There’s a scene early in the documentary “Nasty,” a rollicking portrait of the ’70s Romanian tennis bad boy Ilie Năstase, where the Grand Slam champion’s mentor and longtime doubles partner Ion Țiriac recalls teaching Năstase how to ski. The young prodigy was a fast study — perhaps too fast.
“He skied down perfectly,” says Țiriac, “except he ran into the fence because I hadn’t taught him to stop.”
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better metaphor for the free-wheeling, fast-living Năstase, a “wild child,” “rock star” and “insolent, elegant, angry, whimsical bon vivant” who makes a fitting subject for the documentary, which was directed by Tudor Giurgiu, Cristian Pascariu and Tudor D. Popescu. A co-production between HBO Documentaries Europe and Romania’s Libra Films, the film has a special screening at the Cannes Film Festival on May 23 and will drop across Europe on Max the following day.
“He skied down perfectly,” says Țiriac, “except he ran into the fence because I hadn’t taught him to stop.”
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better metaphor for the free-wheeling, fast-living Năstase, a “wild child,” “rock star” and “insolent, elegant, angry, whimsical bon vivant” who makes a fitting subject for the documentary, which was directed by Tudor Giurgiu, Cristian Pascariu and Tudor D. Popescu. A co-production between HBO Documentaries Europe and Romania’s Libra Films, the film has a special screening at the Cannes Film Festival on May 23 and will drop across Europe on Max the following day.
- 5/19/2024
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Goodfellas is adding a new sports-focused sales label to its growing roster of genre-based companies and themed sales strands.
Bannered Oui Michel, the label is launching with documentary Nasty, about controversial Romanian tennis legend Ilie Nastase, which makes its international premiere as a Special Screening in Cannes Official Selection this May.
Directed by Romanian filmmakers Tudor Giurgiu, Cristian Pascariu and Tudor D. Popescu, the doc focuses on the immediate aftermath of Nastase’s sudden worldwide fame when he won his first U.S. Open in 1972 and made it into the Wimbledon and Davis Cup finals that same year.
As per the official synopsis: “Nasty explores his highs and lows, the controversies that surrounded the 1973 world number one ranked player, and the enduring impact he has had on the world of tennis. Lovable, charming and generous, yet temperamental, arrogant and obscene – Nastase disrupted the sport’s antiquated etiquette with a...
Bannered Oui Michel, the label is launching with documentary Nasty, about controversial Romanian tennis legend Ilie Nastase, which makes its international premiere as a Special Screening in Cannes Official Selection this May.
Directed by Romanian filmmakers Tudor Giurgiu, Cristian Pascariu and Tudor D. Popescu, the doc focuses on the immediate aftermath of Nastase’s sudden worldwide fame when he won his first U.S. Open in 1972 and made it into the Wimbledon and Davis Cup finals that same year.
As per the official synopsis: “Nasty explores his highs and lows, the controversies that surrounded the 1973 world number one ranked player, and the enduring impact he has had on the world of tennis. Lovable, charming and generous, yet temperamental, arrogant and obscene – Nastase disrupted the sport’s antiquated etiquette with a...
- 5/6/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Romanian billionaire Ion Tiriac is not expecting positive news from the outcome of Simona Halep 's appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Two-time Grand Slam champion Halep received a staggering four-year suspension for breach of Tennis' Anti-Doping Programme in mid-September after a long-running saga regarding her positive test of the prohibited Roxadustat substance and irregularities in her athlete's biological passport.
Halep, clearly shaken and upset , promised to prove her innocence. She has since lodged her appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) in late September.
But according to Tiriac, who has served as President of the Romanian Tennis Federation, and one of Halep's staunchest supporters, is doubtful if she'll be successful.
The 84-year-old was critical of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (also known as Tas - Tribunal Arbitral du Sport) for "manipulating" samples and has given an account of such a mishap in which it broke the rules.
Two-time Grand Slam champion Halep received a staggering four-year suspension for breach of Tennis' Anti-Doping Programme in mid-September after a long-running saga regarding her positive test of the prohibited Roxadustat substance and irregularities in her athlete's biological passport.
Halep, clearly shaken and upset , promised to prove her innocence. She has since lodged her appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) in late September.
But according to Tiriac, who has served as President of the Romanian Tennis Federation, and one of Halep's staunchest supporters, is doubtful if she'll be successful.
