Wimbledon

It's a romantic comedy. Let's face it: it's not going to be winning any Oscars. For its genre though, it was a very enjoyable movie and even a step up since the romance was often, in a way, the B storyline. A fairly unique premise and excellent work from Paul Bettany as usual. Bernard Hill, James McAvoy, Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau and Jon Favreau gave memorable performances also, but Kirsten Dunst left a little something wanting.

The camera work and narration was different and very interesting. I also liked that the "roles" were reversed and it was told more from Peter's point of view

9/10.

"Wimbledon" is another one of those agreeable, English-flavored romantic comedies which in years past would have starred a stammering Hugh Grant. This time the principals are professional tennis players and the setting is Wimbledon. Paul Bettany makes for a good romantic lead in the Grant mold without the latter's sometimes annoying cloying and also is convincing as a tennis player at the tail end of his career. But Kirsten Dunst, the love interest, while giving a very likable performance, does not look her part. She also is not helped by the screenplay, which does not present her as a particularly compelling match. In fact, the character seems more like one that usually would be set up as the rival, missing the elements of the "intended". Further causing the film to come across less than compelling: Every character, save one, is nice, making it nearly conflict-free. Not a waste of time, but nothing memorable, "Wimbledon" is a tension-free, pick-me-up: The movie equivalent of a lightly-flavored carbonated water: effervescent, but lacking any distinct taste.

This film is about a failing professional tennis player recapturing his glory through an unlikely romance.

Though I do not normally care for tennis, I am captivated by "Wimbledon" The plot is predictable and formulaic, but still it does not stop me from enjoying it. Both Paul Bettany and Kirsten Dunst are brilliant and adorable, and have great chemistry together. They are so sweet, and makes a perfect couple! The tennis sequences are exciting, and I particularly like the shots where they simulate the view from the tennis ball, being shot to the ground then back up.

So, there is finally a date movie that both boys and girls will enjoy. Romance for the girls and tennis for the guys. It's a great combination. I enjoyed "Wimbledon" a lot.

...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.

Straight off I have to make something clear, I wasn't really looking forward to watching this. A romantic comedy movie from some of the Working Title team based on Wimbledon didn't exactly set my pulse racing. I did not want another comedy from this stable, for me Love Actually had stretched the idea enough for me.

So after seeing it I'm very surprised I enjoyed it so much. Despite the rom-com badge and the almost unbelievable premise of Wimbledon it's actually very entertaining and the focus is very much on the com side of that genre label.

Movie The movie has a lot of style right from the very cool opening credits. The filming of the tennis scenes are well done and keep the flow of the movie going. Imagine showing all the crucial Tennis matches for two players climbing through the stages in Wimbledon without the story going dull and the cinematography going into a standard and repetitive style? Well it doesn't, it's almost matrix-esue in it's style in fact. For sports and romantic films, it certainly breaks the mould.

Putting aside the style and the fast paced music, what about the story? Well it's actually got a few twists which are quite unexpected and although it does tread typical ground, the turns are enough to keep you guessing as to the outcome and keep you hooked.

Neat the finals this really does come out and I was very surprised to find myself on the edge of my seat for some of the points, and indeed some of the matches.

It's very funny too, and Paul Bettany shows a particular talent for timing, comedy and looks on camera. It's Bettany that really carries this movie backed by strong performances by Kirsten Dunst, Sam Neill and some smaller British filled roles for Bettany's characters family.

Bettany is totally believable from playing the tennis matches through to the romantic moments. His acting talent shows through amazingly well and is aided by a fantastically written script with some truly funny moments. In particular the self talking moments when we travel inside the head of the tennis player during a match. They seem to capture perfectly the moments of self doubt we all seem to have, quite insightful.

Sound Presented: English - Dolby Digital (5.1) Sporting an excellent Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack at times you can hear the ground around you applauding, or the sound of a ball going past. When a moment of dialogue appears everything is dialled down and there's no attempt at over use.

Picture Presented: Widescreen 2.35:1 Anamorphic Something that struck me was the potential to have the screen be overpowered by the greens of Wimbledon and with the traditional weather there was a thought that the movie would look too dark and dull. Neither is true.

The picture is sharp and vibrant through the movie, clear and bright and very colour rich, it retains this look through even the more complex of special effects match shots.

Extras Presented: Audio commentary with Richard Loncraine and Paul Bettany, 'Welcome To The Club' featurette, 'Ball Control' featurette, 'Coach A Rising Star' featurette, 'Wimbledon: A Look Inside' featurette, Trailers The featurettes are about how the tennis was filmed, how the actors were trained, looks inside Wimbledon itself, and some further looks into the movie. They are quite short and interesting, but they aren't the main draw here, they just serve as distractions from the superb audio commentary from Bettany and the director Richard Loncraine.

Insightful, funny and quite revealing, we hear much about the behind the scenes, shots that never were and how the actors got on together. This was one of the better commentaries I've heard and well worth listening to. Both Bettany and Loncraine are funny and self depreciating, typical British humour.

Overall It's a funny and very enjoyable movie, actually quite a surprise and in a way actually funnier than Love Actually. It also seems to capture the inner dialogues that people face daily very well, as well as some of the other dialogue being nailed rather well. Bettany shines in this film and it shows the huge talent that he has.