Battle of the Sexes (2017)

“I’m not saying women are better. I’ve never said that. I’m saying we deserve some respect.” – Billie Jean King

Number of Times Seen – 1 (12 Jul 2020)

Brief Synopsis – While trying to promote a female Tennis league, top seeded Billy Jean King is challenged to a match against former tennis champ Bobby Riggs.

My Take on it – This is a film that I heard about when it came out yet never had the chance to see until now.

They are able to give us a very intriguing perspective of how tennis changed during the 1970’s when they women athletes formed their own league.

It also shows how much audiences were interested in watching these women play against one another.

Emma Stone does a great job in the lead role of Billy Jean King and allows us to get a clear understanding of the various battles she was forced to fight both on and off the court.

Steve Carrell is also very effective as Bobby Riggs.

He is able to play the over the top attitude of the man so well that it is truly possible to both love and hate him at the same time while watching his antics on and off the court.

The way that they depict the pivotal tennis match between these two tennis greats is done quite effectively and was truly a turning point for the sport as a whole.

Bottom Line – Interesting look at the way that the sport of tennis changed in the 70’s when the players began to show how much people wanted to see them play. Stone does a great job in the lead role of King and makes us understand the various battles she needed to fight both on and off the court. Carrell is quite effective as Riggs and is able to play this over the top personality so well that we can both love and hate him at the same time. The event depicted here was truly a turning point in the sport and is played out quite well here. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The film only briefly touches upon the homophobic attitude of Margaret Court (the Australian tennis player). She correctly suspects Billie Jean is having a lesbian relationship with her hairdresser, and speaks of “immorality” and “sin”. In real life, it went further; Court became an anti-gay activist after her tennis career, vocally opposing same-sex marriage in Australia. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (7/10)