The most Hollywood-like chapter in history of Croatian sports was made by Goran Ivanišević, a tennis player who won the men's singles title at Wimbledon in 2001. Ivanišević's journey, marked by repeated close calls and failed attempts to win the prestigious tournament in 1990s, made him a source of ridicule in his own country and by the end of decades he was all but written off as “has been”. In 2001 he even had to be invited rather than qualify for the touranment. However, during two magical weeks in 2001, he defied all odds and won the title, returning to Croatia as a national hero. Many began to wonder whether Hollywood would try to exploit such underdog story, and the answer came only three years later with Wimbledon, 2004 romantic comedy directed by Jonathan Loncraine.
The film was made mostly for the audience in English-speaking countries so the script, written by Adam Brooks, Jennifer Flackett, and Mark Levin, very conveniently and very predictably, changes the nationality of Ivanišević's fictional alter ego to a British protagonist. Peter Colt (played by Paul Bettany), is a professional tennis player at the twilight of his career, who is considering retirement. Due to his poor rankings, he competes at Wimbledon only thanks to being invited. While training at the grounds, he meets Lizzie Bradbury (played by Kirsten Dunst), an up-and-coming American female tennis player who seeks Wimbledon as a springboard for world tennis stardom. The two are immediately attracted to each other and start a whirlwind romance, which has different effects on each other's performance at the grounds. While Lizzie loses, Peter somehow finds strength and inspiration to beat his favored opponents and reach the final.
Despite the general premise being tailor-made for a Hollywood-style sports film, Wimbledon is actually produced as a romantic comedy, and, more to the point, British romantic comedy. The film exploits the concept of "cool Britannia," heavily promoted during the early years of the Blair government. The few spots in Britain are as "cool" as Wimbledon during the Championship, when that part of London transforms into a magical place that is both very English and cosmopolitan, where tradition meets modernity through aristocratic individualistic sport being played by "cool" beautiful people.
However, director Richard Loncraine uses Wimbledon as a mere backdrop for a very weak and clichéd story. The locations might be authentic, and the actors might be given some basic tennis lessons and made expert players via CGI when they can't perform. But Wimbledon actually has less to do with tennis and more with a simple love story, here and there spiced with some lame joke or celebrity cameo.
What ultimately rescues this film are the performances of the two leads, mainly Paul Bettany, who works hard as the troubled protagonist whom the audience cheers as an underdog. He has good chemistry with Kirsten Dunst, who bravely fights with a rather thankless role of the protagonist's generic romantic partner.
Wimbledon is a watchable, bland, and inoffensive film about beautiful people getting good things, which isn't that far from real life if you happen to be a top tennis professional. So, the film isn't that far from real life. However, those not interested in tennis or scripts based on real history will have problems remembering Wimbledon.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
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