I, Tonya

Seen at the beautiful Midland Theatre or Astor Theatre, Ararat, VIC

Cecil says:  I only vaguely remember the Tonya Harding ‘incident’. I

think at that time, I was in a kind of anti-American bubble

where an apparent squabble between two US ice skaters didn’t much matter to

me, and I was pleased neither of them got gold at the Winter Olympics. So it was

quite interesting to see the story told 20 odd years later. 

Harding is a self-confessed redneck (spoken via the

contemporary ‘interviews’ which flick on and off as the

story from the 1990s unfolds), and at one point we are shown a bedroom poster of

Ronald Reagan, suggesting these were working class Republicans. So it felt

like no coincidence that this is precisely the kind of family that would have

voted in Trump in 2016, which felt like the reason anyone would make this film

now.

None of the characters we focus on are attractive or evoke

sympathy in any way, really. The only mitigating theme

running through the film, and certainly Harding’s obsession (understandably), was that of the

snobby judges in US ice-skating preferring the middle class

clean-cut girls Harding was competing against, however talented Harding

herself was. Again, this is the kind of ‘rigged’ system, that led to Trump

being elected,

The domestic violence was graphic, and continued on from

maternal violence in Harding’s youth. It was hardly a

comfy upbringing, and no doubt made her the creature she was.Right at

the end, there is footage of the real people being

interviewed, and you can see how well cast this film was,

with Allyson Janney especially good as Harding’s Mum (I loved the gasps from

the mainly middle-aged audience in our country cinema when Janney first utters the ‘C’ word…).

Funnily enough, having also seen a documentary on Tonya

Harding just a day after seeing the film (again, no coincidence surely), I

would say if anybody was badly-cast it was *** in the role

of Harding herself. In real footage of Harding at the time, she comes across

much more as a little teenage brat than in the film. ** is almost too well-built

and robust in face and body to match the real Harding.

But overall, this was an interesting film to see in the

context of 2018 America. Not a film to enjoy as such or to feel much

identification with the characters – not for me, anyway– but worth seeing

nonetheless.

***

Bea says:  

Coming from a family of keen ice skating watchers (my mother was a fan of Peggy Fleming and at home we always watched any kind of ice skating, both on TV and when we could get to them, live events), I do remember the Tonya Harding incident; and both Tonya and Nancy are about my age, so I was vaguely interested, at the time and now, as they are my contemporaries.  Tonya didn't come out of this very well at the time, and the film doesn't really change that perspective, other than the insight that she didn't really fit the mould of the perfect, middle class, well behaved, thin, (white) girl who wins figure skating championships; although the film shies away from using this as an excuse; Nancy Kerrigan was, after all, from working class stock herself.

More of an insight into Tonya's behaviour is (if true) the abuse she suffered at the hand of her mother and then her boyfriend/husband, although again the film shies away from portraying either of them as all bad.  The real poignancy is the talent Tonya possessed; the excitement of her triple is palpable in the film - what a shame she (allegedly) threw it all away.  Her talent and commitment - that she trains hard and well is in no doubt - was well presented in the film; as was the fact that this particular sport does not place a visible value on this and instead values presentation.  

The film is a great example of the docu-drama genre; I enjoyed the interview/events sequences, and particularly the "real" footage at the end.  Allyson Janney did a star turn as Harding's mother, showing her own talent, and versatility - Cecil and I have been a fan of her for a long time now (since our West Wing viewing days).  Without her though, I am not sure how strong the cast would have been.  The costume designer also did a very good job of recreating the kinds of styles (both clothes and hair) actually worn by ordinary people in the 1980s/90s, and avoided my pet hate - stylised (rather than real life) 80s or 90s clothes with hair and makeup clearly of the current time.

An interesting watch, particularly if you like documentary style films, family drama, Allyson Janney - you don't necessarily need to like (or be interested in) ice skating to take something from this film.

***1/2

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