Borg Vs. Mcenroe
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Presents BORG VS. MCENROE A film by Janus Metz 100 mins, Sweden, 2017 Language: English and Swedish, with English subtitles Distribution Publicity Bonne Smith Star PR 1352 Dundas St. West Tel: 416-488-4436 Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M6J 1Y2 Twitter: @starpr2 Tel: 416-516-9775 Fax: 416-516-0651 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] www.mongrelmedia.com @MongrelMedia MongrelMedia LOGLINE Logline: BORG VS. MCENROE tells the story of the epic rivalry between brash American tennis legend John McEnroe (Shia LaBeouf), and his greatest adversary, the reigning world champion Björn Borg, which came to a head during the 1980 Wimbledon Championships. SYNOPSIS Featuring a tour-de-force performance from Shia LaBeouf as tennis great John McEnroe, the kinetic sports thriller BORG VS. MCENROE is based on the dramatic true events behind one of the sport’s most famous rivalries. At the historic 1980 Wimbledon Championships, rising American star McEnroe sets his sights on dethroning reigning champion Björn Borg (Sverrir Gudnason, “Wallander”), sparking an unprecedented media frenzy in the tennis world. At the center of the hype, two legendary tennis icons’ with polar opposite personas and approaches to the game; McEnroe, infamous for his brash, ferocious energy on the court and his equally spectacular, expletive-fueled tantrums, versus Borg’s coolly composed, elegant style of play which complements his unflappable public demeanor. However, both men are hiding deep anxieties, locked in battle with their inner demons. On the court, each athlete brings his immense talents –– and handicaps –– to bear in one of the most suspenseful events in sports history. Stylishly directed by Janus Metz (Armadillo), and also starring Stellan Skarsgård (Avengers: Age of Ultron) and Tuva Novotny (Annihilation), the international award-winner BORG VS. MCENROE is a riveting examination of this clash of fire and ice and the dedication required to win it all. FILMMAKER AND CAST BIOS: FILMMAKERS Janus Metz (Director) With Armadillo (2010) director Janus Metz (born 1974) stepped firmly into the international limelight winning the Grand Prix of the acclaimed critics programme, Semaine de la Critique at the Cannes Film Festival. His Danish breakthrough came in 2008 with the two films, Love on Delivery & Ticket to Paradise. Metz’ body of work also include shorts, commercials, art films and music videos. In January 2015 Metz directed episode 203 Man is the Cruelest Animal of the critically acclaimed HBO series True Detective starring Vince Vaughn, Colin Farrel and Rachel McAdams. Ronnie Sandahl (Screenwriter) born in 1984, is a Swedish journalist, director and writer. Sandahl began his career as a wordsmith already at the age of 14, when he worked as a reporter at the local newspaper in his hometown of Falköping. Journalism brought him to Stockholm where he worked for the tabloid Aftonbladet until 2008. The year before that he published his first novel, Vi som aldrig sa hora(We who never said whore), which received a lot of public attention because of its dark and critical portrayal of the male role while growing up in Falköping. His feature film debut Underdog (2014) with Bianca Kronlöf marked Sandahl’s big screen breakthrough. It has so far won dozens of awards and citations at film festivals all over the world. Niels Thastum (Director of Photography) As a graduate from the National Filmschool of Denmark in 2009, Niels Thastum has from the get-go shown great talent with a distinct creative nerve. His style is characterized by an intimate and expressive tone that captures the viewer. As a result, Niels has proven to be one of Scandinavia’s most sought after cinematographers on both commercial projects as well as on longer forms such as features and documentaries, where his ability to create exiting and evocative imagery truly comes to show. His feature debut When Animals Dream, directed by Jonas Arnby, made it to Cannes and furthermore Niels won the Danish Bodil for Best Cinematography and won Best Cinematographer Debut atCamerimage. His next feature, In the Blood, which was featured at Toronto Film Festival, won a Bodil for best Danish film. CAST Sverrir Gudnason (Björn Borg) born in Iceland in 1978, got his breakthrough on the TV series How Soon Is Now? (2007) but made his stage debut already as a child at Stadsteatern in Reykjavik. When Sverrir moved to Sweden he enrolled in the high school theater program in Stockholm and has since appeared in numerous films and TV series, both in Sweden and Denmark. At the Shanghai International Film Festival 2009 he won an award for his role in the Swedish/Danish film Original (2009) and has received two Guldbagge Awards, the first for his performance in Waltz for Monica (2014), and the other for Blowfly Park (2015). In 2016, he played the lead role in Pernilla August’s A Serious Game. Shia LaBeouf (John McEnroe)’s natural talent and raw energy have secured his place as one of Hollywood’s