The 1973 Riggs-King match was quite a lot of fun when it happened; if it hadn't been appealing as such, it wouldn't have sold out and drawn 50 million viewers besides.
So why isn't this movie a comedy? Riggs and King, in real life, were so friendly that hers was one of the last voices he heard the day before he died in his comfortable home in Encinitas. In this film, Steve Carell does a skillful job as Riggs, but the character he's given is a gambling addict, an irresponsible husband and father, and a desperate self-promoter. That does not accurately reflect the Riggs in other profiles of him.
As for Billie Jean King, she was not only game for tennis, but game for the grandstanding "Battle of the Sexes" that Riggs rigged up. She was both amused and amusing, and her character is written as the intelligent, witty, determined person that King is-- except when it comes to her sexuality. Then it's gloom and tears, in spite of the fact that her girlfriend is played by Andrea Riseborough, who could almost turn me.
If there is one thing women need to do-- and this is not a small matter-- it is to capitalize on our wit and resilience. Billie Jean King's story is the real thing: a woman who actually effected change, and she did it with light-hearted flair, which is in short supply in this otherwise competent film.
So why isn't this movie a comedy? Riggs and King, in real life, were so friendly that hers was one of the last voices he heard the day before he died in his comfortable home in Encinitas. In this film, Steve Carell does a skillful job as Riggs, but the character he's given is a gambling addict, an irresponsible husband and father, and a desperate self-promoter. That does not accurately reflect the Riggs in other profiles of him.
As for Billie Jean King, she was not only game for tennis, but game for the grandstanding "Battle of the Sexes" that Riggs rigged up. She was both amused and amusing, and her character is written as the intelligent, witty, determined person that King is-- except when it comes to her sexuality. Then it's gloom and tears, in spite of the fact that her girlfriend is played by Andrea Riseborough, who could almost turn me.
If there is one thing women need to do-- and this is not a small matter-- it is to capitalize on our wit and resilience. Billie Jean King's story is the real thing: a woman who actually effected change, and she did it with light-hearted flair, which is in short supply in this otherwise competent film.