Like hitting a ball back and forth in rapid succession, \u201cping-pong\u201d can also describe the rapid exchange of ideas delivered at a frantic pace in Josh Safdie\u2019s gritty drama \u201cMarty Supreme,\u201d which is loosely inspired by the life of New York hustler and table tennis player Martin Reisman, played by Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet in a career-best performance. The sport, however, is just the background for an often-seedy story about life filled with diverse characters, including a Hollywood starlet (Gwyneth Paltrow), a dog-loving gangster (Abel Ferrara), and an ink-pen tycoon (Kevin O’Leary) who should have been a gym teacher. There\u2019s a bit of Tarkovsky and Scorsese here, but like \u201cUncut Gems\u201d and \u201cGood Times,\u201d this is pure Safdie terrain.<\/p>\n
In 2008, Josh Safdie released his first solo project, \u201cThe Pleasure of Being Robbed,\u201d without his filmmaker brother, Benny. In a way, the film\u2019s title could serve as the subtitle for \u201cMarty Supreme,\u201d considering the amount of thieving involved in the story, which starts in 1952 at a shoe store in New York City.<\/p>\n
Tears for Fears\u2019 \u201cChange\u201d sets the story in motion as Marty Mauser (Chalamet) emerges out of the stockroom, his walk in sync with the band\u2019s 1983 song from \u201cThe Hurting\u201d LP. The duo, Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith, frame Safdie\u2019s film by ending with their biggest hit, \u201cEverybody Wants to Rule the World.\u201d Future needle drops include \u201cForever Young\u201d by Alphaville, New Order\u2019s \u201cThe Perfect Kiss,\u201d PIL\u2019s \u201cThe Order of Death,\u201d \u201cEverybody\u2019s Got To Learn Sometime\u201d by The Korgis, and Peter Gabriel\u2019s \u201cI Have the Touch.\u201d<\/p>\n
The film\u2019s 1950s timeline features standards from the era by Perry Como, Fats Domino, and Big Bertha Henderson with the Al Smith Orchestra, among others. But it\u2019s the 80s soundtrack, reinforced by Daniel Lopatin\u2019s synth-heavy score (right up there with NIN\u2019s \u201cTron\u201d score), that makes \u201cMarty\u201d stand out. It doesn\u2019t feel out of place, and it\u2019s the perfect complement to Chalamet\u2019s character, who, despite his appearance, doesn\u2019t quite fit the decade\u2019s soundscape of smooth and warm love songs mixed with the evolving blues, country, and rock scenes. Marty Mauser\u2019s progressive attitude captures the angst-driven, futuristic vibe of 80s New Wave and Post-Punk, filled with themes of emotional turmoil, alienation, and societal pressure.<\/p>\n
Marty is an ace athlete who hasn\u2019t found a way to profit from being a professional table tennis player, hence the shoe salesman job at the store owned by his uncle Murray (the wonderful Larry “Ratso” Sloman). Murray wants to put his nephew into management, explaining that he can no longer financially support Marty\u2019s mother (Fran Drescher), whose downstairs neighbor and best friend, Judy, is played by Sandra Bernhard. The film also features cameos by Penn Jillette, Isaac Mizrahi, Fred Hechinger, and Kemba Walker. It is a contender for the first-ever Achievement in Casting Oscar, which will be presented at the 98th Academy Awards.<\/p>\n
Murray may need to rethink moving Marty into management, especially since he just robbed his uncle\u2019s shop at gunpoint, demanding the $700 promised to him. He needs the money for a trip where he plans to beat defending table tennis champion Bela Kletzki (G\u00e9za R\u00f6hrig), an Auschwitz survivor, at the British Open, securing prize money ten times the amount he\u2019s \u201cborrowing\u201d from Uncle Murray. R\u00f6hrig, best known for his starring role in the Oscar-winning \u201cSon of Saul\u201d in 2015, is one of my favorite things about Safdie\u2019s film. It\u2019s a terrific performance filled with empathy and depth that balances the film\u2019s chaotic pace.<\/p>\n
There are two loves in Marty\u2019s life. Both are married. Odessa A’zion plays Rachel, a childhood friend of Marty, which explains her similar \u201chustler-mode.\u201d The two make a great couple, like Bonnie & Clyde. A\u2019zion should receive a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her vulnerable yet gritty performance. Marty\u2019s other love\u2014and financial benefactor\u2014is retired actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), who is married to ink-pen tycoon Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary of \u201cShark Tank\u201d), another billionaire with an inflated ego who treats women poorly\u2026 you get it. It\u2019s good to see Paltrow outside the MCU, showcasing some solid acting.<\/p>\n
The table tennis matches are intense. Chalamet trained for over six years after Safdie approached him about the project in 2018. Marty\u2019s main competitor is Japan\u2019s table tennis champion, Koto Endo, whose unique sponge paddle and penhold grip confuses his opponents. Endo lost his hearing during the 1945 bombing of Tokyo by the U.S., which helped him develop exceptional focus and concentration. The role played by real-life table tennis champion Koto Kawaguchi, who is also deaf, marks the athlete\u2019s acting debut. The scenes between Kawaguchi and Chalamet are thrilling to watch, thanks to extensive training, expert choreography, and some CGI magic (like the ping-pong ball), but the moves are 100% legit.<\/p>\n
Influences for Safdie\u2019s sophomore directorial effort include the underdog theme of \u201cRocky,\u201d the hustler aspects of \u201cThe Color of Money,\u201d and, in several ways, Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 science fiction masterpiece \u201cStalker,\u201d in that both films share a distinct heightened visual style while driven by a plot centered on a longing for greatness while dealing with the mundane.<\/p>\n
The Safdie Brothers are known for their raw and gritty portrayals of life, as seen in \u201cUncut Gems\u201d and \u201cGood Time.\u201d The frantic pace and tension of those films carry over into \u201cMarty Supreme,\u201d especially in the violent and unsettling subplot featuring filmmaker Abel Ferrara, who directed \u201cKing of New York\u201d and \u201cBad Lieutenant,\u201d as a gangster who loves dogs. His henchman, Mitch, is played by Mitchell Wenig, one of the brothers (Larry) featured in \u201cUncut Gems.\u201d<\/p>\n
I also want to highlight the cinematography by Darius Khondji, who used dirty lenses and distinct colors to give the film a retro style while capturing the actors\u2019 raw emotions with close-ups and telephoto lenses, and employing Cinemascope and multiple cameras for the ping-pong scenes. Additionally, it\u2019s great to see Khondji and Paltrow collaborate without a box. The two previously worked together on David Fincher’s 1995 film \u201cSe7en,\u201d which featured a visual style similar to \u201cMarty Supreme.\u201d<\/p>\n
No doubt, \u201cMarty Supreme\u201d is one of the best films of 2025. Over the years, Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet has delivered some incredible performances, from \u201cDune\u201d to playing Bob Dylan in last year\u2019s \u201cA Complete Unknown,\u201d which, at the time, I considered a career-high. Not anymore. What a difference a year makes. By the way, Safdie concludes this wild, funny, frightening, and emotional story with a scene that answers the mysterious question, \u201cWhat\u2019s life all about?\u201d Hint: There\u2019s a lot of crying.<\/p>\n
(4 stars)<\/p>\n
Now showing in theaters<\/p>\n
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