My husband and I went to see a preview of this film thanks to See It First.
IMDB says: A look at how tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams became who they are after the coaching from their father Richard Williams.
In this biography/drama/sport film written by Zach Balin (Side Effects, Creed III) and directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green (Monsters and Men, Top Boy), Will Smith (Men in Black, Independence Day) stars as Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena, and Aunjanue Ellis (Men of Honor, The Help) as their mother Oracene 'Brandy' Williams. Smith is excellent but Ellis is outstanding and the film has a perfect mix of tense drama with occasional humour.
Saniyya Sidney (Hidden Figures, Fences) plays Venus and Demi Singleton (Goldie, Godfather of Harlem) Serena who, after a struggle to get anyone to look at how well they play, surprise coach Paul Cohen (Tony Goldwyn: Ghost, The Last Samurai) with their ability. Despite living in Compton, where they found prejudice even from their neighbours, and running the risk of violence to achieve his goals for the girls, Richard wasn't prepared to stop there, soon enlisting the help of top coach Rick Macci (Jon Bernthal (Baby Driver, The Wolf of Wall Street) to ensure his daughters made it to the top.
RICK MACCI: I think you just might have the next Michael Jordan.
RICHARD WILLIAMS: No, brother, I got the next two Michael Jordans.
I marvelled at how little I remembered of Venus's rise to fame in the tennis world, for instance I had forgotten she was only 14 years old when, in her first professional tournament, she made it all the way to the final to play Arancha Sanchez Vicario, the female number one at that time.
How much of the biopic is true to life it is unsure, but I feel like the prejudice they may have encountered perhaps was played down. I remember feeling distinctly ostracised by tennis parents when my daughter used to play in county matches because we are not from a wealthy background, so I can only imagine how much worse it may have been for the Williams family, especially as Richard Williams has been quite vocal in how he found tennis parents. But this gave rise to some of the special moments in the film, when they overcame adversity to shine despite others trying to keep them down. A great example of triumph and proof that if you want something badly enough, there are ways to get it and stay true to your authentic self.
We thoroughly enjoyed this movie, and I think not just because we are big tennis fans. I believe this feel-good biopic is perfect for the current times.
Fantastic little film: 7/10
Trivia: The screenplay King Richard was featured in the 2018 black list - the annual list of well received, unproduced screenplays. During the credits real footage of Williams and his daughters from camcorder to TV broadcasts showing a summary of the accomplishments Venus and Serena have achieved.
Tagline: Venus, Serena and a plan for greatness.
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