Battle of the Sexes, TIFF review: Emma Stone and Steve Carell carry disjointed tennis crowdpleaser

Dir. Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris, 121 mins, starring Emma Stone, Steve Carell, Andrea Riseborough, Sarah Silverman, Bill Pullman

It’s been over 40 years since tennis players Billie Jean King faced Bobby Riggs in a nationally televised exhibition match, the build up and conclusion of which remains as astounding to this very day. Refusing to let male misogyny dominate the courts, King led the fight against gender inequality in a sport where women were so shockingly - and blatantly - deemed inferior. Directing duo Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine) have recounted these events in new film Battle of the Sexes, a disjointed biopic that frustratingly settles for pleasing the crowds rather than wowing them.

The film’s jumping ground sees King, fresh from her 1972 US Open win, learning of the United States Lawn Tennis Association’s new prize fund which sees women players offered eight times less than men. In an admirable move, King - to the ire of ATP co-founder Jack Kramer (Bill Pullman) - rashly announces her very own circuit, exclusive to women, in an attempt to bring about equality for her peers. “What’s a Grand Slam without the world’s best women players?” King asks boldly, here played with a buoyancy only reigning Best Actress Oscar champ Emma Stone could manage. "Not so Grand." Mic drop.

All this captures the attention of Riggs (Steve Carell), a former world number one facing a very different battle at home with his wife (Elisabeth Shue on delightful form) who's sick of his serial gambling. Carell throws himself into the role, yet again moving leaps and bounds away from the memorable if throwaway comedy roles he was clocking in just a decade ago. King's announcement sees the chauvinistic-and-proud Riggs eye an opportunity: he challenges her to a match in a bid to prove his belief that men are better tennis players than women.

Dayton and Faris have a clear grasp on the story they’re telling, directing from a screenplay written by Simon Beaufoy. It’s a shame, then, their grasp is too firm. A tale such as this - uplifting and often shocking (the sexism showcased in the real-life 70s TV reports will leave you open-mouthed) - should inspire creative flair but there’s rather little to be had here. Thankfully, the capable supporting cast - including Sarah Silverman's heavy-smoking promoter and Alan Cumming's designer Ted - provide the heft not so much necessary than desired for a film based on a story of this calibre.

King’s marriage to Larry and the affair she begins with hairdresser Marilyn (Austin Stowell and Andrea Riseborough, both impressive) is an interesting twist, initially directed in sensuous close-up, but it devolves into nothing more than a tool for tension. Will Billie's fractured mindset affect the result of her match against Riggs? A fair question rendered rote when the titular battle arrives failing to dish out the emotional notes that previous build up promises.

It’s hard to think of this biopic as anything more than a film targeted at those already familiarised with King’s extraordinary story. Consequently, it leaves behind the inescapable feeling that a younger generation discovering her bravery for the first time will be in need of a follow-up Wikipedia search. Battle of the Sexes tells King’s story admirably but does little else, too afraid to push the envelope like its subject did all those years ago.

Battle of the Sexes will be released in the UK on 22 November