There are two good reasons why we might not know it: (1) the case is relatively blowuped only by American media, and (2) figure skating is not the most popular sport in Indonesia, far under the kite. However, in his time Tonya Harding is a figure skating athlete who is very famous for his bad name. In 1994, he and his ex-husband Jeff Gillooly were allegedly involved in a beating incident during the Winter Olympics practice injuring fellow athletes figure figure skating Nancy Kerrigan.
Therefore, Harding is labeled one of the most hated people in America. Even after his career was shattered, he was still a media hype. This is a sad story. But I, Tonya is not a sad story; rather than the fitting blend of absurdity, tragedy, and irony. He became sad just because we sympathize with Harding. This film not only makes us know Harding but also humanize it.
And the key that made her successful was Margot Robbie's performance as Tonya Harding. Robbie is no longer the sexiest wife we've ever met in The Wolf of Wall Street. When we see it, we see different characters and are fully realized. Robbie makes his character inspirational but could have slipped into a personal anger of pity.
Of course, Tonya is a pity. It is a product of domestic violence and toxic relationships. As a child, he was often struck by the abusive mother, LaVona Golden (Allison Janney) who forced him to assume that all of his fellow skaters were enemies. Tonya then became acquainted with Jeff (Sebastian Stan) who was sweet and kind ... at the beginning, before they shouted each other or hit heads to glass or hit or pointed guns. The problem is that Tonya feels that he deserves it. He married Jeff, quarreled, left her, and came back tomorrow.
Surprisingly, the anger fueled him to perform brilliantly on the ice rink. He became the first American woman to successfully perform a "triple axel", one of the most difficult maneuvers in figure skating. Tonya is a figure that is not so identical with the image figure skating beautiful and beautiful. He is explosive, unambiguous, and mouthed, but can not be casually thrown out of the figure-skating world thanks to his extraordinary determination and capability. It's amazing how he can find time to practice and join the competition, while working part-time, fighting with Jeff, and sewing his own costume.
Robbie's appearance as Tonya Harding is not just a physical transformation; In fact, Robbie is not very similar to the original Tonya. He does not impersonate, but brings the deepest side of Tonya making it a three-dimensional character. The story, its appearance feels real. Throughout my vision, Robbie mostly performs his own skating scene (okay, maybe not with "triple axel"). The scene is highlighted gracefully, capturing the beauty and excitement of the figure skating sport. The camera seems to be silent, even when outside the rink.
The film is directed by Craig Gillespie, who along with scriptwriter Steven Rogers, packs his film in a documentary-style framework where the movie begins with figures interviewed two decades later. Not only from Tonya, Jeff, and Lavona, but coach Diane Rawlinson (Julianne Nicholson), Shawn Eckhardt (Paul Walter Hauser) henchman, to tabloid "Hard Copy" (Bobby Cannavale) reporter who made Tonya's story a national sensation, a chance to speak up.
Gillespie worked on his movie in a fun way, like using freeze frames to interrupt narration, a character who talks directly to the audience through breaking the fourth wall, or uses a fun track to confirm the moment. When put together, we get an ambiguous "fact" because the narrator is untrustworthy. They mutually deny the story of another character. And I think it's good when the movie does not try to cram the truth to us. Everyone has their own story versions of an event.
Neither Tonya nor Jeff claimed to be involved in the beating of Nancy Kerrigan, although basically they did have a relationship with the incident. The incident itself can be spelled out because of incompetence, not so different from that done criminal duo Fargo. The story is made by Tonya bodyguard, Shawn who lives in the house mama but he said he had taken international antiterrorist training, so silly, we can not believe that he is a real figure.
The allusion to America and the public that makes Tonya a laughing stock, in my opinion, is not that sharp. What really strikes me is how fun and lightweight the film makes Tonya Harding a complicated character but still we can empathize. He is a victim, but he has also done a bad thing. It could be another story if Tonya is not surrounded by abusive people. But maybe he will not get his predictions as a best figure skating athlete if he is not pushed so hard by his mother. Robbie gets us on Tonya's side. We still do not understand him, but now we may start to like him.