Summary
Amazon Prime Video’s 2024 sports documentary,Federer: Twelve Final Days, illuminates the end of one of the most incredible careers in tennis history, and in so doing reveals some fascinating details about its subject – sporting icon, Roger Federer. As explained in the movie,Federer is a 20-time major championship winnerwho remained at the summit of the global game for over two decades. However, despite being one of the most recognizable faces in any field, it’s clear from the footage that even Roger Federer has his secrets.
Unlike many documentaries,Federer: Twelve Final Daysis not a complete chronological overview of Federer’s impressive professional achievements. Instead, the movie focuses on the emotional turmoil around his retirement announcement, its immediate aftermath, and his reflections on the ebbs and flows of his career. As a result, the movie is perhaps less comprehensive than other genre entries. Nevertheless,Federer: Twelve Final Daysstill reveals some fascinating details about Federer’s career, including his rivalries, challenges, and personal difficulties.
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10Federer’s Retirement Decision Was An Existential Crisis
It’s The Key Theme Of The Documentary
While some sporting retirements are relatively matter-of-fact,Federer: Twelve Final Daysreveals that Roger Federer’s decision was anything but. The movie opens with Federer emotionally contemplating how to break the news both to his friends and fans. In the end,he settles on a deeply personal letter, explaining his decision in incredibly charged terms.
Throughout the film, the decision is likened to a type of death – the end of Federer’s life as an athlete and the start of a new chapter.
Federer’s approach to breaking the retirement news is the essence of whatFederer: Twelve Final Daysis all about. Throughout the film, the decision is likened to a type of death – the end of Federer’s life as an athlete and the start of a new chapter. For many sportspeople, retirement is not as existential an issue and is simply a natural part of the sporting cycle.Federer: Twelve Final Daysmakes it clear just how difficult it was for Federer to accept this inevitable outcome, highlighting just how hard he fought against it.
9Federer’s Retirement Announcement Took Massive Coordination
It Was A Carefully Planned Effort
Unusually for a film celebrating Federer’s professional achievements,Federer: Twelve Final Daysdwells on the process around the superstar’s retirement announcement for nearly 20 minutes. In this period, the extent of the careful coordination between PR personnel, Federer’s friends, and family is laid bare, with nothing left to chance. It’s a fascinating look behind the curtain at what goes on in the personal lives of the biggest sports personnel on the planet.
An interesting aspect of this process is the extent to which Federer himself is involved. Instead of being handled exclusively by professionals,Federer is seen taking the time to directly message key people in his orbit, ensuring that no one is taken by surprise. While different retiring sports stars will undoubtedly have differing approaches, this is nonetheless a major revelation about the scale of what’s involved in such a decision.
8Vogue Editor Anna Wintour Was One Of The First To Learn About The News
She’s Given Special Consideration
When Federer is carefully considering who needs to know about his decision ahead of time, several key figures crop up. Understandably, many of these are from the world of professional tennis. However, among the most surprising – and most significant to Federer himself – isVogue editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour.
Federer: Twelve Final Dayswas filmed in 2022.
The revelation that Federer and Wintour are so close is something of a surprise. However, as Federer explains in the documentary,their relationship blossomed when he burst onto the scene in the early 2000s. As he put it, “I didn’t know who she was at the very beginning. She invited me to dinner parties that she hosts always for all her friends and their partners… I realized she’s a massive tennis fan.”
7Federer Injured Himself While Drawing A Bath For His Kids
It Was The Catalyst For His Retirement
One of the most-discussed aspects of the latter part of Federer’s career has been his extensive injury struggles. Although he continued to win Grand Slams well beyond the point where many professionals would be considered to have passed their prime, Federer arguably never recovered from a recurring kneeinjury initially sustained in the aftermath of the 2016 Australian Open. What’s more surprising, however, is that the onset of this injury had nothing to do with tennis.
InFederer: Twelve Final Days, the Swiss reveals thathe actually injured himself while trying to run a bath for his children. Having lost to Djokovic the day before, he suddenly felt a joint in his knee give way, being forced to fly away from the country on crutches having initially planned to take an extended break. Given the extent to which this moment shaped his career, it’s surprising that it was caused by something so innocuous.
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6Mirka Federer Was A Huge Influence On Roger’s Career
She Shaped His Attitude To The Sport
For many tennis fans, Mirka Federer has been an ever-present at many of Roger’s most significant sporting triumphs, supporting from the sidelines. However, whatFederer: Twelve Final Daysmakes clear is the extent to whichhis wife was integral in driving him to new professional heights. In addition to the solidity of their personal relationship, this is an underappreciated aspect of Roger’s journey to the top.
