Borg vs McEnroe (2017)

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  TheMovieDiorama

  7 / 10

  Borg vs McEnroe presents an unbalanced rivalry of mentality from two of the greatest players. As a huge fan of tennis and the ATP rankings, I was immediately attracted to this biopic. John McEnroe and Björn Borg were arguably two of the finest legends of the sport, having competed together in that legendary 1980 Wimbledon final. This film chronicles the early lives of these icons, conveying the differences between them and how they must overcome these irregularities to better themselves. Any coach or sportsman will strictly tell you "it's not about winning, it's about bettering yourself as a person". A statement that burrowed into the minds of these two players. Borg having to defend his win streak with a record breaking fifth victory whilst McEnroe, being the underdog, was set to unbalance order with his ungentlemanly ferocity. Two very opposing personalities that produced one of the tensest finals of all time. This film, for the most part, succeeds in conveying a heated rivalry where Danish director Pedersen deftly illustrates fixation with a sport. His focus on these two legendary sportsmen and how they must be victorious was assured. Frequently, the matches of the Wimbledon championship are put aside which does squander the excitement somewhat. But the excellence in character development substitutes thrills for powerful drama. LaBeouf is back with a fantastic energetic performance and marinates well with Gudnason's nuanced role. The score and cinematography were exceptional also. However, the drama does feel unbalanced with the narrative leaning towards Borg's life rather than equalling with McEnroe's, resulting in a somewhat biased biopic. Some of McEnroe's outbursts felt exaggeratedly fictitious just to make the point that he was ungentlemanly, therefore executed heavy handedly. Also, as thrilling as the final was, the use of stunt doubles was obvious due to the frenetic quick cuts. Hang on though, new balls please! This is definitely one of the better films to showcase tennis and a fiery insight into the lives of two racket-holding titans, albeit slightly unbalanced.

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