King Richard

King Richard (2021) is about Venus and Serena Williams's father. Before his daughters were born, Richard Williams wrote a plan: seventy eight pages on making two children tennis champions. Then he had two daughters and started carrying it out. The family lives in Compton. Training happens on public courts with cracked surfaces; he takes them there every day, collects the balls, and films them for tapes he sends to coaches. Nobody replies. The most interesting thing is his decisions. Once he finds a coach he pulls his daughters out of junior tournaments entirely. At the time that was considered madness; young players rise through the rankings. His reasoning was that children should stay children and not burn out. It was argued over and proved right. The film does not soften him. He is stubborn, controlling and constantly fighting with everyone; in one scene his wife Oracene tells him so directly, and it is the best thing in the film. Will Smith won best actor for it. The incident that overshadowed the ceremony happened the same night. Venus and Serena Williams are among the producers, which leaves a question about whose account the film stands closest to. Aunjanue Ellis was nominated for supporting actress as Oracene. The matches were shot with real tennis players. It runs 144 minutes. Good for: sports drama, true stories, and family films. Less good for: it is long and stands close to the family's own account.