I, Tonya (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital)

I, Tonya is a 2017 movie that is a blend of drama and dark comedy that is a mockumentary-style biography of former Olympic figure skater, Tonya Harding's (played by Margot Robbie as well as McKenna Grace and Maizie Smith playing her as a child) career. The focus of the movie is the events that surrounded the lead-up to the 1994 Winter Olympics in which Harding's main competition, Nancy Kerrigan (played by Caitlin Carver) was attacked in a plan that was hatched by her ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly (played by Sebastian Stan), and executed by his friend, Shawn Eckhart (played by Paul Walter Hauser). Allison Janney plays (wonderfully) Harding's mother, and pretty much steals every scene she is in. While the events of 1993-1994 were the main focus of the movie, the movie is semi-biographical and details Harding's life from the time she was a kid up to the point at which she retired from skating, and the movie does jump around in time a bit as the story is told. For those who get the blu-ray, the A/V quality is good, about what you would expect of a non-special-effects-laden or CGI-heavy movie. For extras, there is a commentary track on the movie by the director, almost 20 minutes of deleted scenes, trailers, and 15 minutes of behind-the-scenes material that features clips of the real people involved being interviewed intertwined with cast and crew interviews. What was included was good, but you definitely do not get a ton of bonus features. The movie is very good and captures the craziness of Harding's life and the absurdity of the attack on Kerrigan perfectly. Janney, Robbie, and Stan are all great with Janney basically owning the movie any time she is on screen. Even if you were not around for the real-life events the movie is based on, it is still a very entertaining movie that is worth watching, but it is definitely better if you know some of the backstory.

This is one of the better films I've seen this year. The numerous awards (and nominations) are richly deserved. I don't think I have ever seen a clearer depiction of what "being from the wrong side of the tracks" means, both personally and professionally. I realize Hollywood has added some of its own interpretation but if ice skater Tonya Harding describes herself as "trailer trash," what can I say? (The judges say she isn't a "wholesome American.") The quasi-documentary style adopted by director Craig Gillespie ("The Finest Hours") works perfectly to convey the people behind the headlines when Nancy Kerrigan was kneecapped before she could compete against Tonya Harding. Based on Steven Rogers' ("Love the Coopers") script, we see what a demeaning, humiliating, life our would-be champion had to endure. Part of Gillespie's cast: * Margot Robbie ("Suicide Squad") Tonya has the mother from hell, soon replaced by a husband who knocks her around and then claims that she made him do it. We were lucky when this Aussie decided to seek her fortune in Hollywood. * Alison Janney ("Mom") LaVona Golden is demanding, insulting and foul-mouthed; this chain-smoking harpy never has a kind word of support or affection for her hard-working daughter. This is the role of a lifetime for award-winning actress Janney. * Sebastian Stan ("Captain America: The Winter Soldier") Jeff Gillooly is a study in frustration. His self-imposed limitations serve only to justify his misbehavior and poor choices. (Gillooly has since changed his name.) * Paul Walker Hauser ("Superstore") Shawn is Tonya's gluttonous bodyguard. The only thing bigger than his torso is his ego. * Julianne Nicholson ("Law & Order") Diane Rawlinson is the coach every girl should have, she is soft spoken, kind, and supportive. * Bobby Cannavele ("Will & Grace") Martin Maddox is the Hard Copy reporter who tells it exactly as it is. His description of the perpetrators is perfect. * Mckenna Grace ("Gifted") Young Tonya begs her father to take her with him when he leaves her mother. That wrenching scene is a heart breaker. Even though I was familiar with the headlines, I discovered I was a bit fuzzy on Harding's life both before and after "The Incident." They do us a favor and show her amazing triple axel in slow motion. She was the first female skater to successfully perform this demanding routine in competition. The R rating is richly deserved because our resident rednecks (from a suburb outside of Portland, Oregon) lob F-bombs at each other without hesitation. They are violent and abusive, both verbally and physically. I found myself embracing The Mamas and the Papas' "Dream a Little Dream" simply for the change of pace. Be sure to watch through the closing credits because they show us the real Tonya Harding in action! She is amazing!

