Rent I, Tonya (2017)

Very unpleasant beginning to the movie. - I, Tonya review by FMJ

I have to say we did not watch it all. The first 20 minutes were full of bad language, horrible attitudes and child abuse. You might say in that respect it was an accurate portrayal of the real life story. I would just like to have been warned before our family sat down to enjoy a movie for the evening. I suspect from the reviews it became more inspirational later on.

An education! - I, Tonya review by HM

In your face real slice of life movie. Margot Robbie hits the spot portraying a 'bad background' overbearing parent abused young woman. How do you make it in the genteel world of ice skating when your parents are one up from trailer trash? Well now we know.

Tonya is a feisty aggressive personality determined to make it despite the walls falling down around her. Her shortcomings are not disguised in any way, but I found myself cheering her on. A tragedy and an education, the movie had me sucked into the back office of the glamourous ice skating arena.

So glad I watched it and sharing Tonya's liking for heavy rock music, I loved her whole approach to performance, however it didn't sit well with the establishment; hillbillies meet middle class America. Loved it.

Uncompromising, humorous and possibly true... - I, Tonya review by WH

Hard-hitting biopic shot in a quasi-docudrama style. Brutal at times, but nevertheless told with a lot of humour; highly entertaining with fantastic performances from Margot Robbie and Alison Janney. It's an interesting overview of the sport and a new look at a one time renowned personality - although oddly, the actual 'incident' whilst referred to a lot, gets very little coverage and Nancy Kerrigan barely gets a look-in....

Brilliant film!

Don't expect Torvil and Dean! - I, Tonya review by DW

We watched this at the weekend alongside Three Billboards Outside Ebbing and felt, afterwards, that we'd been witness to a very ugly slice of American life. Both films are full of verbal and physical violence from beginning to end, evidencing only the meanest view of humanity and, in the case of I, Tonya, cruelty of the most extreme kind delivered from mother to daughter, from husband to wife. Tonya Harding being the daughter and wife in question. Poor Tonya, who deserved better, we're sure.

This, of course, is the narrative/history presented to us in this film but periodically we are invited to bring a note of skepticism to our viewing by frequent documentary-style inserts, each of the main characters stating to camera what "really happened" in the history of Harding's ice-skating career and its ultimate, tragic demise.

These changes of direction, in contrast to the main fiictional (?) narrative, often provided odd elements of humour which sometimes contrasted uncomfortably with the tragedy of Harding's life and the waste of her talent.

I could remember the "incident" which brought her career to an end but not much detail so it was interesting, if often depressing, to watch the story unfold. I was curious about how the skating sequences were filmed as it looked as though Margot Robbie was as impressive on the ice as she was at playing Harding. One of the extras provided the answer, and the mind just boggles at the genius behind it!

Quite humerous biopic - I, Tonya review by CP Customer

A different Margot Robbie in this biopic based on interviews of all the characters in Hardings later skating life. Alison Janney is also convincing as Hardings disturbing mother. This news story had passed me by and so it was all new to me. The fourth wall was often broken by direct lines to the audience. All in all this was a decent film that kept me interested

Tonya and Nancy, not such big hit in the 21st Century (see what I did there?) - I, Tonya review by The REAL Film Cricket

At the time, the media sensationalised what was in truth a sordid event which turned out to be so petty and pathetic that it could only have ever been filmed in this mockumentary style. Amazingly what happened had little bearing on the competitors involved until the court case.

Harding’s story is told from the point of view of Tonya herself, her ex-husband and her estranged mother and at no point are we led by the nose to say who is telling the truth. I actually liked that about this film. We have to make our own mind up.

Margot Robbie definitely brings Harding to life and does not sugarcoat her side of the story. She is a victim of her mother who shapes her warped outlook on the world but nevertheless she is still mean and vindictive too – was she made that way or was that nature already there? Only you can decide. Likewise, her mother is allowed a voice and again she isn’t sugarcoated, she’s mean and tough but she does have a motive for it. Alison Janney brings her tremendous talent to this role and you could not have asked for a better actor to bring the ‘wicked-witch’ to the screen but somehow get sympathy for her. It’s a tough life and she had to be tough – maybe not that tough, but you know the reason.

