Every so often, I see a movie with the wrong main character. Pacific Rim had the wrong main character. If you make a story about an earnest newcomer desperate to prove herself under the guidance of a grizzled but retired mentor, the mentor is not the main character. That’s pretty basic. King Richard falls into the same trap. You know what’s interesting? Seeing the two greatest tennis players in the history of the sport come of age. You know what’s not particularly interesting to me?
A fawning biopic of their stage dad.
King Richard is well made and wonderfully performed. But it throws a lot of talent at the wrong targets, and wastes two excellent performances in doing so.
“I think you might just have the next Michael Jordan.”
Richard Williams (Will Smith) is a hustler. Driven by a seemingly prophetic belief in his daughters’ destinies, he pushes them – and himself – relentlessly. His wife, Oracene (Aunjanue Ellis, very good here), works days; Richard works nights as a security guard. They take turn training their two daughters, Venus (Saniyya Sidney, a phenomenal find) and Serena (Demi Singleton, sadly underused), and pushing the others to study. They train in the rain and the sun, at night and in the day. He pushes them so hard that a neighbor calls Child Protective Services on them.
Eventually, Richard’s hustle nets him an opportunity to meet with a legendary California tennis coach, Paul Cohen (Tony Goldwyn). Paul is skeptical, but a short session watching Venus and Serena convinces him that they’ve got the talent to back up Richard’s spirited praise. Right away, however, there’s tension. Paul only takes on Venus, and he wants her to follow a fairly traditional path to tennis success. He enrolls her in a series of Juniors tournaments, meant to get her practical experience on the court against her peers, while Brandy helps train Serena, mimicking Venus’ lessons. Richard thinks there’s a better way to do things.
Worried about being taken advantage of, Richard pulls Venus out of Juniors and away from Tony’s mentorship. Instead, he seeks out Rick Macci (Jon Bernthal), who runs a fancy tennis bootcamp in Florida. With support from Rick, Richard moves his whole family to Florida (except for Tunde; bye Tunde) and enrolls Venus and Serena in the bootcamp, promising Rick a percentage of their future earnings. But with Venus and Serena banned from playing in tournaments by their father, where will that money come from? And when will the sisters step out of Richard’s shadow and find success on their own terms?
“Oh no, brother-man. I got me the next two.”
So, right away, you might notice something.
Why is Richard the main character of this story?
There are obvious reasons. Will Smith is the biggest star in the film by a mile, and Smith doesn’t like playing second fiddle. Will and Jada are producers on the film, too. Maybe they exerted some control? But then, Venus and Serena are also producers, giving the film their stamp of — well, not authenticity, but support. Indeed, the whole Williams family worked on the film. They offered script feedback, worked on costuming. They were involved in every layer of the film. Hell, they helped pick the director.
Still, these two forces together do explain some of the film’s strangest elements. The film downplays that Richard’s behavior was frequently abusive. He is obsessive and controlling. There’s little room for his children to want anything. Do they have friends? Do they date? What do Venus and Serena want, other than to do what they’ve been trained since birth to do? You certainly won’t get an idea of it from this film.
What’s more, King Richard breezes by some of the… shadier aspects of Richard’s character. In a powerful monologue, Brandy talks about working herself to the bone teaching the kids, putting up with Richard’s abandoned businesses, having children of Richard’s she knew nothing about show up at their doorstep without warning. It’s a strong monologue, and Aunjanue Ellis, excellent and down-to-earth in a world of big performances from Smith and Bernthal, delivers it well. But there’s a problem.
We never saw any of that.
The film is relentlessly on Richard’s side. Brandy is a self-sacrificing heroine working tirelessly to get her daughters a better life while her husband flirts with scheme after scheme. He did? When? What were they? Why did they fail? What children? When did that happen in their lives?
King Richard‘s powerful last scenes have a similar problem. Saniyya Sidney is incredible throughout the film as Venus, and she flawlessly captures the tension, yearning, and confusion of a young person thrust into a spotlight bigger than anything else she’s felt. Demi Singleton is underused, but still really strong, as she deals with being left behind by her older sister, who gets more training and exposure earlier. Are they competitive? Does Venus’ success put any strain on their relationship? How does Serena react to being left behind?
The film has no interest in that. Just like it has no interest in Richard’s failed ventures. And it has no interest in his motives. King Richard is a movie about how being a stage parent is Good, Actually. So of course it isn’t too interested in how the children feel.
King Richard is not a bad film. Hell, Will Smith’s performance is big, certainly, but it was good. This is definitely the most I’ve seen Smith dig into a role in ages, and it was great to be reminded about how genuinely talented he is. Will Smith is one of the most effortlessly charming human beings alive. He coasts on that sometimes. Never here. And, not to harp on how good Saniyya Sidney and Aunjanue Ellis were, but I really hope this leads to more high profile work for them, because they were truly excellent.
But King Richard is a film that is less than the sum of its parts. Not a badly made film, but definitely a less powerful one than it could have been. Richard Williams is a complicated and interesting figure. In King Richard‘s best moments, they capture that internal conflict. Richard wants his children to be successful but emotionally healthy; he also wants the spotlight. Richard recognizes that Venus and Serena will be an inspiration to Black girls the world over; he also constantly overrides and takes advantage of the girls and women in his life. A less hagiographic film might be able to dig into these contradictions. King Richard is not that film.
The thing about being less than the sum of your parts, however, is that those parts might still be damn fine. King Richard is a crowd-pleasing, feel-good sports drama. That’s a formula that works, and it’s a formula the film delivers on pretty well. The performances are excellent. The period set dressing and costuming is mostly quite good. And can you think of another inspirational sports film starring a Black girl? I can’t. Director Reinaldo Marcus Green captures those (too-sparse in the Richard Story, but still powerful) moments perfectly.
Perhaps, rather than saying that King Richards is less than the sum of its parts, I should say this: King Richard has phenomenal parts,and when they come together the movie absolutely shines.