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Sweden, Denmark, Finland · 2017
Rated R · 1h 48m
Director Janus Metz Pedersen
Starring Sverrir Gudnason, Shia LaBeouf, Stellan Skarsgård, Tuva Novotny
Genre Drama, History
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The Swedish Björn Borg and the American John McEnroe, the best tennis players in the world, maintain a legendary duel during the 1980 Wimbledon tournament.
Pity that Metz exhibits so little interest in delineating the play styles of the players, in capturing what made them the best. Borg Vs. McEnroe all but tells us that we’re seeing the greatest tennis match of all time. But it doesn’t show us.
CineVue by Christopher Machell
With LaBeouf giving the performance of his career and a well-told story that hits all the right beats, Borg vs McEnroe may just well go down as a great tennis film.
What we’re left with is a staid little movie that races around the court and rallies itself to exhaustion, a historical drama that enshrines the narrative underpinnings of all great sports stories without doing anything to upend them.
ScreenCrush by E. Oliver Whitney
Borg/McEnroe isn’t a complete misfire, just more of a missed opportunity. Metz’s artful direction, the taut final match and LaBeouf’s rage-fueled antics are worth the ticket price alone. But it leaves you wondering how fantastic a full-on LaBeouf-McEnroe biopic could’ve been.
Screen International by Fionnuala Halligan
A love-all crowd-pleaser for the most part, more Borg than McEnroe thanks to an arresting performance from lookalike Sverrir Gudnason.
The Film Stage by Jared Mobarak
It’s a worthwhile document of tennis history and that of two of its greats.
The Hollywood Reporter by John DeFore
An acting-forward sports film capable of engaging viewers who don't know their 30-loves from their birdies or hat tricks.
The Playlist by Kevin Jagernauth
Just as many sports movies before have done, and many more will after, Borg/McEnroe shines a light on the sacrifices necessary to achieve greatness. It’s just a shame that the movie itself doesn’t have the same ambition
The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw
This tennis film feels like a two-hour baseline rally, and it’s not just the rackets that are made of wood.
When the big tennis finale arrives, Metz finds all sorts of ways to make the match interesting, blending urgent music, creative camera vantages and ridiculously hyperbolic announcer commentary to generate the desired tension. But the real reason we’re invested is far simpler than that: Metz and his cast have made us care about both Borg and McEnroe by this point.
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