Hellmant 'BORG VS MCENROE': Four Stars (Out of Five)A biographical sports-drama flick based on the classic rivalry between tennis players Björn Borg and John McEnroe, during the 1980 Wimbledon Championships. It was directed by Janus Metz Pedersen, and it was scripted by Ronnie Sandahl. The movie stars Sverrir Gudnason and Shia LaBeouf, as the two title characters, and it costars Stellan Skarsgård, Tuva Novotny and Robert Emms. The film has received mostly positive reviews from critics, and it's won multiple prestigious awards as well. I enjoyed it, especially for it's intense climax. Björn Borg (Gudnason) was a professional Swedish tennis player who was number one in the world in 1980. John McEnroe (LaBeouf) was a professional American tennis player, who was also number one in the world at one time. Borg was known for being really calm and robotic, while McEnroe was well known for having a really short temper and being extremely crude. The two became classic opposites, and rivals, at the 1980 Wimbledon Championships.This movie intensely depicts that rivalry. The film is a great character study, highlighted by two outstanding lead performances (especially LaBeouf) and an awesome sports climax (I really enjoyed the ending). It's also educational, for anyone who didn't know the real story (like me), and it's an interesting look at professional tennis as well (especially at that time). I was also really fascinated to learn what became of the two famous athletes, after the events of the movie. If you're a sports flick fan, I'd say this is definitely the movie for you.

zkonedog A sport like tennis has a lot in common with, say, boxing when it comes to easy-adaptation for drama. Both sports are a one-on-one clash of athleticism, playing styles, and sheer determination. Team sports (football, baseball, basketball, etc.) are tougher to pin down, as they feature so many moving parts. That is why a movie like "Borg vs. McEnroe" can succeed so spectacularly.For a basic plot summary, this film tells the story of the rivalry between tennis pros Bjorn Borg (Sverrir Gudnason) and John McEnroe (Shia LaBeouf). Borg is the ultimate stoic (never showing any emotion whatsoever), while McEnroe is the loose cannon, know for his temper tantrums on the court and his berating of match officials. It mainly focuses on their 1980 clash at Wimbledon, where they meet in the finals and both have a great deal on the line (as flashbacks show how both their respective upbringings led them to this point).What makes "Borg vs. McEnroe" such an infinitely interesting film is how it is truly a study in contrasts. While one could almost accuse the film of playing up those differences for the sake of drama, the fact of the matter is that there indeed was such a disparity between personality types even in real life. Even casual sports fans have seen one of McEnroe's "you cannot be serious!" rants, and Borg's own history is written all over the tennis record books. Basically, this was a rivalry that begged to be made into a film like this (the only wonder being that it didn't happen even sooner).To pull this off, of course, the acting has to be top-notch, and indeed it is. Gudnason's Borg is an enigma, equal parts quietly confident and (behind the scenes) glaringly insecure. LaBeouf is masterful at playing McEnroe, as he is so good at playing the semi-manic personality. This is a role that he was practically born to inhabit, and it was good to see him back in front of the camera instead of being the subject of memes and derision. I've always considered his acting to be impeccable in almost everything he's ever done.Overall, then, "Borg vs. McEnroe" is one that I'll be recommending to everyone. Even if you aren't into tennis or are much of a sports person in general, this is one that transcends its pastime based on the character clash. Everyone can find an "in" for this movie, as it is a classic struggle of wildly different personality types at its core. It's unfortunate this film doesn't seem to be getting a large theater opening, as it is far superior to "Battle of the Sexes", another tennis-centric movie within the past year.

hannahgrahambell Borg vs McEnroe presents a powerful and well-made portrait of two tennis rivals under immense psychological stress. Despite this, it may fail to stick in the minds of non-tennis enthusiasts. Borg vs McEnroe is like many sports movies in that it focuses on the mindset of the individual players to heighten the drama. However, it is unique in its presentation of the contrast between Borg and McEnroe; two brilliant rivals who experience excruciating inner and outer pressure, but who deal with it in different ways. The film manages to convey near-complete psychological portraits of the two tennis stars through a combination of flashbacks, character interactions, and scenes on the court. The film succeeds due to its skillful cinematography and powerful performances from Sverrir Gudnason (Borg) and Shia LaBeouf (McEnroe). Borg vs McEnroe feels comfortable using unique shots and cuts to portray a certain emotion or action sequence, but it doesn't overuse any techniques so as to distract from the reality of the events. Thus, the use of dramatic cinematic embellishments rarely feels overly theatrical or out of place. The second main strength of the movie is the two performances from Gudnason and LaBeouf. The actors accent the emotional torment that the tennis figures faced, and without such strong performances the movie wouldn't have been worth the watch. The real value of Borg vs McEnroe is the questions it raises about success and perceptions of success, and it highlights the fact that the media's portrayal of athletes rarely tells the whole story. But the movie is clearly building towards the great match between Borg and McEnroe, and so that promise must be fulfilled. The final tennis scene is done effectively, but it is not strong enough to bring the whole movie to a close. For those who are unaware of how the match turned out, the third act will be riveting. For those who know the end result, they may feel that it drags out a little longer than necessary. One choice by the filmmakers that undermines the final scene was their obvious bias towards Borg by focusing on his flashbacks and emotions over those of McEnroe. Ultimately, the movie's strengths overshadow its weaker points; Borg vs McEnroe is a solid biographical sports film, even if it can't quite mix sports thrills with an in-depth character analysis.

thecure-1 I liked how the movie brought me back to those days when tennis players were like superstars (although you would not know it if you watch the last aierport scene where Bjorn and John have a lWhat I did not like is how the movie overkills the contrast between them and yet, it is contradictory in that the "calm/predictable/shy" Bjorn fires his coach without thinking it over much and is ready to leave his fiance as well ... which makes him as volatile as McEnroe supposedly is... Meanwhile there is no tennis analysis whatsoever. I loved how John had the best hands in tennis and how graceful and talented he was at the net ... Sverri Gudnason plays and moves a little bit like Bjorn, Shia LaBeouf is a DISASTER as John McEnroe: his movements are totally non-tennis and totally wrong!!! The movie shows them as if this is the first time they play one another when it really was the SEVENTH time they played one another. This is just on of many liberties they take to tell the story they want to tell: the Ying/Yang that movies require in order for those watching to get the point... Too many flashbacks: the whole movie seemed like a long string of Bjorg remembering hitting against a wall and John getting rejected by his parents!!!