When Billie Beat Bobby

Starring:Holly Hunter, Ron Silver, Matt Letscher, Bob Gunton, Jacqueline McKenzie, Vincent Van Patten, Elizabeth Berridge, Caitlin Martin, Gerry Becker, Kathleen Gati, Michael Mantell, Kali Rocha, Maureen Mueller, Patrick Kerr, Caroline Aaron, Fred Willard, Emma Cline, Trevor Goddard, Jill Brennan, Kenneth White
Director: Jane Anderson (II)
Studio: Miramax
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

When Billie Beat Bobby is a witty, playful made-for-television feature based on the symbolic if thoroughly commercial 1973 "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match between 29-year-old Wimbledon champion Billie Jean King and 55-year-old pro Bobby Riggs. A lean, muscular Holly Hunter (The Piano) is a superb King, the feminist athlete instrumental in bringing greater equality between male and female tennis pros (men used to make a lot more money than women on the circuit). Ron Silver (The West Wing) is almost unrecognizable as Riggs, a likable if relentless self-promoter who rarely shuts up and seems indefatigable beneath his middle-age paunch and terrible haircut. Yearning to stay relevant in the game, Riggs pursues an attention-getting strategy of challenging top-ranked women players to well-publicized matches. (Despite outward appearances, Silver's inspired performance suggests Riggs was the kind of man who seemed terribly alone despite being the life of an endless party.) After defeating a psychologically unprepared Margaret Court (Jacqueline McKenzie), Riggs shamelessly and publicly goads King into agreeing to a showdown at the Houston Astrodome. Skillfully written and directed by Jane Anderson (If These Walls Could Talk 2), When Billie Beat Bobby takes viewers deep within the backstage machinations leading to the media event, and cheerfully indicates how much the King-Riggs match meant to ordinary people on either side of the feminist debate. --Tom Keogh

Description

Academy Award(R) winner Holly Hunter (Best Actress, THE PIANO, 1993) stars as tennis legend Billie Jean King in this highly entertaining flashback to 1973's historic "Battle of the Sexes." When aging, chauvinistic tennis pro Bobby Riggs (Ron Silver -- ALI, REVERSAL OF FORTUNE) begins to challenge the world's top ladies players, King confidently rises to the test -- not for herself, but to defend the honor of women everywhere. Months of hype culminate in an epic match at Houston's Astrodome that transcends sport and captivates a massive national audience. With a great cast portraying memorable, larger-than-life personalities, this outstanding feature serves up something for everyone.

Customer Reviews:

BRAVO! -- Or Should I Say 'Brava'!.......2006-11-16

Watching this movie made me relive the King-Riggs tournament like it was yesterday. Every detail was period perfect, and the movie matched the exact tone of wit that surrounded that spectacle (or should I say 'circus'?). In fact, this movie gave a lot more depth to it. Those of us who lived through that spectacle only saw the 'pig' side of Riggs, which he played up for all it was worth (a hell of a lot in terms of money!). This film shows the sweet side of the guy, and the fact that he just wanted to feel like he could still compete at his age. I actually felt as much sadness for him when he lost, as I felt extreme joy when Billie won. I have to give director Jane Anderson a lot of credit because she didn't play up that final shot into the net that lost the match for Bobby. I was watching this with three other people and we all started to scream, but the film remained quiet for several seconds. It made us focus on the fact that it not about 'who's better on the court', it's about a feeling of accomplishment - a moment of dignity that echoes to this day. Holly Hunter is just too great for words in this, but I'd match this up there with another film of hers that has the same energy and audacious sense of humor: The Positively True Adventures of the Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom. Ron Silver did an amazing job of showing us that Riggs was in fact, not a cartoon. And more kudos again to Jane Anderson for writing a script that used humor to approach a subject that still divides people almost as much today as it did thirty years ago (I loved the titles at the beginning which read, "this was a time when feminism was a dirty word"!). This is the most fun I've had watching a movie in quite some time!

Charlie Rose with Peter Kornbluh, Arthur Schlesinger Jr. & Alfredo Duran; Billie Jean King & Holly Hunter; Juan Hernandez (April 13, 2001)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Peter Kornbluh, Arthur Schlesinger Jr. & Alfredo Duran; Billie Jean King & Holly Hunter; Juan Hernandez (April 13, 2001)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Educational | Genres | DVD | Video

Description

To mark the 40th anniversary of the failed invasion of Cuba at the Bay of Pigs in April, 1961, some of the original U.S. and Cuban survivors met in Cuba recently for an international conference. Three participants discuss: Arthur Schlesinger Jr., renowned historian and former special adviser to President Kennedy, Peter Kornbluh of the National Security Archive at George Washington University, expert on the Bay of Pigs, Alfredo Duran, Cuban-American veteran of the invasion and member of the CIA-trained brigade 2506. Later, a conversation about the film When Billie Beat Bobby, which tells the story of when Billie Jean King faced Bobby Riggs in the most widely watched tennis match in history, and beat him in a straight set victory. Joining Charlie are Billie Jean herself and Oscar-winning actress Holly Hunter, who plays her in the movie. Finally, a conversation with Juan Hernandez, the first Mexican-American cabinet member in the Mexican government and an aide to President Vicente Fox as head of the Office for Mexicans Living Abroad, which President Fox created after winning the election.

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