A review of the new bio-pic “King Richard”
I confess that I was first attracted to this movie by the title because my son is called Richard. When I learned that it was a bio-pic about Richard Williams’ creation of tennis super-stars Venus and Serena, I was sure that a young female tennis-playing friend would want to see this work and it has to be said that Gemma enjoyed it more than me. It is a competent and uplifting production and I was told by my friend that the tennis sections were really well-done. But, as cinema, it is lacking.
If the film is really about Richard, I would liked to have known more about how he himself became such a good tennis player and how he put together the 85-page plan to make his black daughters so successful in the ultra-white world of professional tennis. Venus and Serena were executive producers of the movie and have ensured that his image is well-presented with no real edge to the narrative. If, on the other hand, the film is about Venus and Serena, then it concludes too soon with the former’s first professional matches.
Having said all that, Will Smith is excellent as the eponymous uber-parent in a role which is different from that of most of his career and Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton are appealing as Venus and Serena respectively. It is a truly amazing story but a less than amazing film.