The movie is the story of Tonya Harding, focusing (of course) on the scandal of the attack on Nancy Kerrigan before the 1994 Olympics. The film has a mockumentary framing device, despite being based on true events, as the absolute truth is hard to know here. You get things shaded one way by Harding herself, another slant from her husband Jeff Gillooly, and still another view from her mother LaVona Golden. Whenever the story seems to become too fantastical to be true, up pops one or more of the trio to remind you that, in fact, maybe it isn't, quite.
It's a funny movie, much more so than Oscar typically considers. If it was in the hunt, I think it's because it really does make a sympathetic character out of Tonya Harding. Anyone old enough to remember the original events will know that's as hard a feat as landing Harding's signature triple lutz, as she was thoroughly vilified in the media at the time. (Deservedly so? That's what the movie is asking.) The overall message here isn't obscured: everyone has their own side of the story. There's more to a person than the caricature you might perceive them to be.
The problem is that as the film spoon feeds you that message with one hand, it contradicts itself with the other. Every other character in the film feels as much a caricature as the on-screen Harding protests being reduced to. Everyone is a hapless idiot or a monstrous tyrant... or both, in turn -- everyone except Harding, the only person given a well-rounded treatment by the film. (And that's why it's called "I, Tonya," I suppose.) This construction certainly works to generate laughs and to achieve the primary mission of making her sympathetic, but it very much undermines the core message that there's always a story behind the story.
For me, that's why the movie itself didn't actually warrant Best Picture consideration. But it did receive three other nominations, and each one seems well deserved. First, Tatiana S. Riegel was nominated for Best Film Editing. The editing here is spectacular, from wry cuts to "interviews" for comedic effect to outstanding work putting together the film's many skating scenes. There's great camera placement and visual effects trickery at play too, but the alchemy of it really puts you on the ice for these make-or-break competition moments.
Margot Robbie was nominated for Best Actress for her performance as Harding. Certainly, the script gives her the gift of playing the most realistic character in the film, which helps her stand out. That's not to say she doesn't bring plenty to it, though. She has to play Harding at various ages, has to pop in and out of scenes to directly address the camera, and of course nail all that physicality in bringing the skating to life. It's a very solid performance.
Then there's Allison Janney, who won the Oscar she was nominated for, Best Supporting Actress. Part of me feels like the work she does here is nothing spectacular for her. But she is, without question, one of the most talented actresses working today. I can't in any way begrudge her a win for any particular performance, and certainly not this one. She is great, and since she works primarily on television (prior to this win, anyway), she doesn't have a lot of opportunities to even be up for an Oscar. Sure, give her the statue. She's every bit as funny and hateable here as the movie wants her character to be.
If you watch this movie, I think you'll be watching it for these performances. (And also that of Sebastian Stan, who really sheds his Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier image here as Harding's husband.) But I still wouldn't say you're missing out on a lot if you choose to skip it entirely. I give I, Tonya a B-.
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