Film Review: ‘Marty Supreme’ is a Tour de Force Depiction of Youthful Arrogance from Timothée Chalamet and Josh Safdie

It’s almost absurd how Marty Supreme never stops. Whether it’s Timothée Chalamet‘s title character talking a mile a minute, getting in and out of trouble, or the way the world around him is constantly in motion, there’s nothing calm about this film. For two and a half hours, you just have to give yourself over to controlled chaos, which makes for a pulse-pounding cinematic experience. In pushing Chalamet, the character, and the world, nearly to the breaking point, the movie ends up being a singular experience that you won’t soon forget. Believe the hype about this one, folks.

Marty Supreme depicts youthful arrogance, confidence, exuberance, and more with a pedal to the metal feel that only a Safdie could pull off. While Benny Safdie opted to try something a bit different with The Smashing Machine (to strong results, as I said here in my review), Josh Safdie has turbocharged the filmmaking style he and his brother developed over the years. Marty Supreme is bigger and has a more epic scale than something like Uncut Gems, but is very much a companion piece. Quality wise, it’s on the same level, too, as this is terrific filmmaking from top to bottom.

This is the story of Marty Mauser (Chalamet), an up-and-coming table tennis star in 1950’s New York City. While ping pong isn’t really respected in the states, it’s bigger over in Europe, so Marty needs to get money together to head abroad for a tournament. He’s working for a relative as a shoe salesman to earn that money, though when he wants to head out early and collect his pay, that doesn’t go well. That’s just the first of several misadventures that Marty will go through in the pursuit of greatness, respect, and the place in the world he feels is his right. On top of that, Marty’s childhood friend and sometimes lover Rachel Mizler (Odessa A’zion) has turned up pregnant. Still, getting to Europe is what matters. If he can win the tournament, he’ll be on his way to becoming the star he already is in his head.

While in Europe, Marty runs into actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow) and her rich businessman husband Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary). Wooing Milton for an endorsement, he also woos Kay into bed, as she’s both amused by and also feels a little sorry for him. Back home, their paths will again cross, as Marty continues to get into and out of trouble, often alongside Rachel, all as he plans for the next tournament, this time in Japan, where his rival is waiting for a rematch. The details of the plot are less important than the feel of the film, which is just consistently wild.

Timothée Chalamet turns in career best work with a performance that may well prove to be his Oscar winning role. Chalamet just owns the screen here, essaying a character who you love and hate in equal measure. His depiction of youthful arrogance has you unable to look away, even when Marty is doing things you really wish he wouldn’t. The tightrope he walks is just stunning, from start to finish, especially as he’s in nearly every scene. As good as Chalamet is, don’t sleep on his female co-stars, as Odessa A’zion and Gwyneth Paltrow are terrific. A’zion feels like a vintage Safdie character, working wonderfully in concert with Chalamet, while Paltrow brings a very different vibe for him to bounce off of. Both have great chemistry with Chalamet and help to elevate his performance, and vice versa. Fran Drescher doesn’t have as much to do here as you’d like, though she does have a presence that really fits the film, while Kevin O’Leary is a huge surprise, doing rather fine work. Supporting roles exist here for Sandra Bernhard, Emory Cohen, Abel Ferrara, Fred Hechinger, Penn Jillette, Koto Kawaguchi, Luke Manley, Isaac Mizrahi, Tyler Okonma, Géza Röhrig, and many more. This may well be the ensemble of the year, to the point where its side characters are so vivid (even someone like John Catsimatidis shines), it single-handedly proves why we need the Oscars to have their newly introduced Casting category.

Co-writer/director Josh Safdie, working with frequent Safdie collaborator Ronald Bronstein, goes big here. The script that Bronstein and Safdie penned takes the action throughout 1950s New York City, as well as into New Jersey, and even countries abroad. Safdie’s direction is laser focused on Chalamet’s Marty Mauser, as well as on harnessing the controlled chaos to keep you on the edge of your seat. Cinematographer Darius Khondji, who previously worked with Safdie on Uncut Gems, again finds the beauty and the horror in the anarchic world being depicted. Khondji’s visuals, as well as the score from Daniel Lopatin, elevate things to an epic feeling. Plus, the film is perfectly cast, as mentioned above. It truly deserves at least a nomination in the new Best Casting category at the Academy Awards, if not a win.

Marty Supreme will knock your socks off. It’s possible that if the earlier work that Josh and Benny did together never gelled for you that this won’t either, but the movie is so well realized, with such a towering turn from Timothée Chalamet at its core, that it should prove impossible to resist. When you think about the cinema of 2025, it’s likely that this flick will be right there amongst your favorites, it has that much to offer.

SCORE: ★★★1/2