Wimbledon (B- or 2.5/4 stars)
Tennis rules in 'Wimbledon', a dramedy directed by Richard Loncraine. Peter Colt (Paul Bettany), an English player in his 30's, thinks his chances of winning Wimbledon are slim to none. He plans to retire after one more go at it. After the tournament, he even plans to coach at a prestigious tennis club. Though, everything changes when he begins a romance with young, up-&-coming American female tennis player, Lizzie Bradbury (Kirsten Dunst). For her, he's a distraction (much to the chagrin of her father). But for him, she's an inspiration and reason for his success on the tennis court. The plot pulls no surprises. I can't stand Kirsten Dunst. Because of this, the chemistry between her & Bettany is a bit lacking. But the movie is fun, comfortable & the tennis sequences are pretty awesome.
There's lots of romantic comedy fluff that goes on in this film (typical set-up of superfluous characters, cheeky one-liners, etc.). The crux of the plot begins when Peter (inspired by his time with Lizzie) wins in the Semi-Finals, and Lizzie (a Maria Sharapova-like favorite) takes a shocking loss. Her father is furious that she'd let her focus drift because of Peter. She breaks-it off with Peter and they're both upset with each other. Can they reconcile? Will she inspire him one step further to attain the elusive Wimbledon crown? Or will he fizzle under the pressure & under the disappointment of an unfortunate relationship? Will he be able to silence his critics (including his father, played well by Bernard Hill)? EVERYTHING is cliched & predictable here. But Bettany breaks-up the monotony of it all.
The best part of the movie is the climactic final match between Peter & Jake Hammond (equivalent to an overconfident Andy Roddick-type). The lengthy rallies in the final match are well edited for optimal visual excitement. And while the last scene is completely gooey, it's also nice to see. The screenplay allowed for several nice moments of genuine wit (whether it was tennis-based or romantic). And we believe Paul Bettany in this role; he's great. I was satisfied as the credits rolled (though probably more so because of my unapologetic love for tennis). The film has a good heart. But as previously said, Dunst isn't overly convincing; and that really hurts the romance aspect of the film -- not good. Still, it's one of my 'great-to-watch-on-a-Sunday-afternoon' types ... just like a Wimbledon Final.
There's lots of romantic comedy fluff that goes on in this film (typical set-up of superfluous characters, cheeky one-liners, etc.). The crux of the plot begins when Peter (inspired by his time with Lizzie) wins in the Semi-Finals, and Lizzie (a Maria Sharapova-like favorite) takes a shocking loss. Her father is furious that she'd let her focus drift because of Peter. She breaks-it off with Peter and they're both upset with each other. Can they reconcile? Will she inspire him one step further to attain the elusive Wimbledon crown? Or will he fizzle under the pressure & under the disappointment of an unfortunate relationship? Will he be able to silence his critics (including his father, played well by Bernard Hill)? EVERYTHING is cliched & predictable here. But Bettany breaks-up the monotony of it all.
The best part of the movie is the climactic final match between Peter & Jake Hammond (equivalent to an overconfident Andy Roddick-type). The lengthy rallies in the final match are well edited for optimal visual excitement. And while the last scene is completely gooey, it's also nice to see. The screenplay allowed for several nice moments of genuine wit (whether it was tennis-based or romantic). And we believe Paul Bettany in this role; he's great. I was satisfied as the credits rolled (though probably more so because of my unapologetic love for tennis). The film has a good heart. But as previously said, Dunst isn't overly convincing; and that really hurts the romance aspect of the film -- not good. Still, it's one of my 'great-to-watch-on-a-Sunday-afternoon' types ... just like a Wimbledon Final.