L'empire de la perfection (2018)

L’empire de la perfection: Directed by Julien Faraut. With John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Mathieu Amalric, Gil de Kermadec. A documentary set at the final of the 1984 French Open between John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl at a time when McEnroe was the world’s top-ranked player.

“u0026quot;When I walk out there on court, I become a maniac… Something comes over me, man.u0026quot; John McEnroeu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eJohn McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection is the documentary we have waited a lifetime for: The titular tennis titan was photographed decades ago by cinematographer Gil de Kermadec but never so well displayed as in this perfect documentary by Julien Faraut using Kermadecu0026#39;s footage. Call it a u0026quot;found footageu0026quot; doc if you will.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eFarautu0026#39;s engaging approach is to have minimal but incisive voiceover while using often the ¾ view to concentrate on McEnroeu0026#39;s body and language to understand the range and passion of his perfectionism. Few documentaries are able to get inside the artistu0026#39;s head the way Faraut does.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAlong the way is a good portion of entertainment as McEnroe berates line judges, chair referees, cameramen, and spectators, all of whom he probably believed couldnu0026#39;t know the sport as well as he.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHis petulant u0026quot;superbratu0026quot; mien makes engaging sports viewing, and Farautu0026#39;s doc is equally so but with a deeper desire to understand the tennis bad boyu0026#39;s motivations. Although seeing this film brings us closer to McEnroeu0026#39;s demons, it doesnu0026#39;t completely explain them. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eFaraut seems to believe that McEnroeu0026#39;s constant competitor is himself with the understanding that everyone should know that the forces of competitiveness and perfectionism account for his eccentric and erratic behavior. Given Serena Williamsu0026#39; recent outburst, this remarkable doc helps us understand better our gifted athletes.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026quot;What is the single most important quality in a tennis champion? I would have to say desire, staying in there and winning matches when you are not playing that well.u0026quot; McEnroe”