I, Tonya -- 1994 FS Scandal Biopic

[FigureSpins]

In December 2017, a biopic will be released called I, Tonya, exploring the 1994 figure skating scandal.  No big surprise - this story is revisited every year around Worlds or the Olympics. 

My DH thinks foam crowbars should be sold at all FS events because he's snarky like that.  I'm so over the story and its aftermath, but here's an interesting tidbit:  Tonya Harding is apparently getting back in shape (and even skating) for the premiere. 

http://people.com/crime/tonya-harding-biopic-i-tonya-skating-again/

[AgnesNitt]

I've read a couple of comments from judges who admired Tonya and thought the punishment was too severe.

[skategeek]

Trailer for the movie just got released.  Looks interesting.  Apparently Margot Robbie is getting Oscar buzz. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2iy5y0YjGM

Mod note: link edited

[AgnesNitt]

I just saw the trailer on Variety. It looks pretty good. Is it bad of me that I remember the costumes?

[FigureSpins]

"I, Tonya" opens December 8th, 2017.

There are live special events in California starting on 12/7:

Special Appearance! I, TONYA - Movie​ star Margot Robbie and director Craig Gillespie will appear in person at ​The Landmark​ in Los Angeles for a Q&A on December 7 at the 7:00pm show, December 9 at the 4:25pm show, and December 10 at the 1:35pm show! Buy advance tickets here:
Dec 7: http://bit.ly/2hG5JOj
Dec 9: http://bit.ly/2z97CLa
Dec 10: http://bit.ly/2iooB1k

ETA: Looks like these live events are almost all sold out.

While everything says it opens on the 8th, most US movies start on Thursdays, which would be 12/7.

Anyone want to meet up and see "I, Tonya?" 

[skategeek]

I'm all for it!  (Not heading to LA, though...)  But I just checked and according to Fandango it appears to be getting a very limited initial release (maybe in time to qualify for Oscar consideration?).  Only two theaters in my general area, both in NYC.  I'm not sure I'm dragging myself into the city to see it.  Maybe if we get critical mass of people going.  Meanwhile I'll have to hope it does well and gets a wider release later.  Is it playing at more places near you?

[FigureSpins]

I think it's going to play in our area - I went to check times and the sites say to wait until next week's schedule is posted.

[skategeek]

Maybe the full schedule here just hasn't gotten posted yet.  I'll check again next week.

ETA:  I checked one of the multiplexes near me and it only lists two movies total for Dec 8, so I guess the schedule just isn't up yet, at least on Fandango.

[Query]

Trailer for the movie just got released.  Looks interesting.  Apparently Margot Robbie is getting Oscar buzz. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=143&v=d2iy5y0YjGM

I tried that link. One sees a bunch of trailers for other movies.

According to

  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5580036/
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I,_Tonya

the movie will be called "I, Tonya".

Neither Tonya nor Nancy will play themselves. (Unless they plan to add shots from contemporary videos? That would make sense - not many female contemporary skaters who could imitate their moves and styles, and those that more or less could, might not get skating organization approval to do so while retaining amateur competitive status.)

Personally, I've seen their story often enough not to need another recap, but perhaps some of you will find it interesting, or can use it as a teaching platform for a discussion on what constitutes good sportsmanship, as well as what kinds of behavior make an athlete attractive or unattractive for product endorsements and the like.

The USFSA lifetime ban limited Tonya's employability in the U.S. But some perceived as having behaved badly have found some employment outside the U.S., in places like China. For some reason, Tonya did not. I wonder if she tried.

[skategeek]

I tried that link. One sees a bunch of trailers for other movies.

According to

  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5580036/
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I,_Tonya

the movie will be called "I, Tonya".

Neither Tonya nor Nancy will play themselves. (Unless they plan to add shots from contemporary videos? That would make sense - not many female contemporary skaters who could imitate their moves and styles, and those that more or less could, might not get skating organization approval to do so while retaining amateur competitive status.)

For some reason the link I posted initially has a timestamp added that puts you at the end of the trailer, so you have to click the Play button to "restart" it, but it's there.  The thumbnails are for other Youtube videos recommended for you by Youtube, partly based on your prior viewing. 

This link will run the trailer automatically from the beginning: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2iy5y0YjGM

Margot Robbie learned to skate for this movie, though I think I read that they've got someone else doing some of the more difficult moves.