leading men. This spring, Shia will be seen portraying tennis great, John McEnroe in the drama Borg vs McEnroe. The film shows the rivalry, friendship and personas of Björn Borg and John McEnroe and how they became international superstars, both within the athletic world and mainstream culture. The film premiered to rave reviews at last year’s Toronto Film Festival and critics heralded LaBeouf’s performance as “perfection,” “flawless” and “explosive.” Shia recently reunited with director Alma Har’el and is currently filming the drama Honey Boy. The film, which also stars Lucas Hedges, follows a child actor and his law-breaking, alcohol-abusing father as they try to mend their tumultuous relationship over the course of a decade. LaBeouf and Har’el collaborated on the documentary, LoveTrue, which she directed and he executive produced. Shia recently wrapped production on The Peanut Butter Falcon, co-directed by Tyler Nilson and Mike Schwartz. The film, also starring Dakota Johnson, Bruce Dern and Zachary Gottsagen, follows a young man with Down syndrome who runs away to pursue his dream of becoming a professional wrestler. Shia was most recently seen starring in the critically acclaimed independent film American Honey, a coming-of-age drama about a gang of law breaking teenagers chasing the American dream. His performance earned him a British Independent Film Award nomination for “Best Actor,” a London Critics’ Circle Film Award nomination for “Supporting Actor of the Year,” and an Independent Spirit Award nomination for “Best Supporting Male.” Prior to that, Shia co-starred in the post- apocalyptic thriller, Man Down alongside Gary Oldman, Jai Courtney and Kate Mara, the war drama Fury, directed by David Ayer with Brad Pitt and Logan Lerman, the Lars von Trier’s drama, Nymphomaniac, a film about a self-diagnosed nymphomaniac who recounts her erotic experiences and the suspense drama Charlie Countryman, opposite Evan Rachel Wood, Mads Mikkelsen and Melissa Leo. LaBeouf starred in Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which marked his third and final turn as the enterprising and heroic Sam Witwicky. From the original Transformers released in 2007 (which earned over $700 million around the world in theatrical release and became the highest grossing DVD of the year) to the second installment in 2009, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, (which garnered global receipts upwards of $836 million,) Sam continued to find himself in the middle of a life and death struggle between warring robot legions on earth. Additional film credits include Robert Redford’s The Company You Keep, Lawless alongside Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman and Guy Pearce, Oliver Stone’s Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps opposite Michael Douglas, the fourth installment of Steven Spielberg’s “Indiana Jones” series, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, alongside Harrison Ford, D.J. Caruso’s Eagle Eye, the Anthony Minghella- scripted segment of New York I Love You, a romantic anthology, the popular thriller Disturbia, the Oscar® nominated animated film Surf’s Up, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, which won “Best Ensemble Cast” at the Sundance Film Festival, Emilio Estevez’s acclaimed drama Bobby, The Greatest Game Ever Played, I, Robot, Constantine, Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, HBO’s “Project Greenlight” featuring The Battle of Shaker Heights produced by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck and in 2003 he made his feature film debut in the comedy Holes, based on the best-selling book by Louis Sacher. In 2007, Shia was named the “Star of Tomorrow” by the ShoWest convention of the National Association of Theater Owners, and in February 2008 he was awarded the BAFTA Orange Rising Star Award, which was voted for by the British general public. In addition, he was nominated for four Teen Choice Awards for Transformers, winning the Breakout Male Award, the Teen Choice Award for Movie Actor in a Horror/Thriller for his performance in Disturbia; as well as a Scream Award. In 2004, he was nominated for the Young Artists Award for “Leading Young Actor in a Feature Film” and the “Breakthrough Male Performance” at the MTV Movie Awards for his performance in Holes. On television, LaBeouf garnered much praise from critics everywhere for his portrayal of “Louis Stevens” on the Disney Channel’s original series “Even Stevens.” In 2003, he earned a Daytime Emmy award for “Outstanding Performer in a Children’s Series” for his work on the highly-rated family show. In addition to his work in front of the camera, Shia has also directed several projects including music videos for Kid Cudi and Marilyn Manson. LaBeouf currently resides in California. Stellan Skarsgård (Lennart Bergelin) born 1951, became a teenage idol for his performance in Bombi Bitt and Me (1968) but his real breakthrough came with Hans Alfredson’s The Simple-Minded Murderer(1982), which won him a Guldbagge and a Silver Bear at the Berlinale.