Show Cute u I e Cute u e Cute u e an and 0 ut ore Chris Kaltenbach The Baltimore Sun SUIt They meet cute play lay tennis cute and certainly look cute Trouble is that's as involving as this movie gets Wimbledon is an attempt to play out Bull Durham on grass to do for tennis what that great 1988 film did for baseball baseball baseball base base- ball make it seem hip dramatic and most of all sexy But it has nowhere near the edge of the earlier film which was as smart as it was erotic sadly Wimbledon is neither Paul Bettany is Peter Colt a year 32 old has-been has on the pro tennis scene about to play in what he he- resignedly decides will be his final tournament Not coincidentally Colt is British and the tournament is Wimbledon best to go out in front of the home crowd But all this was decided before Cole meets Lizzie Bradbury Kirsten Dunst a shooting star on the women's circuit who's pretty brash and American Lizzie makes Peters Peter's heart go all flutter a-flutter not surprising since his first glimpse of her heris heris heris is nude through a shower curtain and suddenly hes he's got instant inspiration which translates to some pretty intense level champion-level tennis Problem is what's motivation for Peter Peteris is distraction for Lizzie whose pro over overprotective overprotective overprotective father Sam Neill sees the run run- up ner-up writing on the wall and does his gatekeeper best to keep the young lovers apart With predictable success Possibly greatest failing failing fail fail- failing ing is its determination to be everything at once sports movie romance psychological psychological psychological psycho psycho- logical study light comedy Sometimes it gets things right the film is most perceptive perceptive perceptive per per- when Peter in voice-over voice narration narration narration narra narra- tion gives words to his thoughts during a match but too often it depends on formula formula formula for for- mula and trick photography to further its S r rb r. r 0 b bf it 0 o Zd f s ro rI Jr J f r a 4 r f I rI 2 J Bettany and Dunst team up for new tennis movie Wimbledon story The special effects come when the movie strains to make the actors appear to be genuine tennis players The tennis balls are all creations while the actors' actors movements are speeded up to tomake tomake tomake make them appear more athletic But neither neither neither nei nei- ther Bettany nor Dunst looks like a tennis player Bettany is neither rangy nor muscular muscular muscular mus mus- cular enough while Dunst is forever destined destined destined des des- tined to appear more the cheerleader than the one being cheered for To be fair both actors try hard and when the action moves off court they slide into their parts well enough Dunst is especially good as the sassy American though the script by Adam Brooks Jennifer and Mark Levin barely develops her character at all while Bettany acts properly conflicted Although hes he's playing the best tennis of his life at what could prove the most inopportune time hes he's unable to consciously consciously consciously con con- ratchet-down ratchet his performance Jon Favreau has some funny scenes as the sports agent who represents both players as well as seemingly everyone else on the circuit and director Richard TVs TV's The Gathering Storm handles things with a professionalism professionalism professionalism that keeps things palatable Still too little believable action and too much sports-movie sports cliche can we forever er retire the breathlessly trite play by play broadcasters are always reduced to in the movies make Wimbledon the cinematic equivalent of a careless foot fault |