[Isk8NYC]

The trailer worked fine for me, without clicking Play, but I updated the post link.  Here's another trailer, I think it's the same:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZbTLdDHRvs

[Isk8NYC]

Margot Robbie learned to skate for this movie, though I think I read that they've got someone else doing some of the more difficult moves.

I read that they used movie magic for the triple axels since there are so few women skaters who can land it.  Say what you want about Tonya, but she was a great jumper!

[Query]

I read that they used movie magic for the triple axels since there are so few women skaters who can land it.  Say what you want about Tonya, but she was a great jumper!

I've seen some skating movies where they obviously used movie magic on the jumps - you could tell because the trajectories didn't make any sense. While they were in mid-air, they stopped falling for a second or so. I wonder if the makers of this movie will do any better.

It is now perfectly normal to use stunt doubles for actors and actresses in film, to do the most athletic things. High end athletes have to spend most of their lives up to that point training to be high end athletes. Good actors and actresses have to do likewise - but they mostly have to train doing different things.

I still think it would make sense to use Tonya and Nancy's own jumps in the movie - perhaps with a little computer magic to make them look like the actresses playing them. You get the best realism by using the real thing. Plus, it is even possible the USFSA and the ISU wouldn't want a currently competitive skater to double Tonya, in a movie that portrays her sympathetically.

But there are only so many remakes and rehashes I am willing to pay to watch. I think most of us have seen it all before.

[Query]

Lots of people are still making hay from the old scandal:

Ashley Wagner, More Figure Skaters Discuss Tonya Harding and I, Tonya Ahead of Winter Olympics

Tonya Harding Paintings and Merch Are For Sale at THNK1994 Museum in Brooklyn (The scandal even has its own museum.)

I guess scandals involving high profile people are useful, in that they educate the general public about what behaviors are considered appropriate. America has recently been "blessed" by a remarkably large number of high profile individuals, in the political, entertainment and sports arenas, seemingly doing their best to educate the public by their disgraceful behavior. 

Why is it that good behavior receives so much less attention?

[Isk8NYC]

The I, Tonya film and the lead actress have been nominated for a Golden Globe award.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/2018-golden-globe-nominations_us_5a27124de4b044d16725998c?utm_hp_ref=golden-globes

[lutefisk]

The I, Tonya film and the lead actress have been nominated for a Golden Globe award.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/2018-golden-globe-nominations_us_5a27124de4b044d16725998c?utm_hp_ref=golden-globes

And we all thought public sessions were already getting crowded--after seeing this movie everybody and their brother will be out down at the rink!

[lutefisk]

Looking at the Huff Post link leaves me wondering:  Is I, Tonya a "musical" or a "comedy"?  I don't see any mention of it under best original score or song and I'll bet Nancy K. isn't laughing.

[FigureSpins]

Follow-up interview - meh.  Best part is the "Triple Axel" drink.  Something for your Olympic viewing parties:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/10/movies/tonya-harding-i-tonya-nancy-kerrigan-scandal.html?_r=0

... a drink the owner created just for her. It has vodka, Bacardi 151, watermelon liqueur, orange juice and pineapple juice. It is called the Triple Axel, because no one would understand if you called it the Tonya Price.

[AgnesNitt]

I saw an interview with her on ABC. She's got a heck of waltz jump and a double something.

[FigureSpins]

My DH wanted to see this movie, so we went to a 5pm showing yesterday.  There were about a dozen people in the theater and boy, did they know a lot about figure skating.  (No, seriously.  I wasn't the only person noting that the court ruling effectively kept Tonya from earning a living in the only field in which she had experience.  Her only option was to go to Europe and tour, but apparently, no one would give her a break.)  The actress who played the mother was incredible-you really felt that she was in the dictionary under "toxic."  The husband was a wifebeater and Tonya gave almost as good as she took.  (She nailed him in the groin during almost every fight.  It was like an Adam Sandler script.)  The rest of the characters were "boobs," as one of the characters mentioned and they knew it, often breaking the fourth wall to give us their thoughts and insight.  I felt like the entire movie was an SNL skit gone wild - outrageous, over-the-top violence, language, humor and stupidity.

Funniest part: they showed the real people at the end and the mother really did let someone interview her with a bird on her shoulder, pecking at her ear, ROFLOL!   It walked the line between excusing the crowd of boobs and trying to make it seem like they got off easy.    I would have been happy to wait for this to hit cable/streaming but it was worth it to cheer last night's Oscar win.  (I still say William Defoe, from The Florida Project wuzrobbed.)