I, Tonya
3.5/4
Starring: Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janney, Julianne Nicholson, Paul Walter Hauser, Bobby Cannevale
Rated R for Pervasive Language, Violence, and Some Sexual Content/Nudity
I find figure skating fascinating. It's visually pleasing and thrilling to watch, yes, but I'm always wondering not only how they accomplish those graceful movements and daring jumps. I'm also wondering what each jump is. "Triple sow cow," "Triple axel," "Triple toe loop..." They all look the same to me. "I, Tonya" actually answers one of those questions, although I'm not sure I got the specifics of it. Doesn't matter. This movie isn't about the mechanics of figure skating but rather one of its most (in)famous personalities, Tonya Harding.
There's little doubt regarding the talent of Tonya Harding. Born with an almost innate ability to skate beautifully, she started winning competitions by the time she was in kindergarten. But success had a price. Mainly, being almost completely controlled by her mother, LaVona Golden (Janney), whose demanding nature bordered on abuse. The humiliation felt by young Tonya (McKenna Grace) when she is forced to urinate on the ice when her mother won't let her use the bathroom is palpable. But it isn't just LaVona who makes her life hell. Despite her undeniable talent (she was, for example, the first woman to perform the triple axel in competition), her trailer trash background and fiery personality did not endear her to the judges, who preferred prettier, more "family values" skaters like Nancy Kerrigan. She also made the mistake of marrying Jeff Gillooly (Stan), a dimwit who abused her and also had dumber friends. It was those connections that led her, however tangentially, to the notorious attack on Nancy Kerrigan (Caitlin Carver).
For the record, this movie is told from Tonya's point-of-view. She was a consultant and has endorsed the film. So be aware of that before making judgments on bias or credibility. Not that that matters, since it's her story that director Graig Gillespie is interested in telling. He's not making a documentary (at least a serious one) and shouldn't be expected to. Gillespie doesn't let Harding off the hook for what happened, but he also alleges that there's more to the story. And before you ask, Nancy Kerrigan hasn't seen the film and apparently has no interest in doing so.
The four lead performances are uniformly excellent. Australian beauty Margot Robbie keeps getting better with every role she takes on, and this is her absolute best. She plays Tonya as a talented woman who knows her gifts and expects to be on a level playing field with everyone else. She also suffers pain from her mother and on/off again husband, but does the best she can. Tonya is a survivor and won't back down from people who won't recognize her from her obvious success. She's a lock on a Best Actress nod, and for good reason. Robbie doesn't just portray Tonya; she becomes her. Allison Janney is getting just as much press, if not more, for her performance as LaVona, the stage mother from hell. LaVona is a nasty piece of work; she's a drunk, always has a cigarette in hand, and rarely says anything without bile and venom. It's a great performance, but she doesn't transform; it's just Allison Janney with admittedly great makeup and lines. With all the attention going to Robbie and Janney, little is given to Sebastian Stan and Julianne Nicholson, who are just as good. Stan hasn't gotten the chance to be something other than a superhero/villain or a heartthrob, and he makes the most of it. Jeff is no stud; he repeatedly beats Tonya and he's also a complete dumbass. It's great work. As the soft-spoken coach Diane Rawlinson, Julianne Nicholson disappears into the role like to the point where she is unrecognizable, just like any good actor should. She doesn't have a lot to do other than be the one stable force in Tonya's life, but she's also the least important character of the quartet.
Craig Gillespie, who directed the charming "Lars and the Real Girl" almost ten years ago, elects to tell this story in a faux-documentary format. The characters are frequently interviewed and they are aware that they are talking to the audience. Sometimes they even break the fourth wall, often in clever ways (there's one scene where Jeff accuses Tonya of shooting a rifle at her; as it happens, Tonya claims that it never happened). While these are cute gimmicks and give the film a lot of energy, they also distance us from the characters. A little more subtlety would have enhanced the film's strengths. Also, for a black comedy, the humor rarely comes across. Just saying.
When the end credits rolled, everyone stayed in their seats to find out what happened to everyone. Gillespie also shows us footage of the real Tonya, LaVona, Jeff and Jeff's even dumber friend Shawn (Hauser), the fat idiot who ruins everything. I can't speak for everyone else, but I stayed because I understood and cared (to varying degrees) about these people. This movie got under my skin, and that's why I'm recommending the film.
