No love in Wimbledon

Wimbledon

Director: Richard Loncraine

Cast: Paul Bettany, Kristen Dunst, Jon Favreau, Sam Neill, Bernard Hill

Cert: 12.

We are, you must understand, in the land of wild and unbelievable fantasy with this sporting film; it is, after all, about a no-hoper Brit, way down the professional lists, who conquers the famous tennis tournament.

Now that really is fantasy, so in accepting the film there is, in a manner of speaking, strings attached.

There are brief moments when it’s actually not a complete stinker. Bettany, said hero who makes it into the event by gaining a wild card, falls in love with rising American star Kristen Dunst, whose parents (Neill plays her father) reckon it a major distraction. Such a pairing makes for a certain sweetness since both do play well off one another. There are also some half-decent jokes and bits of business.

But the overall screenplay is dismally weak and the film could have done with going into a decider to achieve what it didn’t manage during the opening sets.

Star Rating: 2/5