King Richard
Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green
Writer: Zach Baylin
Starring: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Jon Bernthal, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Tony Goldwyn, Mikayla Lashae Bartholomew, Layla Crawford, Erika Ringor
Reason for watching: Will Smith needs that Oscar, and if watching on HBO Max helps then I am doing my part
Number of times I’ve watched it: first time viewing
***
Having your dad support you while you are in the stands of a game is an amazing feeling. The empowerment you feel is an awesome thing. It is how I also felt with my dad in the stands or bleachers of my games. I honestly made a point of blocking most of the other voices I heard while I was playing except my dad and the rest of my family. But I know that that relationship can be complicated for a lot of people. Think of Lavar Ball in the last few years and how much he boasted about his kids’ skills and the pressure that put on them. Even further Pete Maravich’s father put incredible pressure on him so much that it affected his desire to play the game he was so great at. But they did the things they did out of love for their kids, and that love and how it is expressed can make things complicated.
King Richard follows the early career years of Venus and Serena Williams (Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton, respectively) as they are pushed by their father Richard (Will Smith) to achieve success and become tennis legends. Richard’s style and motivation are unmatched as he pushed his children hard while making sure they still get to enjoy a childhood he never had. Their success brings them lots of opportunities, but Richard’s efforts to protect his children from the world complicate things. He eventually has to decide the best way to let his children become adults and choose their own life.
Look it does not take a genius to know what the advertising of this movie and how much it has been pushed by Warner Brothers is all for: a campaign for Smith to win an Academy Award. He has been near the mountain top before with performances in Ali and Pursuit of Happyness. By now we know he can do more than make us laugh and keep us entertained. But if you want to win, you have to play the game the Oscar’s way. The first part of that is delivering a great performance, and if it is based on a real person, even better. Boy does Smith deliver that in spades. He shows off a bit of that established charisma. He gets emotional, volatile, and even a little manipulative in this movie. If the award he seeks was only based on actual acting merits, so far this year I would say he would be a shoo-in for the Oscars. (Unfortunately that is not everything it is based off of otherwise Daniel Kaluuya would have won for best actor four years ago for Get Out instead of Gary Oldman in a fat suit playing Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour.)
The supporting cast is strong as well. Both Sidney and Singleton are great as the superstar sisters. Singleton does not have much to work with as the younger Williams, but she has some of that same charisma as Smith and shows off a believable drive for someone who would become arguably the greatest tennis player of all time. On the other hand Sidney gets to have a few scenes where she becomes emotional and excited. Considering her young age, I think she could become a terrific actress in the future. The most impressive of the rest of the cast are Jon Bernthal as Rick Macci, the enigmatic tennis coach, and Aunjanue Ellis as Oracene Williams, the Williams supportive mother. Bernthal seems to take every role as an opportunity to go as far in any direction he can as a supporter without totally stealing the movie. Ellis is a strong counterpart to Smith throughout the movie as someone who reminds Richard what all his decisions are for and helps his character stay level. Hopefully, she gets some recognition from the academy as well.
I have to go back to the main point again here: Will Smith is doing some of the best acting of his career here. He deserves the recognition of an academy award after the years he has put in. Considering how the academy works with them taking years to recognize an artist for their great work after they have already proved themselves multiple times, I believe it is his year to receive an Oscar. I mean if he does not I will riot alone. Literally, I will go stand on the corner by my apartment and raise a sign saying “Will Smith got robbed last night.”
8/10
Until I see another one