by Christopher James
Everyone has to start somewhere - even Venus and Serena Williams.Early on in King Richard, Will Smith’s Richard Williams drills his daughters - Venus and Serena - on serving. Their goal, to hit a precise spot on the court where a stack of balls lie. Even as pre-teens, they are able to achieve remarkable precision with their shots. This drill is an apt metaphor for Reinaldo Marcus Green’s latest film, King Richard. It always hits the spot on the court, just as you expected it to.
King Richard never subverts the tropes of the inspirational sports movie, it just tries to do them better. This doesn’t make it a daring or interesting film, but the formula does work incredibly well...
Will Smith's performance as Richard Williams is the best performance of his career.
Set in Compton, California in the 90s, King Richard chronicles the humble beginnings of tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams. For anyone who followed them in the 90s and 00s, their gregarious father, Richard Williams, was a brash, energetic figure that often threatened to overshadow his girls. This makes him an interesting lens through which we watch the girls enter the very white world of tennis. In particular, the movie focuses a lot of attention on Richard’s battling with the girls’ coaches (played by Tony Goldwyn and Jon Bernthal) over their training. One sticking point is that he doesn’t want Venus playing in Juniors tournaments, which burned out many promising stars like Jennifer Capriati. Richard wrote a plan for the girls’ tennis futures before they were born, almost as if it came handed down from God like the Ten Commandments, and he intends to follow it.
To talk about King Richard, one must start and end with Will Smith’s towering performance. It’s a big performance fit for a movie star, along the lines of Julia Roberts’ Erin Brockavich or Brad Pitt’s Moneyball. Though the performance never quite gets the same interesting notes of pathos of those performances, Smith nails the gusto and insane confidence of Richard Williams. Everything about the man is big (except for his oft-mocked short shorts). Smith’s commitment to an implacable Southern lisp accent is commendable and almost becomes a character tic that never drops. Early on in the film as he begins to infiltrate the white world of tennis, you feel Smith use his physicality and hand gestures to bring attention to himself, almost as if to intimidate. Richard Williams is a force of nature that can’t be contained, and Will Smith wisely lets his performance paint outside the lines to give the performance maximum weight.
Aunjanue Ellis has to wait a while for her closeup, but boy does she deliver when it comes to her.One trope the movie never gets away from is the role of the supportive wife, cheering from the sidelines. The script gives the matriarch Brandy moments to assert her role within the family. In fact, one scene involves her yelling not to be side-lined by her husband. Even though the script acknowledges Brandy’s influence on the girls’ life and training, it still never gives her an arc or journey to go on through the film. Thus, she remains side-lined in the final act specifically, just as she feared. That’s not to say that Aunjanue Ellis doesn’t make the most of what she’s given. She elevates each moment of screentime, crafting a world and perspective for Brandy that isn’t necessarily there on the script. Yes, she knocks her showcase scenes out of the park like Venus serving a powerful ace. However, it’s the quieter moments where she deepens her character, like creating lived-in dynamics in the background with her five daughters or pleading with a neighbor after cleaning up Richard’s messes. Whenever the camera moves to Ellis, she brings to life a world and perspective we aren’t getting elsewhere in the film. That’s true supporting acting.
The entire supporting cast makes a compelling case for a SAG Ensemble nomination. Jon Bernthal (and his mustache) steal every scene possible as Rick Macci, the Florida-based tennis pro who works with Venus. He lives life with a joie de vivre that only comes from feeling like you’re on top of the world. By being the best in his field, he’s never had to deal with someone challenging his coaching the way Richard does throughout. Bernthal’s exuberant exasperation makes for a great audience surrogate. You can see Rick constantly holding back from screaming at Richard. Tony Goldwyn also fulfills a similar plot function earlier on in the film as Paul Cohen, a posh Beverly Hills coach that works with Venus.
Saniyya Sidney (far right) and Demi Singleton (far left) wow as Venus and Serena Williams, respectively.The real discoveries of the film are Venus and Serena themselves. Venus, played by Saniyya Sidney, gets the bulk of the screen-time between the two girls and does a marvelous job. The first half of the film the girls are all charm and determination, tennis machines built to defy expectations. Sidney expertly charts Venus from a passionate, yet shy, pre-teen to a teenager who must shoulder decisions about multi-million dollar sponsorships and being a role model for black women. Her smile is infectious. She’ll crush your heart and put it back together in just a few short moments. Though Serena gets less time, Demi Singleton does a great job defining her as a live wire wild card who would grow to greatness. As cloying and on the nose as it might be, Singleton’s Serena gets a special moment with Richard near the end of the film that still made me tear up. Both girls bring to life how self-possessed and confident Venus and Serena are, without making it ever come off as ego.
So why make a movie about Venus and Serena that isn’t actually about Venus and Serena? By making a movie about their Father, is it giving Richard credit for the accomplishments that Venus and Serena achieved? A lesser movie would’ve fallen into these pitfalls, and sometimes King Richard approaches that pitfall. Yet, Richard Williams’ superpower for success is his unwavering faith and belief in his daughter’s gifts. He makes bet after bet on his daughters’ talents and they pay off. He never cashes out for the easy win or easy money. This confidence passes down to the girls and informs their public personas and tennis styles. Unfortunately, the movie never spends much time questioning or dissecting the possible negatives to Richard’s tactics. Other unsavory parts of his persona, such as his affairs and out of wedlock children, are brought up once, but never discussed. Seeing that Venus and Serena are producers on the film, it makes sense that it’s a bit more of a hagiography. Still, it would be more interesting to see a version of the film with a little more teeth.
The Williams family, complete with five children, always shows up in full force to Venus and Serena's matches.
King Richard is sure to be a major Oscar player across the board, including in Best Picture. Will Smith not only gives a great performance, but also has the overdue narrative and box office clout to catapult him to the win for Best Actor. Thanks to two certifiable Oscar clip moments, Aunjanue Ellis will also be a likely Supporting Actress nominee (Oscar loves a supportive wife). Zach Baylin’s script seems like a very possible Original Screenplay nominee, though buzz for the film might not be enough to get Reinaldo Marcus Green into Director. Beyoncé’s latest bop “Be Alive” adds power to the staggering slideshow of their incredible careers. Look for it to be an easy nominee in Best Original Song. After spending over two hours watching their long road to the starting line, one can’t help but be overwhelmed and inspired by all Venus and Serena’s accomplishments. After all, isn’t that why we go to a mainstream sports biopic after all? B+