Whoever wrote the blurb got it right: "Based on the unbelievable but true events, I, Tonya is a darkly comedic tale of American figure skater, Tonya Harding, and one of the most sensational scandals in sports history. Though Harding was the first American woman to complete a triple axel in competition, her legacy was forever defined by her association with an infamous, ill-conceived, and even more poorly executed attack on fellow Olympic competitor Nancy Kerrigan." Nailed it. No more to be said about that. Margot Robbie's portrayal of Tonya Harding is off-the-charts stunning. I mean her performance as an actress and athlete. Never mind that she is among the most beautiful women ever born. Her beauty is there--can't hide it, really--but it's just not part of the performance. (Digression: If you want to see Robbie at her appealing best, watch "The Legend of Tarzan." If you're not in love with Jane Porter by the time that film ends, better check your pulse to make sure you're not dead.) ((Trigression: If you want to view the film that's most faithful to Edgar Rice Burroughs's original "Tarzan of the Apes" novel, watch "Greystoke" with Christopher Lambert. It's still the unparalleled masterpiece among ERB films.)) The less appealing aspects of this film are its reliance on the shock effect of f-bombs, grossly exaggerated character assasination, and frequent ventures into overt political hate-mongering. It could have been so much better without those brainless popular media ploys. These things are incongruous in relation to the quality of the main body of the work. The rest of it is so well done that it leaves me wondering if they were forced to include the crap to buy their way into the theaters.

It is impossible to see Allison Janney's performance in the first 3 minutes of the film, and not be certain she is going to win the Oscar. Allison was not able to meet LaVona, Tonya's abusive, cold, manager/mother, to research her "character" "So," she said, "I just made her up." The "mockumentary" style, perfect for one of the most highly publicized stories in history, uses bits of mock interviews with the characters throughout the movie, and as a segue into scenes, which is how you meet Lavona. Everything in that scene, the set, the script, direction, hair, costume and Allison's performance, gave the audience very little doubt about LaVona. I almost felt like I was in the room with her, thinking I was going to reek of cigarettes and worried she was going to come at me for something! "I Tonya" is a compelling, account of Tonya Harding, the extraordinarily talented, ambitious figure skater, who, despite being so close many times, could not escape the legacy of growing up "White Trash", and succeed in a sport that was not exactly "friendly" to a girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Billed as a dark comedy, "I Tonya" is not exactly the type of comedy that gets big laughs, but Gillooly, and his bungling crew of bone heads provide some comic relief. When Tonya shoots at Gillooly with a rifle, she "breaks character" and addresses the "audience" saying, "I didn't do this," It is kind of a "wink" at the mockumentary style. However, ultimately, this technique, using exaggeration, and deadpan delivery, is intended to illustrate real absurdity, and the tragic aspects of Tonya's life. Just focusing on Tonya's abusive relationship with her husband, and the scandal surrounding the attack on rival skater, Nancy Kerrigan, could have easily translated into an entertaining straight drama. Although it does actually appear to be the focus, I think the intention was to use her difficult upbringing, and the frequent, escalating abuse and domestic violence with husband, Jeff Gillooly as a backdrop for the larger story of classism in the U.S., and the impact the legacy of rural poverty has on generations from that culture. We may not think about the rarity of a story like Tonya's. The likelihood of a girl, especially, making it out of rural poverty at all is practically zero, then becoming a contender for world champion in such an unlikely, demanding sport.....well, that's why it's a story. The question of how much credit should be given to LaVona for Tonya's success is difficult, since she also cannot be exempt from responsibility for Tonya's failures, and the film did not waiver and use license to take sides either way. Another reviewer who grew up in it, calls rural poverty, a culture of "desperation." I have described it as exactly that, although I have just observed someone from that culture, and his life of constant chaos. I would definitely say a learned desperation was responsible for Tonya's circumstances. There is a heartbreaking scene with Tonya only about six years old, watching her Ioving stepfather suddenly driving away, while Tonya screams and pleads to no avail. However, I think it's not always a case of desperation, but the inability to consider future consequences it ultimately creates. I think it develops a behavior of always acting to fill immediate needs, even when there are other options. It is the absence of considered thinking and judgement, and repeated bad decisions made on impulse, that become a devastating life pattern. You see Tonya sabotage herself over and over again, when she actually had some pretty lucky breaks. The Olympic Committee changes the winter schedule, it allowed Tonya a one time chance to compete in only 2 years. They also discontinued compulsory figures and put the focus on jumps. Tonya was the best in the world at jumps. But, she arrives 2 days late, and the whole issue with the lace on her skate, occurred because she didn't bring an extra pair of laces. There was a moment when Tonya fires Diane, a great job, played by Julieanne Nicholson, her coach since childhood, and she throws her skate at her. Diane wasn't hit, but the still shot of of Tonya's face showed in her eyes, that she recognized her mother in herself for the first time. Margot Robbie, a stunning Australian actress who played the gorgeous trophy wife of Leo DiCaprio in the "Wolf of Wallstreet", shows she can also easily pull off a strong, complex character like Tonya, with an excellent performance that is also Oscar worthy. I can only say, it is hard to complete this review without ruining the ending. The script and direction were outstanding in a film that never wavered from its intention to accurately present Tonya's story, and let the audience decide.

