Opening the same week as the baseball flick \Mr. 3000"" and arriving on the heels of the U.S. Open, ""Wimbledon,"" now greets audiences. An American girl meets English boy, predictable romantic-comedy meets predictable sports movie; nothing about ""Wimbledon"" is exactly a match made in heaven. But ultimately, the movie is like the tennis mechanics of its two leading actors: a bit clumsy, a bit slow, and a bit spastic, but ultimately good enough for anyone who would want to see the movie in the first place.
Paul Bettany (""A Beautiful Mind,"" ""A Knight's Tale"") stars as Peter Colt, an aging English tennis player competing in his last tournament at Wimbledon. When he accidentally meets Lizzie Bradbury (Kirsten Dunst), a top young American women's player, the two begin a fling together, which quickly escalates. Riding the energy of a budding romance, Peter advances far into the tournament, against everyone's expectations. But the newfound attention on his love life and Lizzie's overbearing father combine to test their relationship.
""Wimbledon"" is strictly by-the-numbers, both as a sports movie and as a romantic comedy. Co-written by Adam Brooks of ""French Kiss,"" the script relies on clich??s and produces a similarly harmless romantic comedy. But certain key flaws in the script drags the movie down. There is no courtship-the script moves so quickly from first meeting to post-coital banter that the audience never even sees their first kiss, damaging the would-be romantic story. The writers also fail to provide Dunst with any character at all.
But Dunst does nothing to help the character either. She demonstrates here that she is not fit to be a romantic lead. Like Julia Stiles, she is a workman-like actress who can crisply deliver her lines and flash a dimply smile on cue. Neither provides the magnetism or unself-conscious grace of a worthwhile leading lady.
The reason ""Wimbledon"" is still palatable entertainment is the clever direction of Richard Loncraine, the charming supporting cast and the overqualified Bettany. Loncraine keeps the camera work energetic and breaks the monotony of match sequences with a funny inner monologue for Bettany. The supporting cast-particularly James McAvoy (""Band of Brothers"") as Peter's brother and Jon Favreau, typecast as an obnoxious, self-involved agent-lend personality to the vanilla landscape of the major characters.
But Bettany steals the show. In the movie's more nondescript moments, Bettany seems bored. He still plays the jokes, vulnerability, and exasperation to a tee. Even with some of his weaker work here, Bettany overmatches Dunst and demonstrates once again what a charismatic and under-appreciated actor he is, after stealing the screen from Russell Crowe in last year's ""Master and Commander.""
""Wimbledon"" is a deeply flawed movie, from its casting to its writing. But much worse romantic comedies, like ""Two Weeks Notice"" and ""Sweet Home Alabama,"" have become hits in recent years. For audiences uninterested in the artiness of ""Garden State"" and ready to keep low expectations, there is plenty to smile about at ""Wimbledon,"" especially in this dead movie season before the winter rush.
