Thursday 15 August 2024

VOD: Challengers (dir: Luca Guadagnino, 2024)

"This is getting brutal."

In this sporty love-triangle, Zendaya plays Tashi, an ex-tennis pro who has coached her husband (Mike Faist) to success but who is going through a crisis of confidence, and fate puts them in the path of his former doubles partner and love rival for Tashi (Josh O'Connor).  Trying to cover and fuse the tennis and relationships elements is handled well, with an effective balance struck between the signature delicacy and intimacy of Guadagnino's films and the urgency of the tennis play scenes.  Both composition and editing are used to create meaning frequently to very satisfying effect.  The deliberate sexualisation and objectification of the players is used here very purposefully - their bodies are weapons both on-court and off.  Zendaya proves to be very accomplished in a proper adult role, O'Connor is as detailed and charismatic as ever, and lesser-known Faist displays an interesting stillness in his performance.  The overall feel of the movie may be a bit leisurely and the abrupt time-hopping can get a little irritating, but this study of inter-relationships within the trio is certainly interesting to watch and well-played by the leads.
 

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