The talented American figure skater Tonya Harding hopes to win a gold medal during the 1994 Winter Olympic Games. It is however an event of a completely different order that really puts her in the spotlight. When her rival Nancy Kerrigan is attacked and injured, fingers are soon pointed at Harding and her shady friends.
In this tragicomic biographical drama, we see a telling picture of a talented sportswoman who had always been at a disadvantage since her childhood. Her roots in lower-class America, her hard-as-nails mother and her own sharp tongue make her a strange figure on the ice.
The Australian Craig Gillespie (Lars and the Real Girl, 2007) elects for a framework within which characters look back on the striking events in documentary-like interviews. That provides authentic-looking scenes. The vicissitudes of these larger-than-life characters, performed by an excellent cast, are aptly accompanied by a memorable soundtrack that includes music by Doris Day, Fleetwood Mac and Siouxsie and the Banshees.
Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (Margot Robbie), Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role (Allison Janney) and Best Achievement in Film Editing. Winner of a Golden Globe for Best Performance By an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture (Allison Janney).
As part of Critics’ Choice, the screening of Thu 25 Jan, 21:00 will be preceded by a video essay by Hedwig van Driel en Menno Kooistra.
Film details
- Country of production
- USA
- Year
- 2017
- Festival edition
- IFFR 2018
- Length
- 119'
- Medium/Format
- DCP