Sebastian Stan and Paul Walter Hauser play the almost Laurel and Hardiesque team of the vicious husband Jeff and the truly idiotic fantasist Shawn. I have to admit that the crime that these two perpetrated was mean and vicious and could have ended Kerrigan’s career and even mobility permanently but even bearing this mind their portrayal at times had me laughing more than any full-on comedy. In particularly Hauser’s portrayal of the so stupid, it hurts bodyguard and hitman was a triumph. More problematical is the role of Jeff, was he a violent abuser or was Harding painting him in a bad light to take the spotlight off her? Who knows the real truth? Real abusers never own up to it and her description of events does fit in with exactly how abusive relationships work out. But you do have to make your own mind up.

Having a North American relative who was involved in figure skating I have been told first hand about the snobbery and how the cards are stacked in favour of certain competitors no matter what. In fact, he left to train people instead because the competition was truly uncompetitive. So Tonya Harding’s frustration at the way she was treated despite her talent rings true. She did complete that triple-axel no matter what anyone else says.

Did she have prior knowledge? Was she treated unfairly in the aftermath? Unfortunately, if you read comments on this film and the events involved then the American public, in particular, have made their minds up. Me? I’m not so sure. You? Well watch the film, do a bit of reading, put your prejudices to one side, and make your own mind up. I think as a film in this respect it’s mission accomplished.

The skating scenes involving Robbie are magnificently the done and the overall feel of the film, with regard to the time-period and attitudes more than often hits the mark than misses. Is it fair to the real-life participants in this affair? Who really knows but I think the film-makers really tried their hardest to be fair.

Overall this is a great fun movie about a fairly serious topic and it does make you laugh, wince and even cry at the right moments without being jarring. In my view that is a very hard thing to pull off, most films that try this fail.

I, Tonya is a great entertaining film, has it shed a new light on the Nancy Kerrigan event? Well it has brought the public back to the event for a short-while to discuss it and it does not lead you by the nose – so as the film says also, I say make your own mind up.

A brilliant comedy drama that depicts a scandalous and rebellious life - I, Tonya review by BG

Craig Gillespie's 'I, Tonya' is a revelation for anybody expecting a dull sports movie. The 'kind of' based on reality tale of ice-skating rebel Tonya Harding's bumpy rise and startling fall from grace in the world of ice skating, it hardly sounds like killer stuff for a movie (and even less attractive for a sports-movie phobic like me), but it's a belter of a good time. Assisted by a breathtakingly sassy and sarcastic script littered liberally with punchy f-bombs (this is NOT one to watch with the kids), Margot Robbie is absolutely brilliant as Tonya Harding, helping us to admire her bravery and sassiness even when we're being astonished by how foul-mouthed and nakedly ambitious she is. Sebastian Stan (best known as 'Bucky/Winter Soldier' in the Captain America movies) also gets to deploy much greater range than ever before, portraying childhood sweetheart and occasional awful husband 'Jeff'. Providing a great many of those f-bombs (and a lot more swearing besides) is Allison Janney as 'LaVona' - Tonya's affectionless mother and frequent bully, determined to verbally brutalise her daughter into excellence even if it half-kills her.

If all of the above sounds a bit gruelling, I've no doubt that the reality probably was. However, in order to lure us in and keep us watching through all the tough stuff of what is a remarkable life, Gillespie and co give us a brilliant blend of whip-smart, startling comedy. This helps soften the hard edges, but also places us in the palm of his hand for the rarer more affecting moments, like when a desperately frustrated Tonya begs a judge to tell her why her ice-skating scores are so low despite her great technique, or when she tries to connect emotionally with the thoroughly alarming LaVona.

The filming is brilliant and kinetic, the skating sequences thrilling, and the (widely publicised) criminal conspiracy is jaw-droppingly absurd and enjoyably tense in equal measure. Paul Walter Hauser also deserves special mention as a 'bodyguard' so dense and self-deluded that it takes your breath away.

Flashy, brash as hell, clever, challenging (there are some brief but startling scenes of domestic violence), very adult and regularly very funny, 'I, Tonya' isn't really a 'sports movie'; it's a brilliant and very close-to-the-knuckle comedy drama about a very unusual sports-person. And it's terrific fun.