I was not expecting this to be filled up with so much sex and violence - mostly violence. And so much swearing. Even when I fact checked this, Tonya herself said that she did not swear that much and she did not confront the judges the way the movie depicts. Like most movies based on true stories, they have to exaggerate everything. I will say, the acting in here was superb. Especially from Allison Janney, who portrayed Tonya's mother. Everyone was extremely convincing and captivating. I know that Tonya Harding had a violent childhood and that's why it was put in the movie, but somehow I felt like we were being hit over the head with it, especially the violence concerning her ex-husband. One minute they were literally beating each other then the next minute it was in your face sex or making out. I guess I was hoping to see more focus on her triumphs in skating, especially since she had such an awful home life, though the skating scenes they did have were good. I just wanted them drawn out and emphasized even more. But I guess the only way people will watch movies anymore is jam packing them with as much sex and violence and drama as possible. Overall, I'm glad I watched it but I probably won't again.

OMG. We liked this movie way more than we thought we would! We never pay to stream a movie but friends of ours said it was good so we took their word for it...and they were right! There was not one lull in the story; it kept our attention the entire time! Excellent acting, excellent soundtrack (despite what critics said, we thought the soundtrack was spot-on and enhanced the story!) We were familiar with the basic story but the movie dived much deeper and seemed to try and stay true to the actual events. It wasn’t until after seeing the movie and being impressed with it that we found out this movie actually got a boatload of awards for various categories (Best Supporting Actress, etc) Can’t believe we had not heard of this movie. *Not a kid friendly movie—some language and some violent scenes.

Slayer

It was eye opening to see the course of Tonya Harding's life. I remember watching her skate in the Olympics when I was a little girl, but then I didn't hear much about her after that. This movie really showed the ugly truths about her upbringing, her marriage, the incident with Nancy Kerrigan, and the way she was treated by the figure skating community. There are some really hilarious moments, but overall a really sad story. It was weird watching Margot Robbie play Tonya because they look nothing alike, but I think she pulled it off really well, and she had to actually learn to skate, which was not an easy undertaking.

Liked it. I had a vague recollection of this story so it was interesting to see these versions. Liked the comic elements to lighten a dark life story. Great acting all round.

Entretenida, buena película biográfica que narra la vida, el auge y caída de la patinadora artística Tonya Harding.

Une performance tout simplement époustouflante de Margot Robbie pour une histoire hors du commun, présenté sous la forme d'une sorte de docu fiction concept où toute cette histoire incroyable prends forme sous le récit d'une vie chaotique dédiée au patinage et parsemée de personnanges hauts en couleurs ainsi que de coups du sorts. Lorsque le destin s'acharne... Dans le genre biopic on n'a pas vu aussi bien depuis longtemps ! Un bluray à la qualité technique parfaite, avec cinq scènes coupées dont certaines auraient méritées de figurer dans le cut final ! Un excellent moment de cinéma, doublé d'une bande originale 80's raccort qui sert le film de façon magistrale, que je conseille pour ma part sans réserves.

This, movie was worth every dollar! Tonya's life is very interesting, but sad. Crazy to see what built up to the main event. Margot Robbie was amazing!

Il dvd è bellissimo, ben fatto ..il film è meraviglioso. E' la storia della vittoria di una donna contro il proprio dolore, una bambina che subisce maltrattamenti nell'infanzia che crescendo diventa una donna vittima di un uomo violento e che finisce coinvolta in una storia nella quale pagherà il prezzo più alto ( oltre alla vittima ovviamente). Tocca il fondo..e si riscatta. Recitazione superba di tutti, l'attrice che interpreta la madre ha vinto l'Oscar..Margot Robbie secondo me l'avrebbe meritato.