Borg vs McEnroe (2018)

Instant Favorite.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

I have no interest in tennis as a sport yet this is riveting to me since the movie is about the players, stardom and professional sports organizations not about tennis in particular. Suspect i could re watch this 20 years later and it would be as relevant then as it is now

I lived through this period, and this film artfully captures the emotions of the time. It focuses on the build up to the 1980's match and turns out an art film that is the Rocky of tennis.

Greetings again from the darkness. For true sports fans, movies about sports tend to be disappointing. It's not possible for actors to perform athletically at the same level of sports icons, and inevitably, the writer or director is simply unaware of the nuances and details that make an event or player memorable. The 1980 Wimbledon final between Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe was not simply a marketing dream between two polar opposite personalities; it was also a bravura performance by two competitors fighting for their sport's pinnacle. It was a transcendent event for those of us (including yours truly) who couldn't take our eyes off the TV screen.The debut narrative feature film from director Janus Metz and the script from Ronnie Sandahl never really grasp the impact of the match, and instead turn this into psycho-babble about how parents and coaches may damage the person as they create the player. Sverrir Gudnason plays Bjorn Borg and Shia LeBeouf takes on the John McEnroe role. With roots in Denmark, director Metz likely finds the Borg story more interesting and devotes most of the attention to the cool Swede superstar, and Gudnason performs admirably. However, it's LeBeouf as Super Brat McEnroe that comes across as a much more intriguing character ... and we are left wanting more (and better).The psychological analysis shows a young Borg (played by his own son Leo at ages 9-13) as an uncontrollable hothead on the court. Sound familiar? Yep, we are informed that the young Borg was a mirror image of the McEnroe he would later face across the net. We see that Borg's coach Lennart Bergelin (in yet another solid turn by Stellan Skarsgard) drives him to bury his emotions and use them as internal fire for intensity on the court. We also glimpse Borg's legendary OCD tendencies with his rackets, room temperature and even his interactions with fiancé Mariana Simionescu (played by Tuva Novotny).For McEnroe, we see how his parents pushed him and were never satisfied (a 96 on your Geography test? What happened?). We see a young man obsessed with tennis and competition. He charts the tournament bracket on his hotel room wall and refuses to speak to a close friend who happens to be his opponent that day. And of course we witness the on court outbursts ... some of which are memes almost 40 years later. His dad, played here by Ian Blackman, strikes the familiar pose in the stands of arms crossed while wearing the white floppy hat.Presenting this as Muzak (Borg) versus Rock and Roll (McEnroe) is really unfair to both men. Cool and collected versus raging madman underscores the amazing tennis talent. Baseliner versus serve-and-volley was the on court battle. The prim and proper traditions of the sport being dragged into the contemporary world by a young up-and-comer is fascinating and was culturally important. It was a rivalry that rejuvenated professional tennis and it deserved better treatment that armchair psychology.

Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe are two of the greatest tennis players we will ever know. The duo were widely considered to be the best in the world during a four year span from the late 1970's through the early '80's. The rivalry they shared was intense. Their respective personalities could not have been more diverse. Though dramatic license is certainly exercised, the new film "Borg vs McEnroe" shines a harsh light into the dark corners of two men who were at once driven and demonized by a ferocious and all-consuming purpose. To be the best.Danish Director Janus Metz ("Armadillo") does yeoman work here, fashioning a riveting story of these two bigger than life characters. Metz presents and examines the lives of a pair of pushed-to-be perfect children as they progress into talented yet tormented adults, ceaselessly struggling with stunted emotional development. Sverrir Gudnason ("Blowfly Park") impresses as Borg, portraying the Swedish legend as a conflicted but gentle soul bottled up in a perpetually placid exterior. And speaking of conflicted souls, wildly erratic yet mega-gifted actor Shia LaBeouf (The "Transformers" saga) is simply outstanding as the brash wunderkind New Yorker McEnroe. This guy is so damn good at his craft. If LaBeouf could only keep his personal business together off screen he'd almost certainly realize a hell of a lot more opportunities on it. His work is missed."Borg vs McEnroe" culminates in the epic 1980 Wimbledon Championship match between these fierce competitors. If you don't know how this London grass court classic ends I won't spoil it for you. Except to issue major kudos to the film editing team of Per K. Kirkegaard and Per Sandholt. Their invigorating contribution to a furious finale takes us on a rollicking, rip-roaring roller coaster ride that'll leave you nearly as exhausted as the players themselves.