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Review: ‘Marty Supreme’ is a Hyperkinetic Underdog Sports Drama that Redefines What the Genre Should Be
December 17, 2025Ben MK
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Although his filmography couldn't be more varied, Timothée Chalamet's recent roles all seem to have one unifying theme — the pursuit of dreams. Whether it's a wide-eyed chocolatier determined to honor his mother's legacy by becoming the world's greatest candy artisan, or the heir to an intergalactic empire who also happens to be the prophecized savior of an entire planet, the 29-year-old actor's penchant for playing laser-focused characters hasn't gone unnoticed. It's a trend that continues on with Chalamet's latest film, the 1950s-set drama Marty Supreme, in which he portrays a young Jewish man from New York City chasing the American dream. But does writer-director Josh Safdie's followup to Uncut Gems live up to all the hype? Or is Marty Supreme all bluster and no bite? The year is 1952, and Marty Mauser (Chalamet) is a ping pong player who dreams of being the best on the planet. Working at his uncle's shoe store just so he can save up the $700 he needs to fly to London and compete in the world table tennis championships, Marty can't wait to leave his friends and family behind so that he can face off against some of the most competitive athletes the sport has to offer. However, when his financial plans don't unfold quite as he imagined, and he's forced to literally rob his co-worker at gunpoint, it makes for an awkward start to his journey towards world ping pong domination. Finally arriving at his destination across the pond, Marty soon finds himself going head to head with the top-ranked player from Japan, a fierce competitor named Koto Endo (Koto Kawaguchi). What Marty doesn't anticipate, though, is how much trouble he'll have just trying to keep up with Endo’s deceptively straightforward game. And when Marty loses a pivotal match and is forced to resort to alternate means of earning money — by touring the world as part of the halftime act for the Harlem Globetrotters — it's a turn of events that, while humbling, only serves to motivate him even more. Returning to New York City with his tail between his legs, Marty wastes no time trying to get back on his feet and earn a coveted spot in the next world table tennis championships in Japan. Before he can do so, however, he'll have to overcome all manner of trials and tribulations, beginning with the surprising news that his childhood friend, Rachel (Odessa A'zion), is pregnant, and that the baby is his. Refusing to be tied down by the prospect of potential fatherhood, Marty embarks on a series of misadventures instead, starting up an on-again-off-again affair with former Hollywood starlet Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), whose business tycoon husband, Milton Rockwell (Kevin O'Leary), also happens to be the owner of one of the nation's largest pen companies, and making more than his fair share of new enemies along the way, thanks to he and his friend Wally's (Tyler the Creator) inability to turn down a good grift. Despite these many tangents and diversions, though, Marty never loses sight of his ultimate goal. But will he actually get a second chance at facing off against his greatest competitor, Endo? And even if he manages to secure such a match, will it be on his own terms, or someone else's? An underdog sports drama that isn't afraid to step outside genre boundaries by blending an '80s New Wave soundtrack with '50s-era production and costume design, the result is a non-stop roller coaster ride that will have audiences chuckling one moment and gasping for air the next. Still, for all its unstoppable momentum and mesmerizing twists and turns, what will resonate the most with viewers about Marty Supreme is Chalamet's performance — one that can, without any hint of hyperbole, genuinely be called career-best. Whether he's trying to fast-talk his way out of a sticky situation or psyche out his opponent across the ping pong table, viewers will be hard-pressed to take their eyes off Chalamet whenever he's on screen. And when you consider that, for most of the movie's runtime, that's more often the case than not, it's certainly no small feat. Factor in the unorthodox casting of business-investor-turned-reality-television-star O'Leary, and you have the makings of a film that definitely has fun challenging the status quo, not to mention the notion of what a prestige studio picture should be. Nonetheless, Marty Supreme rarely comes up empty, despite its many artistic gambles. And while die-hard sports drama enthusiasts might balk at its heightened melodrama, Safdie and Chalamet give audiences plenty of reasons to root for this scrappy underdog, even as the world around him seems to be spinning faster than a ping pong ball hurtling through space and time. Marty Supreme releases December 25th, 2025 from Elevation Pictures. The film has an MPAA rating of R for language throughout, sexual content, some violent content/bloody images and nudity. Its runtime is 2 hrs. 30 min. |
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