“Marty Supreme” Ain’t So Grand
The release of a new movie from one of the Safdie brothers is like Christmas morning for a certain subset of film fans. This year, Marty Supreme from Josh Safdie actually will come on Christmas morning. Despite the fact that Josh didn’t make the film with his brother Benny, the hallmarks of their style are present. Marty Supreme is frantic, a haywire of a scheme centered on a tried-and-true scammer.
Marty Mauser (Timothée Chalamet) is two things: a professional ping pong player and a con artist. Sometimes, when he hustles people out of money at local arcades, he’s both at the same time. What Marty wants more than anything is respect, both at home and in the world of ping pong. In the finals of an international tournament, Marty loses to a superstar out of Japan named Endo (Koto Kawaguchi). Marty returns to New York, as penniless as before, but determined to return to the international ping pong circuit and beat Endo. Each plan to make money is more dangerous than the last, and they all send him running across 1950s New York City.
courtesy of A24
At this point, the marketing of Marty Supreme has essentially made itself a part of the film. From star and executive producer Chalamet’s increasing confidence that an Oscar will be his in a few months to the orange blimp that floated across Los Angeles skies for a few days to many other aspects of this press run, Marty Supreme has become an entity beyond film. That in it itself is fine, but the trajectory of this rise to cultural consciousness comes across as manufactured. Even if the real-world marketing plays into the personality of the film’s subject, who has a self-centered confidence about him, it only works for people who are drawn to this abrasive personality type. Fans believe Chalamet is doing press “in character,” but how does that work for a movie that only critics have had the chance to see? If this is a bit, it’s not clear and it makes Chalamet come across as the selfish, greedy character he plays.
courtesy of A24
Marty believes he’s owed something because of his ping pong skills. He’s good, there’s no doubt about that, but there’s better out there. Marty doesn’t seem to have a real love or passion for ping pong, but does it because he’s good at it and it could lead him to money. The tag line of Marty Supreme is “Dream Big.” It’s plastered on little ping pong balls and posters, telling the audience that this is the movie of a dreamer. Someone who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. In the case of Marty, the movie doesn’t make the viewer believe that what he wants is to be a ping pong champion. What he wants is money, power, and the freedom to do whatever he wants, whenever he wants. Ping pong is just the means by which he thinks he can quickly achieve those things. So, yes, he’s dreaming big, but he’s burning everyone around him so he can stay warm. That’s only an enticing lead character if there’s nuance and gray area to them. That can’t be said about Marty. Fans of the film will likely point to its final moments, where he softens up, but that’s a fundamental change in character rather than a progressively learned new behavior. Marty barely faces any consequences, so why would he change a thing? Marty Supreme tells us he’s a new man, but doesn’t want to explain how this arrogant boy managed a quick about-face. It’s this painful journey that makes for interesting films. The uncomfortable work that goes into recognizing the truth of who you are, the decision to change, and the follow-through. That’s conflict that’s compelling.
Marty Supreme feels manufactured rather than created. Its lifelessness is easily hidden beneath a layer of frenetic energy that will distract many. Chalamet’s performance is fairly one-note, something we’ve seen from him in the past. Unsurprisingly, the female characters exist only for Marty’s sex life. They offer nothing else to the film. Most of the supporting characters offer similar, minimal contributions (minus the sex), but Marty Supreme is The Marty Show, and that trick quickly runs shallow. The character arc of Marty is stagnant throughout the entire film. The audience gets anxiety spikes whenever one of his plans goes wrong, but that’s not the same as plot development or growth. Marty Supreme was never about a guy who dreamed too big for what was possible. It’s a series of loosely-tied-together hijinks that cater to fans of shock-value cinema.
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