John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection finds the mercurial tennis legend at the height of his career, documenting his quest for perfection, his frustrations, and the hardest loss of his life, against Ivan Lendl at the 1984 French Open.
Narrated by Mathieu Amalric (Grand Budapest Hotel, Ismael's Ghost), using unseen 16mm footage from the Roland-Garros film archives, this immersive film showcases the iconic grace, infamous temper and unique style that powered McEnroe’s incredible hunt for tennis perfection.
Far from a traditional documentary, director Julien Faraut probes the archival footage to unpack McEnroe’s devotion to the sport, creating an utterly unique portrait of a driven athlete, a study on the sport of tennis, the human body in action, and finally how these all intersect with cinema itself.
Julien Faraut
2018
France
English/French
95 MIN
M
Offical Selection: Berlin Film Festival 2018
"✭✭✭✭ Quite simply the greatest tennis film ever made and one of the finest documentaries to honor any sport."
- MovieNation.com
"✭✭✭✭ Fascinating.
Faraut strips down tennis; de Kermadec's footage strips down McEnroe's soul."
- EyeForFilm.co.uk
"✭✭✭✭ A benchmark cinematic experience. Even non-fans of sport will easily remain enraptured."
- IonCinema.com
"As thrilling a vision as you're likely to see on a screen this year.
Doesn't just put us courtside - it steeps us in the legend's boiling mind."
- Village Voice
"A sports documentary unlike any other. Looks at the game through the lense of film theory, recasting one of its most emotional and demanding athletes as something of an auteur."
- IndieWire
"A beguiling and compelling piece of cinema...Breathtaking to behold."
- Austin Chronicle
"McEnroe isn't treated like an athlete but an artist."
- Battleship Pretension
"Outstanding. Takes on the drama of an opera.
Sport might tell the truth, but perhaps only cinema can capture it."
- TheFilmStage.com
"An idiosyncratic meditation on tennis, cinema, human behaviour, maybe even life itself.
One-of-a-kind."
- LA TImes
