We all know at least one arrogant go-getter in our lives, that slick-talking braggart who’s so reckless and hellbent on chasing their extra-large dream that they drag down everyone around them while on their quest. They often make for interesting, if irritating, protagonists on screen, and rather boorish company off it. Think Leonardo DiCaprio’s greedy sleazebag Jordan Belfort from “The Wolf of Wall Street,” or Daniel Day-Lewis’ blindly ambitious milk-shaker Daniel Plainview from “There Will Be Blood.”
Now welcome to that big britches club the strappy and sweaty table tennis player Marty Mauser (portrayed to the 10s by Timothée Chalamet). He’s got the ego the size of, well, Chalamet. But in both cases, it’s justified. Marty (loosely based on mid-20th-century table tennis champ Marty Reisman) is a cocky and youthful big dreamer stuck in what he sees as a dead-end grind of selling shoes in 1950s New York. He’s confident that there will be a huge shift in his drab world — just ask him — and his concrete resolve remains steadfast even as he runs into one hailstorm of chaos after another that would derail a more sensitive type.
The obstacles and distractions that are thrown at Marty run the gamut: an errant dog and its rabid owner (cult-classic director Abel Ferrara); a pregnant girlfriend (Odessa A’zion, on fire) who’s with someone else; a bored-to-tears veteran actress (Gwyneth Paltrow, channeling old-school glamour) who gets piqued by Marty’s brash commitment; her gruff entrepreneur hubby (Kevin O’Leary, perfectly cast); and more. Even some very faulty construction detours Marty’s way, and makes for one of the film’s most insane and pulse-pounding sequences. All threaten or perhaps even abet Marty’s pursuit for all-out greatness, and that includes the amiable presence of his likable chum Wally (Tyler the Creator, a natural-born actor embarking on a promising second career).
His biggest athletic foe comes in the unflappable form of Japanese table tennis star Koto Endo (Koto Kawaguchi), an icon in his homeland who Marty’s primary table tennis rival. Even when he’s humiliated on and off the tables, Marty gets back up and will stop at nothing to grab the glory he feels will finally lift him out of the dishwater-grey life he’s currently wading in.
As you can guess, Marty is a grandiose, take-charge personality and character, and Chalamet goes to extreme lengths to bring both his charm and obnoxiousness into crackling focus. It’s an intense, full-steam-ahead portrayal that is his most fully realized performance. You simply can’t take your eyes off this motor-mouthing charmer on-screen and, in turn, can’t but admire the brashness and commitment of Chalamet’s grandstanding performance. It lands him in with the acting greats.
And, oh, does director and co-screenwriter Josh Safdie put Chalamet and audiences through the ringer. That is Safdie’s MO, a conceit he’s displayed before in “Uncut Gems” (Adam Sandler’s career high) and “Good Time” (Robert Pattinson batting it out of the park).
Here, he carries on the panic-inducing tradition that he and his brother, Benny, mastered in “Uncut Gems” and “Good Times.” It all works until it doesn’t — near the end when Marty’s epiphany feels more shoehorned in than legitimately earned. It’s a misstep in a film that otherwise gets everything ever so right. You can mostly forgive it for that. Mostly.
What shines through is an enormous love Safdie and company have for the colorful denizens and characters of New York and the boot-strapped places they frequent. Safdie brings that all to immersive ‘50s life but has expert help in vividly recreating it from costume designer Miyako Bellizzi, production designer Jack Fisk, and cinematographer Darius Khondji. On the technical side, “Marty” proves supreme as well, in particular the seamless editing by co-screenwriters and frequent collaborators Safdie and Ronald Bronstein. (The table tennis tournament matches are exhilarating, as are many other scenes, including one of Marty in a tub). Safide, along with composer Daniel Lopatin, punctuate all of that with a daring confluence of musical styles (you name it, it’s in there). The soundtrack matches the shifting moods with songs from another era, including lovely tunes from Lou Reed and Peter Gabriel, that give it more vigor. All those decisions factor in “Marty Supreme’s” success and produce pure lighting in a bottle that leaps boldly out of the starting gate and never slows down until it hits the finish line. Details: 4 stars out of 4; opens Dec. 25 in theaters.
Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.
‘MARTY SUPREME’
4 stars out of 4
Rating: R (language, sexual content, some violent content, bloody images, nudity)
Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A’zion, Kevin O’Leary, Tyler Okonma
Director: Josh Safdie
Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
When & where: Opens Dec. 26 in theaters
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