Battle of the Sexes

January 22, 2018 at 4:30 pm | Posted in 2017 | Leave a comment
Tags: 1970's, Alan Cumming, Bill Pullman, Comedy, Elisabeth Shue, Emma Stone, Jonathan Dayton, Movie Review, Natalie Morales, Period Piece, Sarah Silverman, Steve Carell, Valerie Faris

◊ ◊ ◊ ½

“Battle of the Sexes” is a playful look back at a simpler, less ironic, and more deeply sexist time. It gets it’s laughs, and there are plenty, from the “oh my god, I can’t believe they used to think like that” variety, and from the good-natured humor of its two leads. Taking place in 1972 and ’73, it follows two tennis greats, one who is at the top of her game and one who is way past his, as they careen toward a showdown that was part ridiculous spectacle and part serious social commentary. Billy Jean King is played with an earnest, exasperated intensity by Emma Stone. She does a fantastic job transforming into King. Compare this role to her character in “LA LA Land;” every way she carries herself, from her shoulders to her walk, is utterly different. She gives us a woman relentlessly determined to be taken seriously. On the other side of the net, Steve Carell plays Bobby Riggs with goofy abandon. Riggs seemed incapable of taking anything seriously. He understood that what drove media and public interest was larger than life tropes: good guys and bad guys. They were the perfect rivals because they were so different on every level. Nobody could turn away and everyone picked a side. While a movie about a single tennis match may not seem that exciting, this one managed to be. From start to finish, this was a highly entertaining romp that took itself just seriously enough. It was never gloomy or heavy and all the sharp edges were softened. The film rode entirely on the backs of Stone and Carell. Fortunately, their volleys both on and off the court was more than enough to entertain.