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In Theaters Now
- 2024
- R
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
- 2 h 11 m
- 2024
- R
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
- 2 h 11 m
Summary Tennis prodigy turned coach Tashi (Zendaya) has taken her husband, Art (Mike Faist), and transformed him into a world-famous grand slam champion. To jolt him out of his recent losing streak, she makes him play a “Challenger” event — close to the lowest level of pro tournament — where he finds himself standing across the net from his form...
Directed By: Luca Guadagnino
Written By: Justin Kuritzkes
In Theaters Now
- 2024
- R
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
- 2 h 11 m
- 2024
- R
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
- 2 h 11 m
Challengers
6.6
Where to Watch
Summary Tennis prodigy turned coach Tashi (Zendaya) has taken her husband, Art (Mike Faist), and transformed him into a world-famous grand slam champion. To jolt him out of his recent losing streak, she makes him play a “Challenger” event — close to the lowest level of pro tournament — where he finds himself standing across the net from his form...
Directed By: Luca Guadagnino
Written By: Justin Kuritzkes
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 58 Critic Reviews
83
93% Positive
54 Reviews
54 Reviews
3% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
3% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 58 Critic Reviews
83
93% Positive
54 Reviews
54 Reviews
3% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
3% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
A tennis match can be a personal battle, a clash not only of athleticism but of mind, and Guadagnino gives every game and set the gravity of gladiatorial contest.
Despite all of the film’s time jumps and questionable character motivations (and there are some), when it needs to, the filmmaking is completely ace.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 54 User Ratings
6.6
70% Positive
38 Ratings
38 Ratings
9% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
20% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 54 User Ratings
6.6
70% Positive
38 Ratings
38 Ratings
9% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
20% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
I love this movie if anything it’s too short, not a lot of people are going to understand but if you do it’s amazing.
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This is a thrilling ride into a tennis final with an exciting threesome relationship as the biggest metaphor for it. Guadagnino gets better movie after movie.
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Smart, seductive and bristling with sexual tension, Challengers is arguably Luca Guadagnino’s most purely pleasurable film to date; it’s certainly his lightest and most playful.
Challengers surprised me. It’s a grandiose, propulsive, erotic follow-up to the dull, Tumblr-core emo of Bones and All, and I found myself enthralled by Guadagnino’s latest, in which three of our hottest young actors convincingly, tantalizingly explore alternating dynamics of power and sexuality
Combining his eye for expressive filmmaking, a mature performance from the three main stars and a droning pop score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Challengers is a seductive feast for the senses.
In tennis, “love” means nothing. Love also has little to do with “Challengers,” which uses the sport as the backdrop to serve up an elaborate, non-linear psychological triangle that proves twisty and enticing for much of the match, before double faulting by whiffing on the ending.
It’s trashy eurosleaze with none of the sumptuous debauchery.
Definitely enjoyed from start to finish, there is no slow down in the plotting or film direction. The back and forth timelines work really well to keep the energy flowing. An all time final 10 minutes.
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Two aspiring tennis players (Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor) compete for the affection of a highly skilled tennis prodigy (Zendaya) over the course of several years. Directed with flair by Luca Guadagnino ('Call Me by Your Name', 'Bones and All') the film had a lot of potential to offer but sadly my expectations weren't quite met here. What appeared to be a promising and tense tennis drama quickly turned into a cliche-riddled love triangle between the three leads, who I might add all had great chemistry with one another. They just sadly couldn't escape the trappings of the generic writing that reaches soap opera-levels of cringe at times. On top of that, loud music is played over moments of dialogue in several scenes, which I found pretentious and distracting, and the overuse of slow-motion and buildup in the tennis matches quickly became eye roll-inducing and laughable. Constant time jumping randomly throughout the film only convolutes things further. As if that wasn't already enough, the film manages to end on a cloying and forced-feeling anti-climactic note. Overall, the three leads are in top form here, but can't quite serve up a more innovative or compelling story here that transcends what we've already seen time and again with this kind of screenplay and predictable love triangle.
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First and foremost, I was bored STIFF by this story. Sure, there are fun and sexy images throughout, but what the hell is up with the pacing? Do I have to stare at a dude about to hit a service for 30 more seconds? Serve the dang ball, idiot! I'm just a little shocked that critics loved this film. The characters are not developed, they feel like robots, and the CGI tennis is WAY over the top. Even in the warm-up sequences, the ball looks SO fake. I've never seen Serena Williams hit the ball that hard, and some college freshman from Stanford is topping her? Don't think so.
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This movie is not good. I’m a Zendaya fan and loved Josh O’Connor in The Crown, but I wish I could get those 2 hours of my life back. The college scenes were the best part of the movie but I’ve seen more emotional depth in teen CW shows. Tennis is always a tough sport to adapt for actors but the ending is laughably bad. That’s the fault of the writers, not the actors. They did what they could with really weak material. I was really excited for this movie but it’s just not anywhere near worth the hype.
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