When it comes to sport stories, the most inspirational ones are those which showcase ones perseverance in making their dreams become a reality. Before King Richard, sports stories generally tackled issues pertaining to race and family with the latter aiming to present a new kind of sports drama to audiences that's character-driven. Elevated by Will Smith's commanding performance and solid storytelling, King Richard is a profoundly moving look at parental perseverance that resulted in a remarkable triumph.
Following the life of Richard Williams, whose father and coach to tennis players Venus and Serena Williams, King Richard shows their training on the tennis courts in Compton CA to them becoming tennis superstars through their dads coaching. The film shows Richard shaping the girls unyielding commitment to playing the sport while teaching them to be humble in their victories and losses. Their defying of insurmountable odds and prevailing expectations placed infront of them to become legendary tennis players is also presented. The story for King Richard is handled in a way that's respectable and paints a powerful portrait on the notion that success can be fostered by supportive families.
As for acting, King Richard is powered by the performances of its cast with Will Smith delivering a towering performance as Richard Williams. He portrays the latter as being an inspiring and visionary father whose determined to go to extreme lengths in giving his daughters a better life. Not since his work in The Pursuit Of Happiness has Smith delivered such a powerhouse performance that shows his true range as a performer. Aunjanue Ellis is equally phenomenal as Richard's wife and mother of Venus and Serena, Oracene. She shows their mothers tender side while being supportive of their dreams. Both Smith and Ellis provide strong chemistry with the latter shown as being a faithful wife, though not always agreeing with her husband's methods of pushing their kids to become the greatest tennis players. Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton largely impress as Richard's daughters Venus and Serena. Given that both actresses were required to learn how to play tennis in order to make their matches believable, they do a very convincing job along with showing the thrill of winning each game while maintaining their close bond. Other strong performances come from Tony Goldwyn and Jon Bernthal as the girls tennis coaches Paul Cohen and Rick Macci, who both see the potential in the girls playing but question Richard's decision making regarding their careers. The acting in King Richard is a significant part of why the film is so effective as a sports drama with everyone playing their parts to maximum effect, while doing justice to their real life counterparts.
The directing by Reinaldo Marcus Green is well-handled with the film showcasing stunning cinematography, particularly scenes involving tennis. The dramatic moments are brilliantly filmed with the camera following the main characters, along with performing close-up shots in capturing the actors emotions. One example is the films kitchen fight scene between Richard and Oracene. Rather than having the camera in their faces, the scene is shot from a distance, allowing for the performances to dominate the screen. The Tennis matches are filmed outside the court, though the players reactions are shown up close like the victories Venus achieves or the worried look she gives her parents during losses. One of the films inspiring shots includes Venus and Serena riding in a shopping cart full of tennis balls that's being pushed by Richard. Although the film carries a running time of nearly 2.5 hours, the pacing never feels boring. Overall, Green carefully builds up the audiences connection to the Richard family with tennis coming in second to the story.
The writing for Richard focuses the narrative on showing the families struggle with living in Compton as they're frequently harrassed by local gangs while playing tennis at the court. Richard is shown as being extremely protective of his daughters, while envisioning their future as professional tennis players. Richard's tirelessness, and perseverance in pushing for his daughters to advance in the world of sports is heavily emphasized with him also shown pushing back against tennis coaches and club presidents in safeguarding his children's dreams while stating "Im in the champion raising business." The script also shows Richard's methods of coaching his daughters to be questionable to others as well as frustrating like him leaving his kids behind to walk home solely because they weren't being humble with their victories or a key scene in which Bernthal's character is visibly frustrated with Richard over his managing of the children's time with him taking them on a trip to Disneyland instead of training. The script shows Richard's character as someone whose ambitious in his desire to teach his children to be the best tennis players while remaining lovable towards them. He's also shown to be deeply encouraging to them in a subtle though powerful moment in which he tells a disappointed Serena that she will become the greatest tennis Player of all time after not being able to train with Venus. King Richard makes no attempt to sugarcoat the resistance Richard and his kids experienced in trying to get trained by professional coaches for free, yet shows how extraordinary their success became in a predominantly white sport.
With Richard, the film doesn't just show the triumph that Venus and Serena achieved in becoming terrific tennis players, but also that of their father who envisioned his girls becoming masters at the sport he admitted to have fought against gangs to be able to play on a Compton tennis court. Audiences will find themselves genuinely inspired by his relentless determination in giving his kids a better future. Whereas most sports dramas place the sport first, King Richard does the exact opposite with the tennis accompanying the rest of the story. It serves as being a powerfully affecting tale regarding a father's vision for his kids which through extreme courage and perseverance, ultimately becoming not just a reality but also a true cinematic triumph.
Final Verdict: For both tennis and Will Smith fans, King Richard is an engrossing sports drama that's well worth the time.
Images Courtesy Of Westbrook Studios
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