73
Metascore
46 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90The Hollywood ReporterTodd McCarthyThe Hollywood ReporterTodd McCarthyJust about everything about this film is winning and gratifying.
- 80VarietyPeter DebrugeVarietyPeter DebrugeThe outcome is widely known, but the backstory proves boisterously entertaining — and incredibly well-suited to the current climate, as King was both fighting for her gender and exploring her sexuality in 1973, when the widely publicized face-off happened.
- 80Screen DailyFionnuala HalliganScreen DailyFionnuala HalliganServed up with star turns from Emma Stone and Steve Carell, Battle Of The Sexes slams a crowdpleaser across the net.
- 75The PlaylistGregory EllwoodThe PlaylistGregory EllwoodThe conflicts are obviously real, but there is something about the tone that’s just off through most of the picture.
- 75The Film StageJordan RuimyThe Film StageJordan RuimyAlthough it may be lacking originality, Battle of the Sexes is finely-tuned storytelling that has been consummated by real pros.
- 67The A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskyThe A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskyThough told in broad strokes, its version of the story deserves credit for never buying into the hype and surreal pageantry of the Astrodome showdown. But its lack of interest in tennis as a sport leaves the narrative—plastered with hot-button issues and character crises—with an empty center.
- 63RogerEbert.comBrian TallericoRogerEbert.comBrian TallericoIt’s not a “bad” film, but Billie Jean King’s story could have been so much deeper. It’s a movie that doesn’t hit nearly as hard as she did.
- 60The GuardianBenjamin LeeThe GuardianBenjamin LeeIt’s a decent tennis movie, solidly told and choreographed, but it’s in the film’s depiction of a same-sex romance between King and her hairdresser, played beautifully by Andrea Riseborough, where things truly comes alive.
- 58IndieWireDavid EhrlichIndieWireDavid EhrlichThis is a film that admires — even awes at — Billie Jean King, but it doesn’t share her commitment to the game. If anything, it has more in common with Riggs than it should, moving with the sluggishness of a player who underestimates their opponent.
- 50Slant MagazineChristopher GraySlant MagazineChristopher GrayBattle of the Sexes sacrifices some of its innate appeal by making ham out of the supposed relics of a less enlightened era.