MARTY SUPREME Movie Review: Timothée Chalamet Serves Chaos, Charm, and Career-Best Work in Josh Safdie’s Ping-Pong Epic

Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme shouldn’t work as well as it does — a ping-pong drama set in 1950s New York City, expanding all the way to Japan, built around a hustler whose mouth moves even faster than his forehand. Yet somehow it becomes one of the most electrifying, unpredictable, and darkly humorous films of the year, anchored by a Timothée Chalamet performance that cements why he’s at the center of nearly every awards conversation this season. As entertainment journalist Julian Lytle would say: “HIMothée” Chalamet!

Already recognized with Golden Globe nominations (Best Musical/Comedy, Best Actor, Screenplay), Critics Choice nominations across major categories, and wins from the New York Film Critics Circle, AFI, and L.A. Critics, Marty Supreme arrives carrying legitimate awards momentum — and, to put it simply, it earns it.

A Gritty, Vivid 1950s New York City — and a Wild Journey to Japan

Safdie recreates 1950s New York with the kind of immersive grime, energy, and lived-in electricity that defined Uncut Gems, only this time the chaos is wrapped around the world of underground table tennis hustling. When the story finally leaps to Japan, that shift explodes with style — a cultural and visual contrast that feels both surreal and magnetic.

The film follows Marty Mauser, loosely inspired by real-life table tennis eccentric Marty Reisman. Like Reisman, Marty believes in the Augie March doctrine of “first knocked, first admitted,” navigating the world with swagger, unshakeable confidence, and a hustler’s instinct that’s as mesmerizing as it is disastrous. He’s the type of character who can talk his way into anything… and talk himself right back out of it just as quickly.

Timothée Chalamet Is on Fire

Chalamet delivers one of the most electrifying performances of his career. As Marty, he is intense, impulsive, strategic, manipulative, magnetic, and completely impossible to look away from. He speaks in rapid-fire rhythm, shifts moods with whiplash precision, and brings a surprising physicality that feels both chaotic and controlled, which fits the character perfectly.

What makes Marty Supreme even more impressive is how naturally Chalamet’s real-world versatility folds into the role. Audiences already know he is one of the most dynamic performers of his generation, but this film pulls from every corner of his talent. The musicality he showed in Wonka and will soon display again in A Complete Unknown is present here, along with the athletic coordination he developed through months of intense ping-pong training, something cinematographer Darius Khondji has confirmed. His natural charisma, shaped during his LaGuardia High School days, also comes through. Chalamet has always operated across multiple creative lanes, whether it was acting, music, movement work, or even his early rap persona “Timmy Tim.” This film blends all of those skills into a performance that feels lived-in, nimble, emotionally expressive, and at times almost hypnotic. Whether he is slicing a serve across the table or flipping a knife with total ease, he turns Marty into a spectacle of talent that very few actors working today could replicate.

Throughout the story, Marty’s life unravels, rebuilds, and unravels again. His finances collapse, his relationships spiral, hustlers circle him, and every opportunity comes with danger attached. Chalamet navigates the chaos with remarkable control and charisma. It is the type of performance that feels destined for an awards-season montage because it earns your attention scene after scene.

Tyler, The Creator Makes a Stunning Acting Debut

The biggest surprise of Marty Supreme might be Apple Music’s Artist of the Year for 2025 Tyler Okonma (Tyler, the Creator) as Wally, a taxi driver and Marty’s unpredictable confidant. His scenes with Chalamet absolutely pop. There’s chemistry, tension, warmth, humor — a synergy that suggests Tyler has a long acting career ahead of him if he wants it. Every moment they share feels alive, like the film is briefly discovering a second heartbeat.

Give us more of these two together, whether it’s in a sequel, a spin-off, or an entirely different film. They’re magic.

A Strong Supporting Cast Adds Heat, Heart, and Chaos

Odessa A’zion shines as Rachel Mizler, a married pet-store employee entangled in a messy affair with Marty. She brings emotional volatility and sharp comedic timing, grounding the movie’s wild energy with her own character’s roller-coaster of desire, frustration, and self-destruction.

Gwyneth Paltrow appears as Kay Stone, a retired actress trying to climb back into relevance. Her relationship with Marty is layered — part opportunistic, part emotional, part delusional — and her presence adds an elegant but unstable tension to Marty’s already spiraling world.

Everyone around Marty is looking for a come-up. Everyone thinks they can use him or ride his wave. But Marty is a storm of charisma and self-sabotage, capable of lifting people up and burning bridges in the same breath.

Safdie Turns Ping-Pong Into Kinetic Cinema

Table tennis has always been a fast, artistic, almost balletic sport — and the film leans into that beauty. Safdie shoots matches like high-stakes showdowns, loaded with rhythm, intensity, sweat, and swagger. The paddle becomes an extension of Marty’s identity; the game becomes his escape, his addiction, his downfall, and his salvation.

There are sequences here that feel as adrenaline-soaked as Uncut Gems, but more playful, more stylish, and more character-driven. It’s a ping-pong movie — but it’s shot with the scope and ambition of a crime saga.

A Film That Feels Like It Could Be a Series

Marty Supreme has so many personalities, conflicts, betrayals, and big swings that it almost feels like the blueprint for a sprawling limited series. Yet Safdie keeps it tightly wound, making every moment count while still evoking a world that feels much bigger than what we see onscreen.

The film is messy in the best way — layered, crowded, unruly, and alive. Much like Marty himself.

Final Verdict

Marty Supreme is bold, stylish, chaotic, emotional, funny, and rooted in a powerful character study. Timothée Chalamet delivers a career-defining performance, Tyler Okonma announces himself as a legitimate actor to watch, and Safdie transforms a niche sport into a cinematic battleground of ambition and identity.

It’s one of the year’s most exhilarating films — unpredictable, beautifully crafted, and absolutely worth the awards buzz surrounding it.