As Federer explains in theAmazon Prime Video documentary, before meeting Mirka at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Roger was much more relaxed when it came to training.It was working with his future wife that inspired him to take his professionalism more seriously, playing a massive role in his career trajectory. It’s a welcome acknowledgment, given the huge role Mirka has played in Federer’s success.
5Federer Didn’t Initially Respect Djokovic
He Doubted His Technique
The fierce professional rivalry between Federer and Novak Djokovic is one of the most widely discussed and notorious head-to-heads in the history of sport. AsFederer: Twelve Final Daysmakes clear, Federer is now hugely respectful of Djokovic’s tennis achievements, with the Serb having won an incredible 24 Grand Slam Singles titles. However, the documentary also reveals thatFederer wasn’t always so appreciative of Djokovic’s talents.
InFederer: Twelve Final Days, the Swiss explains that he initially struggled to take the threat that the Serbian posed seriously. As he puts it, “I think I didn’t give Novak the respect he deserved because of his technical flaws,”specifically citing his backhand as a major weakness. However, Federer quickly realized how talented Djokovic was.
4The Federer/Djokovic Rivalry Wasn’t Always As Intense As It Seemed
It Was Blown Out Of Proportion By Some
There’s no doubt that Federer’s rivalry with Djokovic was often extremely fractious. Along with other members of the so-called “Big Four” in Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray,Federer and Djokovic were almost always competing for the same prizesright at the pinnacle of men’s tennis. This made their frequent duels extremely high stakes. However, despite fierce competition,Federer: Twelve Final Dayssuggests that the rivalry wasn’t always as bad-tempered as it was sometimes portrayed.
Not only does Federer hint that the perceived enmity between the two was an unfair distortion of the real relationship behind the scenes, but he even goes so far as to suggest that his own fans were often responsible for fanning the flames. Given how many finals and semi-finals the pair contested, a sense of competition is inevitable. However, the sense provided bythe sporting documentaryis thatsome of the bitterness between the pair was overblown.
3Federer And Nadal Are Very Close Off The Court
Nadal Was Deeply Affected By Federer’s Decision
In contrast to his relationship with Djokovic, which, despite not being as hostile as is sometimes believed still seems somewhat distant, Federer is extremely close to his other major tennis rival – Rafael Nadal. Despite battling with the Spaniard for several decades,Federer and Nadal formed an almost brotherly bond. This is typified by the fact that Nadal, despite having recently become a father, agrees to drop everything in order to be involved in Federer’s final match.
The depth of Nadal and Federer’s relationship is highlighted byNadal’s extremely emotional response to Federer’s retirement news. As Nadal himself puts it in the documentary, “The most important player in my career… is leaving.” Federer and Nadal’s friendship proves that intense sporting rivalries can still end positively.
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2Federer’s Court Anger Was Sometimes Forced
Some Of It Was An Act
In his playing days,Federer was known as one of the most composed and graceful tennis players to have ever lived. These are attributes that carry over intoFederer: Twelve Final Days, where the tennis superstar is often portrayed as the embodiment of poise and class. However, as part of a consequence of his rivalry with Djokovic, Federer reveals that – on occasion – he felt compelled to try and find a way to break out of his natural rhythm.
When Djokovic began winning more regularly, Federer admits that he felt pressure to change his approach to become more like his brash rival. As he puts it, “Did I have to grunt more, shout, sweat? I tried, but it was all an act.” Such a revelation highlights howeven the greatest players can crack under pressure, pursuing courses of action that take them outside their comfort zone.
1Federer Is Still Obsessed With Tennis
His Love For The Game Is Undimmed
AlthoughFederer: Twelve FinalDayscontains important individual revelations about Federer’s career, perhaps the most important message the movie reveals is the extent to whichFederer is still in love with tennis. Not only does his willingness to continually fight back from injury when many would have given up place him in a special category, but it also shows that his career is about more than individual glory. Instead, it’s been about fulfilling a personal passion.
A key giveaway that reveals how invested Federer continues to be in tennis is that he continually expresses his desire to remain involved in the sport. Whereas others, like his great icon Bjorn Borg, take a deliberate step back, Federer constantly reinforces the idea that he will keep playing an active role in tennis. As such,Federer: Twelve Final Dayssimultaneously provides an illuminating retrospective, but also an important hint as to what’s in Federer’s next chapter.
Federer: Twelve Final Days
Cast
Federer: Twelve Final Days is a documentary capturing the concluding chapter of Roger Federer’s legendary tennis career. Originally a private recording, it highlights Federer alongside his family and rivals Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray, offering an intimate glimpse into his final moments in the sport.
