'I, Tonya' explores the complex character of Tonya Harding

Olympic ice skater Tonya Harding grabbed media attention in January 1994 after rival Nancy Kerrigan was attacked after a practice. Tonya's husband, Jeff Gillooly, and bodyguard Shawn Eckhardt received prison sentences for their involvement. What Tonya knew about their plans became the question hanging over the incident. Through multiple viewpoints, director Craig Gillespie's "I, Tonya" searches for that answer.

Based on a thorough analysis of Harding's life, at times using verbatim dialogue, and informed by first person interviews with Tonya and Jeff, Steven Rogers offers a rich screenplay that explores the emotional and physical abuse Tonya endured, first from her heartless mother LaVona Golden and then from Jeff. She grew up poor, working class, making her own costumes, a stigma in the glamorous world of ice-skating where the judges made clear that Tonya did not project the image they wanted, despite her extraordinary skating ability. As testimony to that, in 1991 she was the first woman to complete a triple axel in competition, something only eight women skaters have achieved to this day.

Director Gillespie, known for "Lars and the Real Girl," presents Tonya, LaVona, and Jeff giving their viewpoints, sometimes talking directly to the camera. Humanizing them, he negotiates a fine balance of absurdist humor, critique of class issues, and indictment of the predatory media. Above all, he builds empathy for Tonya, a fighter in circumstances stacked against her as we clearly see following her life from four to forty.  

As Harding, Margot Robbie gives a spectacular, fierce performance and does most of her own skating. As Jeff, Sebastian Stan is solid, while Allison Janney as Tonya's sadistic mother never wavers in her scathing insults as she commands every scene. And the soundtrack contributes commentary, functioning like another character.     

At a crucial point in the story, Tonya says, "There's no such thing as truth. Everyone has their own truth." Gillespie may not give us the definitive answer longed for, but he sure knows how to tell an intriguing, engrossing story that reveals a complex, remarkable athlete who, through her experiences, indicts unfairness in personal and public arenas. 

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