Break Point Review: Netflix’s Post-Serena Williams Tennis Documentaries

Tennis can just be a problem on its hands.

Even the most casual tennis watchers must have been aware of certain facts: the dominance of Serena Williams on the women’s side, and the triumvirate of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. gentlemen. With Williams and Federer now retired and Djokovic and Nadal likely deep into the second half of their careers, the star-studded sport finds itself rapidly losing the figures that had consumed all the oxygen for years.

It gives “Break Point” a chance. Coming from the same production team behind “Formula 1: Drive to Survive,” Netflix’s delightfully watchable sports series features characters relatively early in their careers that the series will eventually root for. Die-hard and even casual tennis watchers might find it rudimentary – at one point, for example, the basic rules of the game are explained to us – but those looking for a primer on who’s up front and the pressures they face as they try to establish themselves. it would be good to check this.

As for those challenges: Ultimately, one problem with big celebrities dominating the tennis media is their general reluctance to let us deep into their worlds. Here, aspirants with little to lose let us in on their hotel rooms, their pre-match preparations, their post-game moments of excitement or despair. The five episodes, starting January 13th, will feature Taylor Fritz, an ambitious Californian desperate to win her home state Indian Wells, and Paula Badosa, a talented Spaniard whose hometown moment at the Madrid Open is behind her. own mental health struggles.

Challenges like those faced by Badosa are presented with sensitivity and reflection, supported by voice-over interviews with retired superstars like Maria Sharapova and Andy Roddick who testify to the pressures of the court. This hardly seems necessary – the material is strong enough – and if anything, “Break Point” can come across as a little too sensitive to player experience. Nick Kyrgios, the self-proclaimed “bad boy” of tennis, gets an ingrained sympathetic makeover for his time at the 2022 Australian Open; all of this before allegations of assault against Kyrgios’ ex-girlfriend came to light later that year, putting his bright and ultimately uplifting “Break Point” story in a different light.

However, this is one episode (the first, but still); Mainly, “Break Point” does a good job of balancing conflicting desires — showing us people living through a high-stakes single-elimination tournament, both as athletes and as people who have to find ways to end the downtime. According to the former, filmmakers are very lucky to make television about a sport that is very easy to dramatize; Well-chosen shots make any player look like a potential next Williams or the next Federer. And for the latter, subjects appear to be chosen both for their willingness to grant access and their ability to forget the presence of cameras. One player’s anger and frustration at losing practice time due to splashing rain sticks on memories is not bad behavior on the part of the diva, but an expression of a complete lack of control over her circumstances.

And when played well, tennis is all about control! Which makes for such an interesting contrast to the bombastic, puffy hours these athletes spend on laptops in hotel rooms, once again mired in their doubts and insecurities. “Break Point” heavily supports the use of cameras that capture thoughts in those moments, and helped turn a once-serious viewer who hasn’t had time for the sport since Sharapova’s heyday into someone sitting through this year’s shows. grand slams. For the filmmakers behind this project, it’s game, set and match.

Pictured above: Taylor Fritz. The first five episodes of Break Point will be released on Netflix on Friday, January 13, with five more episodes to follow in June 2023.