Wimbledon - Amor en juego

Wimbledon is a cute story where cute people fall in love, make great love, than have an inevitable and predictable fight in the middle of it all.

Even though this movie follows the formula's of most romantic comedies, it is saved by above-average chemistry with its leads, (Kirsten Dunst and Paul Bettany) and the tennis aspect it is focused around. The romance between Dunst and Bettany works because they share the commonality of their sport, which helps to ignite their relationship.

If you're not a lover of cute sappy moments like barefooted walks in the park or 10 mile jogs resulting in a big cuddle-fest, than at least see this movie for its realistic tennis scenes. These scenes (which were really shot at Wimbledon) are extremely well done, especially those of Bettany's matches, where you can hear his comical inner thoughts before he serves the ball. The scenes reflect the pressure and intimidation that every tennis player must feel once he steps out onto the court.

While Wimbledon is certainly not the best romantic comedy, I left the theater smiling rather than gagging. And for me, that's a good thing.

...comes another romantic comedy, almost exactly like it! Having picked up on the blatant similarities between Paul Bettany and Hugh Grant as foppish, witty Englishmen in Wimbledon, it came as no surprise to me to learn that Hugh Grant had originally been considered for the lead role of Peter Colt. If you have ever seen a film starring Hugh Grant as the lead, you know now what Wimbledon is essentially like and how it is acted because Paul Bettany's tennis-playing character Peter is exactly like a Hugh Grant character--confused, witty and extremely English. While Bettany does not quite have the the charming part down to perfection yet, he is much more attractive than the king of romantic comedies. He is also strangely compatible with Kirsten Dunst and that makes it a nice romance story.

While centering the plot around tennis (Wimbledon, in fact) is fairly uncommon, this is only a disguise for a genuinely ordinary and well-milked premise. Man is out of touch and out of luck and meets a wild, free girl who will help him awake from his sedated mental state and make him feel alive again. Conflicts inevitably rise, because the man and girl are two players in Wimbledon and so there is more at stake than just a love affair; they are both competing to win. In the end, this film is really quite cute and often at least a little funny but believe me when I say it's nothing you haven't seen before. I mostly enjoyed it because of Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau, to be honest.

The sport of tennis serves (no pun intended) as a good background in Strangers on a Train and Pat and Mike. As the focal point of a full feature, it has never produced a solid film. Instead, there would be the occasional lightweight drama like Players (Dean Paul Martin and Ali McGraw) which fizzled back in 1980. Wimbledon, while a marked improvement over the former, does nothing to change the status quo.

Primarily a star vehicle for Kirsten Dunst (Spiderman, Bring It On) and rising star Paul Bettany (Master and Commander, A Beautiful Mind), the storyline is the stereotypic budding romance between Dunst who is the up and coming tennis star, and Bettany, the aging midline star who is trying for one last shot at being champion at Wimbledon. Their romance blossoms much to the consternation of Dunst's father (Sam Neill) who fears distractions for his daughter. There are a few subplots involving Bettany's quarreling parents, his playing partner, and his opportunistic agent (Jon Favreau). It's not too hard to figure who might win/lose or where the romance will lead.

Stars Dunst and Bettany are likable and have a nice chemistry but not much script to work with. There are a few nice lines and situations piecemealed throughout, but the plot is paper thin and the dialogue is unimaginative. This was from the people who brought us Notting Hill and Four Weddings and a Funeral? Ah, look at the credits more closely and Richard Curtis is missing; not even a Hugh Grant cameo is in sight. Sam Neill, Bernard Hill, and Eleanor Bron (Remember her from the original Bedazzled?) are wasted in minor roles. The tennis scenes are somewhat fun with the stars putting their all in the physical matches, but the tennis balls are almost too perfect as the special effects become too obvious.

Bettany is destined for more substantial roles and Dunst won't be hurt by this lightweight comedy/drama. One could only imagine what they could have done with a more lively script and complex characters. Sure it's nice to look at and the stars are a cute couple, but this was a squandered opportunity.

for the record, i never tend to go see movies of this nature, but since Kirsten Dunst is in it, i had to check it out. the main reason why i enjoyed it was pretty much Kirsten. her acting is quite alluring to me. paul bettany did a good too though.

the movie itself though....lacked substance. i can't be too harsh on this film though because i know that it wasn't meant to be an "Oscar Winner". in fact, Paul Bettany said that this was simply a Friday night with friends romantic movie. looking at the movie that way, it was good. but i also happen to be a moderate tennis fan, and the action was pretty cool.

there was very good chemistry between Paul and Kirsten, and the whole romantic aspect was mysterious regarding how the relationship formed so quickly. truth is though, it ain't that funny. sure maybe there's a part in there that makes you half smile, but that's about it. In terms of tennis playing, there were some damn cool tennis sequences. some of the best i would say. but that doesn't really make up for the somewhat empty story-line. all in all, this film ain't too bad. the people that watch it oughta be tennis fans or Kirsten fans (!). other than that, everyone else is just going to be watching another shallow romance flick.

For me, it is exactly the genre of film about who , after a serious critic against superficiality, mistakes, cliches, you say- I like it.

And the motives are not so rare, from Kirsten Dunst and Paul Bettany, to the motivational story ( not the most inspired, indeed ), to the romance, humor - good crumbs of humor- , to the portraits of family.

I desired see it and it not was a dessapointment. Maybe, good occasion to discover , again, few good actors, the mechanism of marriage, some tennis ( in this domain i am real ignorant , so, the pressumed errors about games are not existent ), competition and forms of oldness and happiness in pure form.

So, I like it. It is the truth.