Writer: Ronnie Sandahl
Major Cast: Sverrir Gudnason, Shia LaBeouf, Stellan Skarsgård
Skarsgard, Tuva Novotny, Leo Borg, Jackson Gann, Scott Arthur, and Ian Blackman
Rating: R for language and some nudity
Running Time: 1 hour and 47 minutes
Borg vs McEnroe is a sports drama about the competitive relationship of two tennis players, Björn Borg and John McEnroe. It weaves back and forth between their childhoods, similar in some respects, but opposite in other ways. Borg reached fame and fortune at a young age with his coach Lennart Bergelin never shying away from putting him in his place. McEnroe had just as much athletic prowess, but never found a way to contain it when on the courts. Sverrir Gudnason and Shia LaBeouf portrayed the tennis stars to perfection. You never could accurately match Borg’s facial expressions to his feeling once he stepped into the spotlight, thanks to Gudnason. You always knew when McEnroe was angry and had a no nonsense attitude, thanks to LaBeouf. The time leading up to their 1980 Wimbledon match, with all its pressures and excitement, captures the tournament just as effectively. These two men couldn’t have been more different at face value, but as you learn they are cut from the same stone. One just learned to suppress it and coped with it via destructive ways. The other didn’t suppress it, but had an equally hard time with relationships. Their game is regarded as one of the best games of the 20th century. Borg left the sport in 1983 and McEnroe in 1992.
