“Marty Supreme,” Josh Safdie’s first solo effort since separating from his brother and longtime writing and directing partner Benny Safdie, unfurls with the same ferocious pulse that defines his earlier work, but broadens into something bigger and, strangely, more hopeful.
Set in the 1950s, the film follows Marty Mauser (Timothée Chalamet), a young man defined equally by his position as a professional table tennis player and his hustler attitude. Armed with a monumental ego and pathological confidence, Marty ricochets between New York’s shady underground rooms and the glamor of the Ritz London, flirting with greatness at various table tennis world championships. Chalamet’s performance is full of constant motion, speaking and moving quickly, and the film matches the pace, progressing with a choreographed chaos.
Although largely advertised as a sports biopic dramedy, the film is much more reminiscent of “Uncut Gems,” the Safdie Brothers’ most recent effort as a duo, and bridges conventional genre labels. While it features what may be the most electrifying table tennis sequences ever released in theaters, the film focuses more on Marty’s personal life and what he sacrifices in order to play at the highest level.
Over the two-and-a-half hour runtime, Marty’s journey unfolds across continents and relationships, giving us an audacious, globe-trotting story full of laughs and tension. The London detour, which includes Marty making a string of inappropriate jokes to a journalist and a chance encounter with a celebrity, particularly hums with trademark Safdie drama. Other subplots, like one with a gangster’s runaway dog, veer towards excess, but even at its most unwieldy the messiness is always intentional, as if Safdie wants us to experience the world through Marty’s eyes.
Visually, “Marty Supreme” is stunning, a product of both Jack Fisk’s meticulous production design and Darius Khondji’s experienced camerawork. New York City’s Lower East Side has a true lived-in feel, managing to capture the city in a state between revitalization and decay, while sets like the aforementioned Ritz London are extremely memorable. The table tennis sequences are among the film’s best, as Safdie and Khondji allow the tiny white ball to dictate the camera’s movement. These scenes feel as tense as any chase sequence could, creating kinetic matches that thrill without disorienting the viewer.
Daniel Lopatin’s score is another notable craft. Driven by synths, it clashes with the midcentury setting in the best way, creating a dissonant effect that mirrors Marty’s jittery nature. In the same vein, the needle drops, including “Forever Young” by Alphaville and “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears, are anachronistic, but they always feel purposeful. Just like the film itself, the music refuses to fit within any expected lines.
Timothée Chalamet has truly never been better — his portrayal of Marty is all dangerous charm, and he leans into the character’s showmanship in a way that’s both hilarious and disarming, especially when he weaponizes crass humor. However, it’s in the film’s closing section, where Chalamet softens the arrogance and lets us past Marty’s walls, that he showcases a level of maturity beyond his previous roles. This final emotional pivot mostly lands, in large part because Chalamet manages to make the viewer root for a morally-gray protagonist.
The supporting cast is, similarly, excellent in both performances and casting. Odessa A’zion plays Rachel, Marty’s on-and-off love interest, with tenacity, and shows what can happen to people who get caught within Marty’s hurricane. Gwyneth Paltrow brings glamor to her role as Kay Stone, a retired actress who works opposite her husband, Milton Rockwell, played by Kevin O’Leary of “Shark Tank” fame. O’Leary is the film’s biggest surprise, playing a cartoonish capitalist who acts as one of Marty’s many adversaries with unexpected mastery. Tyler Okonma — better known as Tyler, The Creator — is full of life, and his Wally gives Marty a much needed reality check during one of their misadventures.
In the awards race, the film has set itself up for a significant run. With A24’s backing and overwhelmingly positive critical reviews, including a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, Timothée Chalamet has already solidified his place as a frontrunner for Best Actor at the Academy Awards. A Best Picture nomination is also highly likely, as are potential nominations in Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing and several craft categories. Safdie’s chances for Best Director feel genuinely 50/50, though the Safdie brothers’ miss with “Uncut Gems” and Benny Safdie’s going solo this time around may give him a much needed boost. Paltrow and A’zion could both find their way into Best Supporting Actress nominations, but they both seem unlikely to happen as of now.
Ultimately, “Marty Supreme” is a wild and exhilarating ride, if not occasionally a tad overstuffed. Josh Safdie manages to balance his signature chaos with an emotional core that felt missing from “Uncut Gems.” The film is definitely one of the year’s boldest gambles, and only time will tell if A24 will recoup the $70 to $90 million budget, the studio’s highest ever. At its core, Safdie has crafted an off-the-walls, 1950s period character study that moves at the speed of Marty Mauser’s ambition itself, led by what is easily the most frenzied performance of Timothée Chalamet’s career.
