Battle of the Sexes (2017)

In the sporting world, most women unfortunately get the short end of the deal. Women have shown that they are just as athletic and strong as any man. It all comes down to biology and that whoever posses the greater ability is going to triumph. It can be men, but women just have enough chance. Sports in no different, but that environment has been a male dominated area for a long time. From the early days of the Ancient Greek Olympic games to the modern NFL, the doors were open to all men, but women have always been led to their own segregated event, or even told not to try.

The second half of the twentieth century gave in to the rise of feminism as society further accepted the role the women would play. The workforce, science, and even politics would see their fair share of women pioneers, but when it came to sports, this was still seen as a mans game. In the 1970s, a group of women athletes tried to change things by not only starting their own tennis organization, but helped set up a match to prove their ability to equal the men. This is all done in Battle of the Sexes.

Tennis star Billie Jean King (played by Emma Stone) has made a big name for herself, having won the Grand Slam Championships along with the US Open and Wimbledon, and all by the age of twenty-nine. Though despite her name, she finds out that she and every other female tennis athlete were making thousands less the men, all because of their gender. She asks for an equal pay from the executive director of the Association of Tennis Professionals Jack Kramer (played by Bill Pullman) but is denied. In defiance, she and several other women tennis players quit the circuit to start their own series of tournaments.

Meanwhile, former tennis star Bobby Riggs (played by Steve Carell) is dealing with his compulsive gambling and still seeks attention from the media. To boast his image and the sport of tennis, he pitches to Billie Jean King an exhibition match where the two would play, and "show why men are better athletes". Though aware it's a publicity stunt, Billie turns him down. In 1973, Billie is again pitched, but this time accepts for the sake of her fellow athletes. At the same time however, she is going through personal troubles as she begins an affair with her hairdresser Marilyn (played by Andrea Riseborough).

Given a lot of the controversial political trouble that the U.S. has been going through, Battle of the Sexes seems to be made at the right time. A tennis match between two different ideologies seems to summarize a lot of the thoughts and concerns people are having with the future. I'd say that overall, not all of the game was played right. What I mean is that while the movie as a whole promises a fair share, the story seems to be one sided with Billie Jean King.

Both Emma Stone and Steve Carell play their characters fine enough. I can see why Emma Stone would be attracted to this part after winning her Oscar for La La Land; it shows how much a personal issue could affect an athlete's mental game. She is interesting and you do want her to see her prevail her cause. Steve Carell may seem to going back to comedic roots that could be seen as hammy, but understand that Bobby Riggs had a large personality that would require a Steve Carrel. I just wished the movie would have given us more time to explore that part of his character.

Like the title of this movie, everything leads up to the match. The problem is that while I like the events that lead us there, the movie doesn't seem to be interest

Fmovies: An appalling poor film with very clumsy political agendas which are about as subtle as a brick to the face. Worst of all there is an interesting story here but the creators have got so distracted by their ill-informed left wing agendas that the plot went by the way-side. Terrible script, some very poor acting, cheap looking sets and costume which fail to take you to the 70s. At the end of the day this is just more inaccurate left wing rubbish telling you that you are oppressed and must overcome the evil patriarchy. I'm glad this movie lost half of its ridiculous $25mil budget, it deserves to crash and burn.

A man and a woman take the stage here in 1972; the first, Billie Jean King, wins a tennis championship after a blurry match opens the titles; the second, Bobby Riggs, abandons his own family to gamble, often through his own tennis rounds. Right away, the men state how women are less publicly prevalent in tennis as men, meaning they get paid less as well. Sound familiar?

Battle of the Sexes follows much truer to history than you may think —allowing the real Billie Jean to oversee the production process proves the clear effort made to create a strong 21st century female role model. In the end, a fair point comes across: we need to reconsider our gamble in life.

The screenwriter, Simon Beaufoy (127 Hours, Slumdog Millionaire) still has potential for another future masterpiece based on his new display of well-crafted dialogue, as his style here enables each individual to realistically talk around their lies in a clever fashion. You can sense the depth behind these conflicted words, as only whatever matters to everyone's true values gets talked about.

