‘Battle of the Sexes’ is a barely muted rallying cry for our time
The intermittently excellent “Battle of the Sexes,” centering on the notorious tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, takes us back to a time – 1973 – when female tennis stars were regarded as second-class citizens compared with their male counterparts and often earned far less. You could certainly argue that, contrary to this movie’s uplifting, forward-looking messaging, a disparity remains. Still, the rampant inequality and condescension on view here is a startling reminder.
