King Richard

A crowd pleasing sports biopic by Reinaldo Marcus Green about the little known man behind the two greatest female tennis players of all times. The dramatic irony that Venus and Serena Williams will eventually be the GOATs also helped to propel the screenplay by Zach Baylin especially as their father appeared so entirely unconventional and erratic.

Will Smith, in the title role, gave a fully inhabited performance that was possibly his best in his career, and that will surely careen him to the front of the Best Actor race. However, it was really Aunjanue Ellis who was the unsung hero/star of the film and story. She held the edges of the film together and melded the family with the man. Also, she was so fascinating to watch. The two girls playing Venus and Serena Williams were also equally compelling and seemed to embody their grace and ferocity.

The movie ran slightly long at 145 minutes but the tennis matches were exciting and the family drama done just right for the necessary cinematic pathos and dramatics, hence the length was not often felt. The score by Kris Bowers was also effective in moving the narrative forward, stringing the tension and stirring the emotions during the more dialogue-free moments. That too helped the film to not feel too draggy.

But, the biggest complaint of the film is that, even though it was ostensibly about Richard Williams, an overbearing, eccentric and unconventional coach/father, it ended up belittling the inherent greatness and fortitude of the Williams sisters whilst lifting their father up who was portrayed without any major blemishes or personal faults (alluded to but never really touched on). This ended up making the film a feel good crowd pleaser with no real character depth.

This was a great contrast to Jane Campion’s “Power of the Dog” which was a slow burning, emotionally dense film. Similarly, Smith had the much showier role whereas Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance was a lot quieter but more nuanced.

“King Richards” has the legs for a couple of Oscar nominations, in particular Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Song (Beyoncé!) and Best Screenplay. Hopefully, also Best Supporting Actress for Ellis.