Tennis films serve up on-court drama

This week marks the start of the U.S. Open Tennis Championships, held annually in New York City, so tennis is on the brain — and on ESPN. This is likely the final tournament in which one of the greatest players of all time, Serena Williams, will compete in her career, so no doubt, eyes will be glued to the hard court for the next few weeks. Tennis is an incredibly cinematic sport, so if the tournament inspires you to do some more watching, here are some tennis movies to keep the volley going.

First up, a new documentary about the legendary, and legendarily hot-headed, John McEnroe. This new film, “McEnroe,” streams on Showtime today and premieres on Showtime on Sunday, in the thick of U.S. Open season. Directed by Barney Douglas, this intimate documentary portrait is set over one night with McEnroe, delving into the psychology that powered his famously fiery outbursts on the court. The film also includes previously unseen archival footage of some of McEnroe’s matches, as well as his home videos.

For more McEnroe, another documentary, “John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection,” was released in 2018, directed by Julian Farault, and taking a more expressionistic approach to understanding the player’s perfectionism. That film is available to stream on Kanopy or for rent on digital platforms. In 2017, Shia LaBeouf played McEnroe in the thrilling “Borg vs. McEnroe,” directed by Janus Metz. The rivalry between McEnroe and Bjorn Borg was legendary, and Metz captures all their differences, and the sizzling tennis that erupted between them during their famous faceoff. Stream it on HBO Max.

For more Serena (and Venus), there’s the 2012 documentary “Venus and Serena,” on Hulu, Roku and Tubi, directed by Maiken Baird and Michelle Major. And of course, don’t forget the 2021 biopic “King Richard,” which focused on their father, Richard Williams, but was also served as a fine biopic for the early childhood of Venus and Serena (the sisters served as producers on the film by Reinaldo Marcus Green). That film is streaming on HBO Max.

Before the Williams family stormed the courts of the lily-white sport, there was iconic tennis player Arthur Ashe, whose life was depicted in the 2021 documentary “Citizen Ashe,” by Rex Miller and Sam Pollard. His career and activism were groundbreaking. Stream that doc on HBO Max.

Another historically significant female player, Billie Jean King, paved the way for women in the sport, especially with her famous match against Bobby Riggs in 1973. That event was depicted in the 2017 film “Battle of the Sexes,” directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. Emma Stone played King, while Steve Carell stepped into Riggs’ sneakers. Rent that film wherever you find movies online.

Finally, for something a bit lighter, Jake Szymanski’s 2015 mockumentary “7 Days in Hell” stars Andy Samberg and Kit Harington as dueling tennis players muscling their way through a grueling weeklong match. Stream that on HBO Max, and enjoy the late-summer/early-fall tennis season.