Challengers is the newest film from director Luca Guadagnino and stars Zendaya Coleman, Mike Faist, and Josh O’Connor. Challengers follows the careers and lives of Tashi Duncan (Zendaya), Art Donaldson (Faist), and Patrick Zweig (O’Connor). Taking place over a span of thirteen(ish) years, we follow the complex love triangle between the three. While the plot is a little hard to describe more than that, make no mistake that Challengers is a wild time.
Spoilers will probably be ahead, because this movie ripped so hard and I want to talk about anything that I can. Lace up your sneakers, strap on your wristbands, and hold your audible violations, because we are talking about Challengers today.
Challengers Official Trailer
First Set: Pre-Viewing Thoughts
Going into Challengers I had no idea what to expect, but my hopes were high. Everyone had mountains of praise for it, but I could not seem to figure out why. That is not an issue for me, because if anything that is way more incentive to see what got everyone talking. I do not think I would have had it any other way, to be honest.
While there was nothing “Shocking” about the movie, this was a totally gripping rollercoaster that held me from horn to horn. Total transparency, I think Challengers is my favorite movie of the year already, but I will get to the “Why” in a minute. The trailers leading into this were solid enough, the star power attached to it was intriguing, and the now iconic shot of the three leads together was simple enough to warrant interest.
Acting Officials: Name Incentives
After the film’s release, I learned a few other details that sort of solidified that I was going to see it. Firstly, aside from the stars of the film, I somehow missed and then discovered this was a Luca Guadagnino movie. Call Me By Your Name broke my dang heart and Bones and All was disgusting, but also a fantastic film. I was all in just for Luca and Zendaya, but then I waited and there was more.
I also found out that everyone’s favorite cult classic YoutTuber’s favorite cult classic YouTuber, Justin Kuritzkes wrote this movie. Maybe this is too niche of an internet corner, but after you watch Potion Seller, then I think you will understand my surprise seeing his name with the writing credit. A less surprising but way more gripping pair of names that grabbed me were Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, the score composers.
Trent and Atticus are members of the pivotal hardcore rock group Nine Inch Nails. Yeah, THAT Trent Reznor. If you did not know by now that Trent and Atticus have been scoring movies, then I need you to take some time to listen to their work. They did the HBO Watchmen series, Pixar’s Soul, and my all-time favorite score- The Social Network. I will get more into everyone mentioned, but seeing all of these names attached to this tennis drama was nuts.
Performance Evaluations: …Performances
Top to bottom all performances are fantastic. Everyone is manipulative, everyone is sexy, and everyone wants to hurt everyone. I make a lot of Oscar predictions that never pan out or hold up more than a few days after reviewing their respective movies, but there is so much here worth something. The Oscars are not what actually decide what the best parts of movies are. That became evident to me when The Batman did not win every award possible. I digress.
I would like to see O’Connor, Faist, and/or Zendaya all get nominations. Of these three, like, I mean, come on, Zendaya deserves one for screaming “Come on” alone. Everyone nailed exactly what I needed to feel in each scene. Everyone’s chemistry was great and there was an ever-present intensity at every moment all thanks to everyone’s dynamics.
At any given moment everyone could end up making out or hurting each other and that is a scary thought. Either way, I thought everyone nailed it here. Each performance mixed with the pulsing score that runs throughout, add to the overall strength of Challengers.
Sneaker Squeaks and Ball Hits: Score and Composition
I need to get this out of my system now so I can talk about everything else in this movie. The Challengers score is for sure my favorite of the year, and it goes ludicrously hard. The first time Atticus and Trent’s score kicked in, I locked in hard. I had the fortune of seeing this in a theater totally alone, and at certain points when the score ramped up, I dialed in as hard as I could.
As I am writing this I am listening to the score and this is the most intense review I have ever written. I am locked in. You can not pull me out of this focus. Saying that Trent and Atticus cooked with this score is a disgusting understatement. Not only can I groove and funk out, but at any moment if I had to get serious, I totally could. The Watchmen score was so rad and lively. The Social Network had a dark and lonely score. I feel that the Challengers score is a great mix of the two.
The shrill strings mixed with the bouncy synths and pummeling percussion bring an interesting mix of excitement with a bit of an evil undertone to it. While I do not know that this is what I would have immediately imagined the score to a romantic tennis film would be, it is perfect.
I think in the hands of any other composer, this film would not be as good as it is. The score set so much of the tone and pace of this movie. It will not matter what else happens this year in the movies. The only way for this score to ever get topped is if Trent and Atticus were to do something else. I will end this section here. Truly, I could go on for a while, but I will let you listen for yourself and agree with me (you have to). Click any one of the links in this section and you will get a certified banger.
The Story of Today’s Game: Plot
Since seeing Challengers, Ihave obviously had nothing but glowing things to say about. I have also noticed that it is so hard to describe the plot without making it sound super basic. In all fairness, the plot truly is super simple, but it is the complex relationships between the three that really make the film. Yes, it is a sports movie with a love triangle, but, like, it is so much more than that.
I felt like there were a total of, maybe, three scenes where the emotions and energy were genuine. Despite the constant tension, everyone has something up their sleeve that may feel genuine in the moment, but later on it was clear that the previous moment was a bargaining point. The description and plot of Challengers is a pretty straightforward story, but with the complex emotions going on, there does not need to be much else.
A hefty portion of this movie’s story is told through looks and signals between the three leads. Words get us where we need to be, but through the score, and context everything speaks for itself. By the end of the film, each look or glance has several layers to it. We may know what the look means, but what are they actually saying? That is what a great story with great performances is all about.
When violently smacking a ball back and forth is the least anxiety inducing thing going on in your movie, then you did it right. With all of the pent of frustration and history between Tashi, Art, and Patrick- it felt that at any moment anyone could explode onto the other. It is hormones and rage and more hormones and more rage all day.
Challengers by Luca Guadagnino
For a brief moment in time Dune 2 was my favorite film of the year. It was everything I wanted it to be and then some. Challengers somehow went under my radar, but after one watch I can comfortably say it is the best. There are so many components in this film that will have a greater hold on my psyche for the foreseeable future.
Challengers is cool, tense, so much fun, and absolutely a movie I will be getting a physical copy of. Do not miss seeing this one in theaters. I would even go one step further and say do not miss this one ever. It is too early to actually tell if this will be my favorite film this year, but I am not sure what else is going to grab me as tightly as Challengers did. I love it, I love it, and I love it. I give Challengers a 9.5/10 and I can very much be swayed to give it a 10. Go watch Challengers, please.
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