Untold: Breaking Point

Directors: Chapman Way, MacLaine Way (2021)

Cast: Mardy Fish, Andy Roddick, John McEnroe

This is a classic story about the guy who DIDN’T make it big. It is about the struggle and well worth a look. This film is inspirational and realistic at the same time. Mental and emotional issues, as well as anxiety are issues that afflict famous people.

Shortly after leaving home at the age of 15 to attend a prestigious tennis academy, American Mardy Fish was targeted for stardom and expected, alongside Andy Roddick, to headline the next wave of dominance in U.S men’s tennis. And not long after leaving the Academy to move in with Roddick and his parents, Fish watched Roddick become the star that he was supposed to be. Plagued by doubt and anxiety, Fish was at a career crossroads, with the results coming nowhere close to what had been predicted for him.

After re-dedicating himself to the game and remaking his body by shedding 31 pounds and overall in his diet, Fish began to rapidly climb the world rankings, eventually overtaking Roddick as the No. 1. player in the U. S. and breaking into the world’s top 10. Yet on the drive to Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York for a center-court match against world No. 1 Roger Federer in the 2012 U.S. Open, Fish Shepherd mental health episode so powerful and debilitating he withdrew from what would’ve been the biggest match of his career. His subsequent decision to go public with his issues was groundbreaking at the time; he was the first world-class athlete to speak up about mental health and his journey as an advocate serves as the backbone of this inspiring tale.

Opinion/Review: Courageous. Heroic. These are the labels that should be affixed to Mardy Fish’s legacy and it has nothing to do with his brilliant tennis. He turned his personal nightmare into a beacon for others suffering, And he tells his story here with a rawness that’s palpable. And while Fish is the centerpiece of the film, Roddick’s honesty, insight and humor make him a worthy and indispensable part of the story.

Fun Facts: Prior to turning his career around, Fish lost to Roddick the first nine times they played. He snapped the streak by beating Roddick in the finals of a masters series event, and beat him the next time they played as well. … Fish is now head coach of the U.S. men’s Davis Cup team. … The son of a tennis instructor, Fish was featured on a local television station hitting balls over the net at the age of two.