'Challengers' review: Zendaya, Josh O'Connor and Mike Faist own intoxicating, competitive tennis movie

The moment the first trailer for Challengers was released, starring Zendaya, Josh O'Connor and Mike Faist, this film quickly became one of the most highly anticipated films of the year. But what makes Challengers so intoxicating, gripping and indulgent is far more than just the viral three-way kiss moment that has seemingly put the internet into a frenzy.

Written by Justin Kuritzkes, Challengers has an energy that is uniquely its own, with Luca Guadagnino making directing choices that will leave you on the edge of your seat and will even make you flinch. Paired with a heart-pumping score, Challengers is likely to become your next movie obsession.

Challengers release date: April 26
Director: Luca Guadagnino
Cast: Zendaya, Josh O'Connor, Mike Faist
Runtime: 131 minutes

What is 'Challengers' about?

Tashi Duncan (Zendaya) used to be a tennis prodigy, but now she's a coach, trying to strategize how to get her husband, Art (Faist), out of his recent losing streak. The plan is for him to play a lowbrow challenger tournament in New Rochelle, N.Y., to build his confidence.

Things take a turn when Art and Tashi are faced with someone from their past at the challenger, the skilled, but washed up tennis player Patrick (O'Connor).

Through several flashbacks, we find out about their past together. Art and Patrick were best friends since the age of 12, who met Tashi at a U.S. Open junior championship afterparty. With both Art and Patrick very attracted to Tashi, that leads to the already heavily publicized moment where the three characters, as teens, share a three-way kiss in a hotel room with some beers.

Saying she doesn't want to be a "home wrecker," Tashi says she'll give her number to whoever wins the match Art and Patrick are playing the next morning.

Going back and forth in the timeline, we learn more about how these relationships progressed, and dissolved, and the evolution of the sexual tension between all these characters.

Sustaining sexual tension

While much has been said about how sexy Challengers is, the real success for that in the film is how Guadagnino builds and sustains sexual tension. We're not getting under the covers, so the speak, but Challengers lives on the edge where we're just about to tip into that next level of intimacy, but never go there.

The chemistry between Zendaya, Faist and O'Connor is a joy to watch on screen and Zendaya, in particular, has masterfully honed the skill of making one facial expression pierce through the screen, saying so much in just one look.

Faist and O'Connor are such an appealing duo to accompany Zendaya, getting a better understanding of their attraction to each other throughout the film. O'Connor brings great charisma to Patrick, while Faist wonderfully navigates Art's evolution from teen to his more tense demeanour as an adult.

There's also something appealing about a story that follows characters that are all incredibly flawed. Tashi, Art and Patrick all do things that will rub you the wrong way. But it adds to the intrigue that you can't really pick a side in this exploration of power and competition.

When it comes to the time jumping, the frequency doesn't always work necessarily, at times overcomplicating the storytelling more than it needs to. The saving grace here is very much the score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross that gave the film a strong heartbeat to follow, even at times when the script got a bit murky.

While we won't spoil the ending, we have to mention the final match we see in the film, a face-off between Art and Patrick, which the audience watches unfold form the perspective of the tennis ball. It's riveting, exciting, and a little jarring. If you're prone to motion sickness this might tip you over the edge in that respect.

But that scene is what makes Challengers work. It's bold and stylish filmmaking with a point of view. It's a twisted journey full of sexual suspense that is fiercely entertaining.