The 84-year-old was critical of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (also known as Tas - Tribunal Arbitral du Sport) for "manipulating" samples and has given an account of such a mishap in which it broke the rules.
- 10/28/2023
- Tennis-Infinity
Former Romanian player Ion Tiriac believes that the career of Simona Halep is finished as the doping case continues to drag on.
Simona Halep has been away from tennis since the US Open last year. One of her samples provided at the event was positive for a banned substance which automatically meant she was provisionally banned from the sport without the ability to attend any Wta events.
The Romanian was shocked about the news releasing a statement that she'll fight to prove her innocence as many prominent tennis figures backed her in that regard . For a while, it seemed like the case was moving in a positive direction as Halep was able to find the source of the banned substance but the case still dragged on.
She was supposed to have a hearing earlier this year but that was postponed after irregularities were found in her biological passport . Halep immediately...
Simona Halep has been away from tennis since the US Open last year. One of her samples provided at the event was positive for a banned substance which automatically meant she was provisionally banned from the sport without the ability to attend any Wta events.
The Romanian was shocked about the news releasing a statement that she'll fight to prove her innocence as many prominent tennis figures backed her in that regard . For a while, it seemed like the case was moving in a positive direction as Halep was able to find the source of the banned substance but the case still dragged on.
She was supposed to have a hearing earlier this year but that was postponed after irregularities were found in her biological passport . Halep immediately...
- 6/28/2023
- Tennis-Infinity
Madrid Open organisers are facing backlash for placing models on the centre court rather than using the more traditional ball kids.
In 2004, Romanian businessman Ion Tiriac decided to replace ball boys and girls with models, who wear tank tops and mini-skirts. At present, the models are only situated on the main court at La Caja Magica, while ball kids are used on the outer courts.
However, the ongoing use of models instead of ball kids has led to some criticism from spectators, who believe the move is sexist and objectifies women. In particular, one former ball girl at Wimbledon, Eliza Wastcoat, recently highlighted the stark differences between the more conservative clothing of ball kids compared to the more revealing attire of the centre court models.
Wastcoat is just one of several tennis enthusiasts and fans who have called out the outdated approach by the Madrid Open to keep the models...
In 2004, Romanian businessman Ion Tiriac decided to replace ball boys and girls with models, who wear tank tops and mini-skirts. At present, the models are only situated on the main court at La Caja Magica, while ball kids are used on the outer courts.
However, the ongoing use of models instead of ball kids has led to some criticism from spectators, who believe the move is sexist and objectifies women. In particular, one former ball girl at Wimbledon, Eliza Wastcoat, recently highlighted the stark differences between the more conservative clothing of ball kids compared to the more revealing attire of the centre court models.
Wastcoat is just one of several tennis enthusiasts and fans who have called out the outdated approach by the Madrid Open to keep the models...
- 5/5/2023
- Tennis-Infinity
Alex Gibney, perhaps the world’s most prolific documentary filmmaker at the moment, has an obsession with power — and hubris. He’s taken on everyone from corrupt corporate execs (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) and the Church of Scientology (Going Clear) to Theranos grifter Elizabeth Holmes (The Inventor) and the Trump administration (Totally Under Control).
The 69-year-old Oscar winner’s latest is Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker, a two-part docuseries on Apple TV+ that chronicles the rise and fall of German tennis great Boris Becker, who...
The 69-year-old Oscar winner’s latest is Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker, a two-part docuseries on Apple TV+ that chronicles the rise and fall of German tennis great Boris Becker, who...
- 4/12/2023
- by Marlow Stern
- Rollingstone.com
An early scene in Boom Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker, a new two-part documentary about the German tennis great who famously won Wimbledon at the age of 17 before going down like the Hindenburg, encapsulates what’s made the athlete such a controversial figure. Ion Tiriac, a Romanian businessman who managed Becker at the height of his powers, from 1984 to 1993, compares the athlete to “a child” tempting fate by repeatedly sticking his finger into a flame.
“He just tries to see if he’s getting burned or not getting burned,...
“He just tries to see if he’s getting burned or not getting burned,...
- 4/7/2023
- by Marlow Stern
- Rollingstone.com
Prolific documentarian Alex Gibney hates liars. He hates when companies lie (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room); he hates when religions lie (Going Clear, Mea Maxima Culpa); he hates when authority figures lie (The Inventor, Client 9).
