Being Serena

It's high-toned and visually sumptuous, and when it's sentimental, it is sentimental almost in spite of itself, with the result that it is often authentically moving.

Being Serena is a bit too rapt with its subject, and a little overindulgent. ... Then again, it is groundbreaking to even examine a woman’s athletic career with such rigor; to assume, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that her legacy-making career matters even after she has had a child.

Although every exhibited beat of fear is followed by a reminder that nobody perseveres like Williams, Being Serena has at least been given what appears to be pretty full access. ... Yyet it's still a handsome, well-considered vanity production.

Access doesn’t necessarily translate to a compelling series. Absent much of the drama that comes with uncertainty, there’s not much in the series to really latch onto. There’s something still striking about seeing an important figure in the sports world subvert any existing perception that having a child is somehow a point of weakness.

But for all the access we’re afforded to Williams’ private moments, Being Serena is severely, surprisingly lacking in humanity. Much of the disconnect comes from Williams’ stilted narration.