Movie Review: Battle of the Sexes

With the 2016 election in the United States, there’s no doubt sexism lingers within some parts of the United States. Though we are not at full equality yet, Battle of the Sexes is here to remind us how far we have come, and who helped get us here. Combining a sports movie and a biopic about Billie Jean King, Battle of the Sexes wins on sheer will power, charm, and talent,  much like the heroine at its center.

We meet Billie Jean King (Emma Stone) riding high as the world’s number 1 ranking female tennis player. But that’s not enough for her. So when television tennis analyst Jack Kramer (Bill Pullman) informs her the ladies will receive 1/8th of the prize money as the men, she boycotts the league and forms her own tennis league with the help of agent/manager Gladys Heldman (Sara Silverman) and fellow tennis stars including Rosie Casals (Natalie Morales). King, at this point in her life, also starts to realize that she might be a lesbian; she is instantly taken with hairdresser Marilyn Barnett (Andrea Riseborough) and starts to explore those feelings. But for all the progress King is making for women, along comes Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell) a past his prime latent chauvinist tennis player whipped by his wife Priscillia (Elisabeth Shue). In a rut, Riggs pitches a man v woman tennis match with King. King initially refuses, but circumstances for both her and Riggs lead to her eventually accepting the match to prove that women are not an inferior species, but every bit as strong  and athletic as the men.

It becomes pretty clear where Battle of the Sexes is going to end up, and that final match is a sweet elixir to send home the audience happy. But Billie Jean King’s story is BY FAR more interesting than the tennis match at the end. Would Lebron James, Serena Williams, Bryce Harper, or any other famous athlete not only just up and quit their current league, but also create an entirely different league and convince the other stars of the sport to join them? King does that and still hella competes in every tennis match, knowing that she’s the draw for the league and needs to be in the finals to keep the ratings up. Equally interesting is how Billie Jean confronts her personal sexuality with Marilyn Barnett. Simon Beaufoy probably smartly revolves this awakening around how Billie Jean perceives it, but as a result we don’t get enough world context for how taboo this was at the time, only an implied fear from others who share her beliefs. But what we lose in some context we gain in personal connection to a woman realizing and becoming true to herself. By the time Bobby Riggs enters the picture, he’s facing a well oiled feminine machine ready to tackle any male tradition the world puts in front of her.

Much of this is due to the actors/actresses in the Billie Jean King side of the story. Emma Stone is playing her Help character minus the southern accent. She makes King as earnest and open to new ideas, and ironclad in her belief system and what she is doing is correct. Stone has mentioned in interviews how inspiring King is in person, and that’s certainly on display here. Andrea Riseborough plays Marilyn as a beacon (what the script needs), but gives her some agency after chatting unexpectedly with King’s husband (I could see a whole movie about that guy). Alan Cumming and Natalie Morales do what they do best: light up the screen with humor and charm every second they are on camera. And Sara Silverman plays a PG version of her sassy self, which fits Gladys perfectly. Though his parts could be excised, Steve Carell gives Bobby Riggs enough charm to make the guy more amiable than he should have any right to be. Carell makes him into your wacky uncle instead of your chauvinist pig uncle. Elisabeth Shue also is good with just a little bit of screen time.

Battle of the Sexes is frustratingly similar to the rhetoric heard in 2016. For people interested in keeping women in their rightful place, Billie Jean King is a shining example of what they can be if we actually let them live their lives and achieve their full potential. Someone like Billie Jean King shouldn’t be scary, they should be downright inspiring to everyone. Game. Set. Match!