Starring: Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janney, Julianne Nicholson, Paul Walter Hauser, Bobby Cannevale
Rated R for Pervasive Language, Violence, and Some Sexual Content/Nudity
I find figure skating fascinating. It's visually pleasing and thrilling to watch, yes, but I'm always wondering not only how they accomplish those graceful movements and daring jumps. I'm also wondering what each jump is. "Triple sow cow," "Triple axel," "Triple toe loop..." They all look the same to me. "I, Tonya" actually answers one of those questions, although I'm not sure I got the specifics of it. Doesn't matter. This movie isn't about the mechanics of figure skating but rather one of its most (in)famous personalities, Tonya Harding.
There's little doubt regarding the talent of Tonya Harding. Born with an almost innate ability to skate beautifully, she started winning competitions by the time she was in kindergarten. But success had a price. Mainly, being almost completely controlled by her mother, LaVona Golden (Janney), whose demanding nature bordered on abuse. The humiliation felt by young Tonya (McKenna Grace) when she is forced to urinate on the ice when her mother won't let her use the bathroom is palpable. But it isn't just LaVona who makes her life hell. Despite her undeniable talent (she was, for example, the first woman to perform the triple axel in competition), her trailer trash background and fiery personality did not endear her to the judges, who preferred prettier, more "family values" skaters like Nancy Kerrigan. She also made the mistake of marrying Jeff Gillooly (Stan), a dimwit who abused her and also had dumber friends. It was those connections that led her, however tangentially, to the notorious attack on Nancy Kerrigan (Caitlin Carver).
For the record, this movie is told from Tonya's point-of-view. She was a consultant and has endorsed the film. So be aware of that before making judgments on bias or credibility. Not that that matters, since it's her story that director Graig Gillespie is interested in telling. He's not making a documentary (at least a serious one) and shouldn't be expected to. Gillespie doesn't let Harding off the hook for what happened, but he also alleges that there's more to the story. And before you ask, Nancy Kerrigan hasn't seen the film and apparently has no interest in doing so.
The four lead performances are uniformly excellent. Australian beauty Margot Robbie keeps getting better with every role she takes on, and this is her absolute best. She plays Tonya as a talented woman who knows her gifts and expects to be on a level playing field with everyone else. She also suffers pain from her mother and on/off again husband, but does the best she can. Tonya is a survivor and won't back down from people who won't recognize her from her obvious success. She's a lock on a Best Actress nod, and for good reason. Robbie doesn't just portray Tonya; she becomes her. Allison Janney is getting just as much press, if not more, for her performance as LaVona, the stage mother from hell. LaVona is a nasty piece of work; she's a drunk, always has a cigarette in hand, and rarely says anything without bile and venom. It's a great performance, but she doesn't transform; it's just Allison Janney with admittedly great makeup and lines. With all the attention going to Robbie and Janney, little is given to Sebastian Stan and Julianne Nicholson, who are just as good. Stan hasn't gotten the chance to be something other than a superhero/villain or a heartthrob, and he makes the most of it. Jeff is no stud; he repeatedly beats Tonya and he's also a complete dumbass. It's great work. As the soft-spoken coach Diane Rawlinson, Julianne Nicholson disappears into the role like to the point where she is unrecognizable, just like any good actor should. She doesn't have a lot to do other than be the one stable force in Tonya's life, but she's also the least important character of the quartet.
Craig Gillespie, who directed the charming "Lars and the Real Girl" almost ten years ago, elects to tell this story in a faux-documentary format. The characters are frequently interviewed and they are aware that they are talking to the audience. Sometimes they even break the fourth wall, often in clever ways (there's one scene where Jeff accuses Tonya of shooting a rifle at her; as it happens, Tonya claims that it never happened). While these are cute gimmicks and give the film a lot of energy, they also distance us from the characters. A little more subtlety would have enhanced the film's strengths. Also, for a black comedy, the humor rarely comes across. Just saying.
When the end credits rolled, everyone stayed in their seats to find out what happened to everyone. Gillespie also shows us footage of the real Tonya, LaVona, Jeff and Jeff's even dumber friend Shawn (Hauser), the fat idiot who ruins everything. I can't speak for everyone else, but I stayed because I understood and cared (to varying degrees) about these people. This movie got under my skin, and that's why I'm recommending the film.
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