The cast too expresses a strong desire to communicate the message about women empowerment, as most of them put in the best they could give. Oscar winner Emma Stone (Birdman, La La Land) portrays Billie Jean King with confidence to match her preparation for the role. Steve Carell (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Foxcatcher) portrays Billie Jean's ultimate rival with a considerable hardness that proves the comedian's effectiveness at drama. But I most enjoyed one of the smaller roles, Natalie Morales, who plays Billie Jean's stuck-up authoritative agent. Unfortunately, some of the male actors destroyed the perfect performance streak, particularly Austin Stowell, who plays Billie Jean's husband, and Alan Cumming, who plays a stereotypical British assistant thrown in mostly for comic relief. So sadly, not everyone in the cast and crew was truly passionate about its message of gender superiority.

In fact, almost nobody of redeemable quality supports the message's potential positive value. In essence, we don't even meet Billie Jean's husband until the midway point, which ends up feeling extremely joyless since beforehand, we see her sexual attraction toward her lesbian hairdresser come out in a moment of embracing and unzipping in a dark, steamy motel room. At this rate, why would I want to see an unfaithful wife succeed in her desire for fame and fortune?

As for Bobby, he appears to be nothing besides a depiction of the era's public mindset—an unmotivated woman hater. The balance in telling his story all throughout the feature is barely even there, as editor Pamela Martin (The Fighter, Little Miss Sunshine) leaves too long stretches of time away from Bobby's subplot. Even his climactic tennis match against the famed female star lacks any tension on his behalf, since no details are learned about what tennis means to either combatant.

The directorial appearance in particular lacks any artistic quality, from Emma Stone's fake black wig to needing to play "Where's Waldo" on the screen. What do I mean by that? Well, the two directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine) unintentionally make you search harder than necessary to find the character talking. Their lack of screen control plays its greatest toll in the end, when the legendary match is viewed from far away into the audience bleachers, consequently ruining the intimacy of tennis. The cinematographer, Linus Sandgren, ju

Battle of the Sexes fmovies. There may have been some slight deviations from the real events in part ...however, Carell does a fine job of recreating the 1-man flying circus that was Bobby Riggs and Emma Stone provides a fine performance as one of the most influential Americans of the last century. The history is well worth seeing again. One can only imagine the immense pressure on King at a time when women were paid a mere pittance in professional tennis compared to men regardless of the equality of ticket sales for men's and women's matches.. King took on an iconic institution ...organized ... and prevailed. She refused to be bullied and intimidated by USLTA (now USTA) overlord, Jack Kramer and anyone else who opposed equality.

For those who were intending to see a film entirely about one of the major sporting events in the last century...one tennis match watched by 90 million worldwide viewers in the US and 36 countries ....perhaps they would have preferred to see more about the wheeling and dealing that led to the epic in the Houston Astrodome and less about her personal relationships and coming to terms with her sexuality. Nonetheless, coping with all these pressures in the time period only added to the stature of Billie Jean King. Most other humans would have collapsed under the pressure. After all, Riggs had just beaten the world's #1 woman player in May quite easily, 6-2, 6-1. But King won the high-pressure match in 3 sets. And continued the battle for equality for all Americans. in Bobby Riggs defense, it was all an act for him. He loved women and actually he and Billie became good friends following the match until his death in 1995. For whatever complaints critics may have re the direction or writing etc...the telling of the story of this battle for economic and social justice...and for new audiences to gain awareness of what occurred in the 1970s about an event that captured the nation and took it by storm....well worth it!

Here's a good test of someone's age.... ask the question "Billie-Jean?". Millennials will probably come back with "Huh?"; those in their 30's or 40's might come back with "Michael Jackson!"; those older than that will probably reply "King!".

"Battle of the Sexes" tells the true-life story of US tennis star Billie-Jean King (Emma Stone, "La La Land"). The year is 1973 and Billie-Jean is riding high as the Number 1 female tennis player. She is a feminist; she is married (to hunk Larry - no not that one - King played by Austin Stowell ("Whiplash", "Bridge of Spies")); ... and she is also attracted to women, not something she has yet acted on. That all changes when her path crosses with LA-hairdresser Marilyn (Andrea Riseborough, "Birdman", "Oblivion").

But this is a side story: the main event is a bet made by aging ex-star Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell, "Foxcatcher"); that - even at his age - as a man he could beat the leading female tennis player of the day.