The Rosetta Stone for Gibney’s dogmatic resistance to mendacity is The Armstrong Lie. Gibney’s irritation arises not just from the general lies that Lance Armstrong told the world, but from the lies that Lance Armstrong told him during the making of the movie, yielding a documentary about the nature of deception and self-deception.
Gibney’s new two-part Apple TV+ docuseries Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker is a complementary text to The Armstrong Lie. It’s about a revered sports icon whose falsehoods eventually led to personal disgrace. It’s structured around two extensive interviews conducted at different points in the subject’s prevarication — once in delusion and once when facing a reckoning.
The Rosetta Stone for Gibney’s dogmatic resistance to mendacity is The Armstrong Lie. Gibney’s irritation arises not just from the general lies that Lance Armstrong told the world, but from the lies that Lance Armstrong told him during the making of the movie, yielding a documentary about the nature of deception and self-deception.
Gibney’s new two-part Apple TV+ docuseries Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker is a complementary text to The Armstrong Lie. It’s about a revered sports icon whose falsehoods eventually led to personal disgrace. It’s structured around two extensive interviews conducted at different points in the subject’s prevarication — once in delusion and once when facing a reckoning.
- 2/21/2023
- by Daniel Fienberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
When tennis champion Boris Becker entered the room for a press conference in Berlin before the world premiere of the documentary about his storied career and troubled personal life, camera shutters clicked furiously and flashes flashed. He is, after all, one of Germany’s most famous native sons and a widely loved sports legend, despite a conviction for a bankruptcy-related fraud that landed him behind bars in Britain for eight months.
“I’m 55 years old and I’m very proud of the things that I’ve done. But I’ve made mistakes,” Becker told the assembled media at the Berlin Film Festival on Sunday. “I’ve paid a heavy price for some of the things I did in my past. Today I’m a bit better for it. Hopefully a bit smarter. Maybe a bit more humble.”
Boris Becker celebrates winning the Wimbledon Men’s Singles Championship in 1985
The documentary...
“I’m 55 years old and I’m very proud of the things that I’ve done. But I’ve made mistakes,” Becker told the assembled media at the Berlin Film Festival on Sunday. “I’ve paid a heavy price for some of the things I did in my past. Today I’m a bit better for it. Hopefully a bit smarter. Maybe a bit more humble.”
Boris Becker celebrates winning the Wimbledon Men’s Singles Championship in 1985
The documentary...
- 2/21/2023
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Boris Becker has revealed he started crying in jail as he watched Novak Djokovic win Wimbledon in 2022.
Becker, who used to coach the current Australian Open champion until 2016, told press at the Berlin Film Festival that he continues to regard Djokovic as a member of his family.
He explained: “While I was inside (jail), Novak supported me, he supported my family. I started crying when he started winning. I’m very proud that probably the best player of all time is part of this story.”
‘This story’ is Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker, a two-part documentary on Becker’s life directed by Oscar winner Alex Gibney, set to premiere on Apple TV+.
Becker took the chance in Berlin to reflect on his life since being released from jail in the UK at the end of last year, after serving six months for tax evasion.
He said: “It feels great to be free,...
Becker, who used to coach the current Australian Open champion until 2016, told press at the Berlin Film Festival that he continues to regard Djokovic as a member of his family.
He explained: “While I was inside (jail), Novak supported me, he supported my family. I started crying when he started winning. I’m very proud that probably the best player of all time is part of this story.”
‘This story’ is Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker, a two-part documentary on Becker’s life directed by Oscar winner Alex Gibney, set to premiere on Apple TV+.
Becker took the chance in Berlin to reflect on his life since being released from jail in the UK at the end of last year, after serving six months for tax evasion.
He said: “It feels great to be free,...
- 2/19/2023
- by Caroline Frost
- Deadline Film + TV
Alexis Ohanian is proving that "love" is not just a tennis term as he takes aim at someone who criticized wife Serena Williams. Ion Tiriac, a Romanian former tennis player who owns the Madrid Open tennis tournament, discussed Serena's age and weight in a recent interview with Romanian television channel Tvr. "At this age and the weight she is now, she does not move as easily as he did 15 years ago," the 81-year-old president of the Romanian Tennis Federation said in the conversation that was translated to English by Ubitennis. "Serena was a sensational player. If she had a little decency, she would retire. From all points of view." The comments clearly did not sit...
- 1/6/2021
- E! Online
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