'Marty Supreme': Timothée Chalamet makes ambition feel unbearable in Josh Safdie’s epic film

Energized, heart-pounding and stressful, Josh Safdie's film Marty Supreme will remind you how powerful movies can truly be. Starring Timothée Chalamet, while most films about following your dreams can become too maudlin, this film really leans into the difficulty and gut-wrenching nature of chasing your dreams.

If you thought Safdie's film Uncut Gems, which he made with his brother Benny, was tense and exasperating, you haven't seen anything yet. Because Marty Supreme is so fast-paced and tense, you'll be regretting any amount of caffeine you had the day you watch it.

Marty Supreme release date: Dec. 25
Director: Josh Safdie
Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A'zion, Tyler Okonma, (Typer the Creator), Fran Drescher, Abel Ferrara, Kevin O'Leary
Writers: Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein
Runtime: 2 hours, 30 minutes

What is 'Marty Supreme' about?

Set in the 1950s, Marty Mauser (Chalamet) works at his uncle's shoe store on New York's Lower East Side, but he has a passion for table tennis and is determined to become the best in the world, despite everyone close to him having little to no respect for his goal.

Marty is passionate, but entitled, while he also deals with his manipulative mother (Fran Drescher) and his girlfriend Rachel (Odessa A'zion), who is pregnant with his child, but she's married and has been having an affair with Marty.

When Marty's boss doesn't give him the money he's owed, Marty steals it so he can go to London for the British Open. While he thinks he'll easily beat the competition, and also has the confidence to hit on a faded Hollywood actress, Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), he's defeated by the Japanese star Koto Endo.

The loss sends Marty spiralling, needing to get enough money to travel to Tokyo to defeat Endo once and for all, by any means necessary.

'Marty Supreme’ feels like holding your breath for two hours

Marty Supreme is tense and dark, and watching this film feels like you're just struggling to come up for air throughout most of the movie. But what feels so staggering about this film is that Safdie never lets up. It's high stress all the way through.

It would be easy for Marty to be portrayed as just a self-absorbed, vain, and unlikable character, but what Chalamet is able to do is, even at his worst moments, leaving complete destruction in his path, Marty's still, in some capacity, lovable. It's a character study for Chalamet that has the makings of an iconic role for the actor for years to come.

But while Chalamet is a strong core of the film, don't overlook the brilliant support cast in Marty Supreme, particularly Odessa A'zion, who delivers her own career-best performance, a captivating one that cuts through the chaos of Chalamet's Marty. Even with her more limited screentime, A'zion is a true highlight.

Marty Supreme feel scrappy and addictive. It's a commanding movie, with Safdie making a truly evocative and propulsive film. It's the kind of filmmaking, attention to detail, and style that has been missing in recent years. And the 1980s music, from Alphaville to Tears for Fears, may just be the smartest choice in the whole film, elevating its already heightened anxiety.

Darius Khondji's cinematography is outstanding; another project on which Khondji collaborated with Safdie, following Uncut Gems. The modern music paired with the film's vintage aesthetic provides instant excitement.

From the overlapping dialogue and fierce tension, to the film's satisfying emotional ending (that we won't spoil), Safdie's opus is certainly the most stylish movie about ping-pong you'll see.