The film is gloriously retro, starting with the old-school 20th Century Fox production logo. And it contains breathtakingly sexist dialogue by writer Simon Beaufoy ("Everest", "The Full Monty"). Surely men couldn't have been so crass and outrageous in the 70's? Sorry ladies, but the answer is yes, and the film is testament to how far women's rights have come in 50 years.

This is a tour de force in acting from both Emma Stone and Steve Carell, particularly the latter: a scene where Carell tries to re-engage with his estranged wife (Elisabeth Shue, "Leaving Las Vegas") is both nuanced and heart-breaking. Stone's performance is also praiseworthy, although it feels slightly less so as it is an impersonation of a (relatively) well-known figure: this is extremely well-studied though, right down to her strutting walk around the court which I had both forgotten and was immediately again reminded of.

One of my favourite movie awards are the Screen Actor's Guild (SAG) "cast" awards that celebrate ensemble performances, and here is a film that should have been nominated (it unfortunately wasn't). Andrea Riseborough; Natalie Morales (as fellow tennis player Rosie Casals); comedian Sarah Silverman ("A Million Ways to Die in the West"), almost unrecognisable as the brash publicist Gladys Heldman; Bill Pullman as LTA head Jack Kramer; the great Alan Cumming ("The Good Wife") as the team's flamboyant, gay, costume designer; Lewis Pullman as Riggs's son Larry; Jessica McNamee (magnetic eyes!) as King's Australian tennis nemesis Margaret Court. All bounce off the leads, and each other, just beautifully.

Cinematography by Linus Sandgren ("La La Land") and editing by Pamela Martin ("Little Miss Sunshine") unite to deliver one of the most sexually charged haircuts you are ever likely to see on the screen. For those put off by this aspect of the storyline, the "girl-on-girl action" is pretty tastefully done and not overly graphic: it's mostly "first-base" stuff rather than "third-base"!

Directed with panache by the co-directors of the 2006 smash "Little Miss Sunshine" - Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris - all in all it's a delight, especially for older audiences who will get a blast of nostalgia from days when sports were still played at a slightly more leisur

A light, fluffy, sweet treat, Battle of the Sexes is assuredly a crowd-pleasing movie. But much like cotton candy-the movie offers very little to digest. Overall, the movie will win over most viewers with its familiar feel-good true story angle. If you liked 2016's Hidden Figures, chances are that this is a movie for you.

It strives for and ultimately achieves the classic feel-good movie moments. Hero activist beats chauvinist pig. Good triumphs over evil. Or something like that. There is no deeper exploration. There is no hard-hitting, brutal honesty. The examinations are superficial and dive no deeper than the surface.

Basically, movie is too simple. But sexism and the problems that it causes are complicated. In the movie, everything is spelled out in a painfully obvious way. It condescends to make sure that everyone understands. The sexist characters come out in shameless and laughably overt ways. The good person defeats the bad person and everyone cheers. It's a fairy tale ending, hooray! But none of that is realistic.

Sexist and discriminatory people in power don't publicly profess their feelings in such blunt ways. So, when the movie scenes portray characters as loud and proud sexists, I can only roll my eyes. I know the movie uses these exaggerated characters and moments to make the situation abundantly clear to the audience. I just prefer a bit of subtlety.

Instead, the movie handles the delicate, nuanced topics of sexism and repression of homosexuality with the blunt force of a lumberjack with a giant axe. Wrong professional and wrong tool. We needed a surgeon with medical instruments.

The movie still has its upside. Steve Carell and Emma Stone are charming and wonderful, which is an amazing feat considering the character that Carell plays. Bobby Riggs (Carell) flaunts his chauvinism in such a flamboyant manner that showmanship is clearly his primary focus. This is one detail that the movie gets right, thanks largely to Carell. Riggs doesn't actually believe the gross, archaic things he says about women. It's an act. He says them to attract interest in the upcoming Man vs. Woman tennis match with Billie Jean King (Stone).

The storytelling is clear, even if not always smooth. The combination of King's life-changing romance along with the battle of the sexes tennis match fit awkwardly. Though, I'm sure those two things also fit awkwardly in King's life at the time, so I accept the somewhat clumsy clash of the two storylines. Again, if you liked Hidden Figures, you will like Battle of the Sexes. It's uplifting and sends a valuable and inspiring message to young girls everywhere. On that basis, I applaud the movie. Despite its flaws, it's still a story worthy of knowing.