McENROE
★★★
OUT 15 JULY / CERT TBC / 103 MINS
DIRECTOR Barney Douglas
PARTICIPANTS John McEnroe, Billie Jean King, Björn Borg
An entertaining if familiar portrait of tennis’ rock god, enlivened by great access to its star, hampered by suspect filmmaking decisions. The first half charts McEnroe’s rise — the temper tantrums, the rivalry with Björn Borg, the partying at Studio 54 — followed by the drug-influenced decline, including a rare look at his failed marriage with Tatum O’Neal. Yet the story is dissipated by director Barney Douglas’ linking device of McEnroe wandering New York at night, randomly answering payphones, and cheap animation designed to put you inside his synapses. The talking heads (Borg, Billie Jean King) reveal little and the film doesn’t really uncover the Superbrat’s demons. Still, McEnroe is great company and the tennis remains sublime.