“Marty Supreme.” Christmas day you’ve seen it, the Marty Supreme windbreakers, the orange blimp, Timothée Chalamet surrounded by his orange ping-pong headed security guards. You’ve even heard it, with Chalamet’s feature on Esdeekids’ “4 Raws” remix. “Marty Supreme” has one of the best marketing jobs of any film I’ve ever seen.
A24’s latest film, “Marty Supreme,” was released on Dec. 25, 2025, starring Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A’zion, Tyler Okonma (a.k.a. Tyler the Creator), and Koto Kawaguchi. Loosely based on table tennis champion Marty Reisman, the film already won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay, undoubtedly being one of the most impactful films of 2025.
Viewers begin following Marty Mauser, a cocky table tennis player and shoe salesman on his journey to become the world’s greatest table tennis champion. Failing “doesn’t even enter his consciousness,” his unstoppable force taking us on the most overstimulating, hustling films I have ever watched.
The opening scene starts with a sperm fertilizing an egg which transitions into a ping-pong ball, leaving jaws dropped in the audience and setting the unhinged tone for the rest of the movie. I will say, there was not a second of this film where I was even slightly bored.
However, my annoyance comes from the fact that those are not the only components that make a movie good. The plot lacked conclusion; in fact, it was quite non-existent. There were a few ping pong scenes, with the subplot of a dog transforming into the only plot.
After the introduction of Okonma’s character “Wally” the plot erupts (literally). After Mauser runs away from the NYPD, his next stop is a rundown hotel; he talks his way into the cheapest possible room with Wally. Shortly after, his bathtub caves the ceiling in, making him fall on the room below him, breaking a man’s arm. That man then begs for Marty to take his ill dog to a vet, offering to pay him a large sum of money.
It was at this point that my critiques of the movie came in, after one scene of ping pong, we had already steered the plot towards stealing, and explosions. Mauser’s proposal of the orange ping pong ball was just as lost as a white ping pong ball on white fabric.
Mauser’s character is doomed to be hated from the start, participating in multiple affairs. But for many, Mauser still had the audience’s support, despite his awful choices. Although I agree I still had compassion for Mauser as his character developed, I felt his main opponent Koto Endo, a Japanese table tennis champion, had a far more influential plot.
His character is deaf, using his disability to enable a sense of calm and strategy, as he uses the rhythm of the ball to defeat opponents. Endo is a direct contrast to Mauser’s character, with his quiet, disciplined demeanor. While Mauser is hated, wanted, yet severely determined throughout this entire movie.
His character begins as someone who would discard anyone and anything for his own success; his low rates of compassion are shown in his relationship with Rachel. At the closing scene of the movie, several scenes symbolize Mauser’s overcoming of challenges, and immaturity.
The movie in itself has magnificent details, from the incredible performance from Chalamet receiving the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. To the incredible soundtrack of the movie, and incredibly developed cast, the movie was visually appealing and entertaining. I expected nothing less from an A24 film.
Surely if I had wanted a movie about defeat, and motivation with countless useless subplots and Timothee Chalamet getting spanked by a ping pong racket, this movie would be a perfect pick. Watching was surely a monumental experience, one I recommend since I still talk about it frequently, meaning the film did its job to impact viewers. But personally, I kinda wanted a movie about ping pong.
2/5 stars.
