Battle of the Sexes (2017)

It's one of the most highly watched sporting event of all time, the "Battle of the Sexes", tells the true story of Women's Tennis champion, Billie Jean King and her male rival, 55-year old Bobby Riggs. This film is an absolute inspiring epic of determination and resilience. This film does however, include one major setback. It's the story of King's lesbian affiar against her own husband. Other than that I'd say that this film is one of the years best true-story films.

Directors of Little Miss Sunshine, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris helm this tale. It's so gripping in this sense of the sport. The time this film is centered is when the real "BOTS" occurred in the 1970's and we see as viewers how it would've been. Faris and Dayton make it so real (again) in 2017 that you feel like you are there watching it in real time.

Emma Stone and Steve Carrell duke it out on the court as the dynamic duo. Stone's portrayal of King is so graceful and beautiful while Carrell's take on Riggs is aggressive and obnoxious. The two make some of the best performances to date. Despite  thinking "La La Land" is still Stones best. Close second for this one? This is a first for Carrell.

Nicholas Britell serves up a score that is wonderfully peaceful and is stable with the film and all that surrounds it.

In 1973, the country was taken by awe with the charm of Billie Jean King. They stood with her as she and her teammates and associates close to her fought for an equal chance in this sport she loved so much. 45 years later, this film chronicles the hard fought and inspiring story of courage, determination and grace. Despite the sexual storyline and sequences, "Battle of the Sexes" is charming and is a memorable film.

Rate: B 

Directors: Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris 

Starring: Emma Stone and Steve Carrell

MPAA Rating: PG-13 -(for some sexual content and partial nudity)

Runtime: 2 Hours 

Synopsis: The electrifying 1973 tennis match between World number one Billie Jean King and ex-champ and serial hustler Bobby Riggs was billed as THE BATTLE OF THE SEXES and became the most watched televised sports event of all time. The match caught the zeitgeist and sparked a global conversation on gender equality, spurring on the feminist movement. Trapped in the media glare, King and Riggs were on opposites sides of a binary argument, but off-court each was fighting more personal and complex battles. With a supportive husband urging her to fight the Establishment for equal pay, the fiercely private King was also struggling to come to terms with her own sexuality, while Riggs gambled his legacy and reputation in a bid to relive the glories of his past. Together, Billie and Bobby served up a cultural spectacle that resonated far beyond the tennis courts and animated the discussions between men and women in bedrooms and boardrooms around the world. 

I,Tonya (2017)

Once hailed as the world's best ice-skater, Tonya Harding, most infamous for her outrageous behavior and the attack on Nancy Kerrigan. This film laments that drama and the beginnings to one of sports most disgraced figures. This fillm has the format of a documentary, but, is not a documentary, in a sense it is, but it has dialogue and the action to keep the film going. This film is one helluva ride, one of the years most insane experiences.

Craig Gillispie, dives right in the action. What is thrilling about what he does, is the overall sense of drama and seriousness that comes with this crazy, real story. Star Margot Robbie is absolutely sensational.

She's crazy and broken yet whole. Robbie plays Harding in a way that is almost too real. Playing her abusive mother, is Allison Janney. Janney plays Harding's mother in an amazing way. You almost want to feel sorry for her daughhter. She may as well be played in a more chaotic way then her daughter.

 This film has so much heart and drama that it's almost too dramatic. I guess that's the case for the events surrounding this film. It shows that people will go to the lowest of lows to acheive greatness. Even if that means bashing in your competitor, best friends knee for success.

This film is crazy exciting. It's dramatic. It's non-stop agression. The film throughout is an enjoyable work of a dark tale.


Rate: B

Director: Craig Gillispie 

Starring: Margot Robbie, Allison Janney and Sebastian Stan 

MPAA Rating: R-(for  pervasive language, violence, and some sexual content/nudity)

Runtime: 2 Hours 

Synopsis: Based on the unbelievable, but true events, I, TONYA is a darkly comedic tale of American figure skater, Tonya Harding, and one of the most sensational scandals in sports history. Though Harding was the first American woman to complete a triple axel in competition, her legacy was forever defined by her association with an infamous, ill-conceived, and even more poorly executed attack on fellow Olympic competitor Nancy Kerrigan. Featuring an iconic turn by Margot Robbie as the fiery Harding, a mustachioed Sebastian Stan as her impetuous ex-husband Jeff Gillooly, a tour-de-force performance from Allison Janney as her acid-tongued mother, LaVona Golden, and an original screenplay by Steven Rogers, Craig Gillespie's I, TONYA is an absurd, irreverent, and piercing portrayal of Harding's life and career in all of its unchecked--and checkered--glory.