Review: Tennis comes 2nd in inspirational ‘King Richard’

Will Smith plays Richard Williams in the new sports drama “King Richard,” about the rise of tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams

“ King Richard ” is exactly what you think it will be, which isn’t a bad thing.

This is the story of the father of tennis greats Venus Williams and Serena Williams when they were just a few (extremely) talented kids from Compton trying to break into the elite sport with little more than heart and persistence. Will Smith stars and produced. The Williams family was involved. Beyoncé did an original song. It has “Oscar bait” written all over it.

But the difference between this and your run-of-the-mill “bait,” which is too cynical a term to glom onto something that’s so sincere, is that “King Richard” is good. It’s moving and inspiring, even if it’s not exactly inspired. And perhaps most importantly, it doesn’t do too much glossy revisionism on behalf of its complicated and flawed central subject. It just lets the contradictions live and the movie, and Smith’s performance, are richer for it.

Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green (“Joe Bell,” “Monsters and Men”) off a script by Zach Baylin in his first credited screenplay, this is the story of Richard Williams (Smith), a father who, along with his wife Brandy (Aunjanue Ellis), has big plans for his kids. This focus may immediately rub some the wrong way. Why the father and not the tennis superstars? Well, it’s an interesting part of two of the best stories in American sports.