Borg vs McEnroe

(spoiler free)

Sporting films are somewhat of an enigma, you’d think that to enjoy one you would have to be a fan of the sport it focuses on. However, in my experience anyway, this isn’t the case. If the film is given a comedic slant or with the right character development a film about a sport I simply don’t care about can still be a really entertaining watch. This was somewhat the challenge for ‘Borg vs McEnroe’ as at a stretch I’m just about a casual tennis fan.

The titular tennis players are portrayed by actors Sverrir Gudnason, who plays Björn Borg and Shia LaBeouf who plays John McEnroe. Both have a great likeness to the younger versions of the men they are playing. LaBeouf seems particularly well cast as his antics off screen aren’t dissimilar to the behaviour exhibited by McEnroe in his early career. Nonetheless Gudnason is a good fit too, performing well having to showcase his character’s feelings in a much more understated manner. The pair offer a wonderful dynamic and they demonstrate this famous rivalry confidentially. The premise for the movie itself is an intriguing one as usually sporting films have a clear individual or team that they want you to route for, ‘Borg vs McEnroe’ is never quite as simple. Whilst the screenplay certainly gives more attention and insight into Borg than McEnroe it never manipulates it’s audience into routing for him. Instead the film presents both players, in very much the way they were perceived at the time and leaves the audience to decide who they want to win; “the gentleman or the rebel?”. This dynamic added a whole other level of engagement for viewers and is one the film’s best triumphs.

Although ‘Borg vs McEnroe’ had this unique slant at first I wasn’t sure that the narrative was going to keep me engaged. The story is told in both the lead up to the Wimbledon final in 1980 but also in the youths of both title contenders. I wasn’t so fond of the insights into these mens’ earlier years as I never found these moments as interesting as the ever developing rivalry between the sports stars. However, these moments do become beneficial during the third act of the film enhancing the drama appropriately. The actual sequences of the tennis are constructed well, they are creative in their execution and are given the right allocation of time. The highlight of these sequences is obviously the final match. This historic meeting of these rivals was a wholly engaging experience, it captured the drama and emotion of the event very well. I found that not knowing the outcome of the match even further enhanced my experience but I imagine that it’s still a largely effective finale even to viewers aware of the result.

As most films that are based on true events do, ‘Borg vs McEnroe’ ends with some real photos of the featured individuals and further information. It’s these final moments which really make clear just why this rivalry was so remarkable. The film does a solid job of conveying this throughout it’s running time too with it’s impartial and representative writing creating the most engaging aspect of the film.

Written by Hamish Calvert

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Rating – 8/10

Question: What are your top three sports movies of all time?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)

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