things never go as well as planned – especially not in movies.  Mason is then informed that Karim is the brother of Abu Rajal (Hicham Ouraqa), a notorious Palestinian terrorist linked to the recent Summer Olympics massacre in Munich as well as other attacks.  Just as Mason is about to say, “I don’t believe it,” the party is stormed by gunmen under the orders of Rajal attempting to spring Karim.

To cut a long story short, Mason is sent home, takes to the drink but later asked to return to Beirut,  There he learns, that his friend Cal of the CIA (Mark Pellegrino) is held hostage by the now grown Karim.  Karim wants his brother Abu Rajal freed.

Despite the long story, it is an interesting one and one that allows a mild mannered man to resume his glory days and save the day or in this case, his best friend Cal.  The subplot between Mason an cultural attache Sandy Crowder (Pike) makes a good diversion.  The film feels like a mix between MICHAEL CLAYTON and the BOUNRE movies.  Morocco, where the film is shot stands for war-torn Beirut.

Unlike most action films where the heroes spurt out funny one-liners, the dialogue here is more subtle and at times a bit cynical, which suits the mood of the film.  Hamm makes a good reluctant hero.  

The film has had complaints of being racist.  The film’s trailer ended with voice-over from Mr. Hamm’s character: “2,000 years of revenge, vendetta, murder. Welcome to Beirut.”  It does not help too that Beirut looks nothing like the real Beirut since the film was shot in Morocco.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SagsqxiVStM

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Film Review: BORG/McENROE (Sweden/Denmark/Finland 2017) ***

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Borg vs McEnroe Poster
Trailer

The story of the 1980s tennis rivalry between the placid Björn Borg and the volatile John McEnroe.

Director:

Janus Metz

Writer:

Ronnie Sandahl

Stars:

Sverrir Gudnason, Shia LaBeouf, Stellan Skarsgård

 

BORG/McENROE is one of two tennis films that played at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival, the other one being BATTLE OF THE SEXES that had already opened.

The two films by inevitable comparison show vast differences in approach.  BORG/McENROE takes its subject of tennis very seriously capturing all the fear, all the glamour and all the stress each player faces of the matches, unlike the other film relying on comedy to stir its audience.  The results of the tennis matches are crucial for both films.  In BORG/McENROE, they are exciting and competently shot while the matches in the other film is laughable and boring.  The actors also here sport tennis bodies while Emma Stone is too skinny and Carell too bloated.

The best thing about the film are the filmed tennis matches.  The camera shows each player as they stride across the courts, their muscles often shown quivering in slow motion.  Those who are tennis aficionados will recall who won which game.  For the majority, one will definitely remember because of all the media frenzy that McEnroe beat Borg.  This is true but they did not play only one match.  So in the film, it will be unknown to many who would win the 1980 match depicted in the film.  (I play tennis and I got it wrong.)

Director Getz shows the punishment and pain each player goes through.  Though Borg is set as the stable reliable player the Swedes can count on, the film also shows Borg at his most vulnerable, buckling too under pressure.  On the other hand, McEnroe is shown as a player that strives on pressure and one that performs well on stress.  The film also shows more of Borg’s relationship with friends, coach and family then McEnroe, the reason likely being that the film is Scandinavian.

But the key to Borg/McEnroe is the story of the epic rivalry between Swedish tennis legend Björn Borg (Sverrir Gudnason) and his greatest adversary, the brash American John McEnroe (Shia LaBeouf).  The film devotes almost equal time to each player,  and shows them as two totally opposite human beings, despite the fact that both compete in tennis.  But the common thing is that both know that they have been pushed to the limit to get where they are.

Gudnason and LaBeouf deliver believable performances as the tennis stars.  LaBeouf probably played himself, the angry controversial person himself in real life.  Great performances elicited by Getz all around.

BORG/McENROE is what a tennis film should be.  It celebrates the game of tennis, delivers exciting matches and teaches the audience a thing or two about the game while offering some insight of what tennis professionals go through.

The film was chosen as the Opening Gala for the Toronto International Film Festival last year and garnered generally favoured reviews. A super watch for tennis fans, especially.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgfFdEOGUqE

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