Review of Gender Wars (2015) by Patrick L — 12 Nov 2017

"Battle of the Sexes is undeniably feel-good Oscar-bait but it does swing a trailblazing ball".

Movie Review: Battle of the Sexes.

Date Viewed: October 17 2017.

Directed By Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine and Ruby Sparks).

Written By Simon Beaufoy.

Starring: Emma Stone, Steve Carell, Andrea Riseborough, Sarah Silverman, Bill Pullman, Alan Cumming, Elisabeth Shue, Austin Stowell, Natalie Morales, Eric Christian Olsen, Lewis Pullman, Jessica McNamee, Martha MacIssac, Wallace Langham, Mark Harelik, John C. McGinley, Chris Parnell and Fred Armisen.

It sparked a global conversation on gender equality and gave the feminist movement providence to rise up against the male establishment and fight for women's rights. "Battle of the Sexes" is indeed insightful and relevant but I just felt that it was too sunny and predictable for my taste. Nevertheless, it has fine performances from Emma Stone as Billie Jean King and Steve Carell as Bobby Riggs. The film centers around the events leading up to the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs which became the most watched televised sports event of all time. "Battle of the Sexes" is undeniably feel-good Oscar-bait but it does swing a trailblazing ball.

Billie Jean King (Stone) maybe the number one female tennis champ in America but off the court, she was fighting more personal and complex battles. King confronts Jack Kramer (Bill Pullman) about her prize winnings because the top prize for women is one-eighth of the men's prize. King and "World Tennis" magazine founder Gladys Heldman (Sarah Silverman) threaten to start their own women's tour but Kramer refuses to alter the terms because he thinks women are more interesting in the bedroom and in the kitchen than in any other job position.

Kramer expels the women from the mainstream tour as Billie and Gladys join the new female tour organized by the Lawn Tennis Association. Billie Jean King is fighting another personal battle, this time it's her sexuality as she begins an affair with her hairdresser, Marilyn Barnett (Andrea Riseborough). Her affair with Marilyn threatens to derail her marriage to Larry King (Austin Stowell). No! Not the Larry King from CNN, it's a different Larry King.

Meanwhile, 55-year-old Bobby Riggs (Carell) is an ex-champ and gambling addict who's on the brink of losing his marriage to his wealthy wife, Priscilla Wheelan (Elisabeth Shue). Thrown out of his house, Riggs digs up an idea to challenge against the top woman player in tennis. Why is he boasting about a tennis match between himself and Billie Jean King? Well, Riggs wants to prove that even at age of 55, he can beat any woman in the sport of tennis.

Directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine) and screenwriter Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire) have crafted an amazing sports spectacle to watch but the film's characterization of Bobby Riggs is a little off the mark. The real-life Bobby Riggs was a mean slob and a pig, this film however makes him too soft. It's not a critique of Steve Carell's performance, it's just that the movie didn't bring enough audacity into Bobby Riggs. Emma Stone is incredible as Billie Jean King but her relationship with her hairdresser surprisingly generates little romance or heat for that matter. Large portions of the movie are devoted to Billie's struggles with her sexuality but those scenes fail to resonate with the story which is mostly about female empowerment and fighting for equal pay and women's rights.

"Battle of the Sexes" maybe superficial at times and it doesn't bring anything new to the female empowerment table but it is still a solidly entertaining sports dramedy.