Marty Supreme (2025)

When I was walking into the theater, I remember thinking, I really have no idea what I am getting myself into with this one. And honestly, sometimes that is half the fun. Going into a movie completely blind can be surprisingly refreshing. All I knew about Marty Supreme was that it involved ping pong and that there were a few award nomination rumors floating around. When the showtime happened to line up with my schedule, that was enough for me to book a ticket.

Marty Supreme is, unsurprisingly, about a man stuck in a shoe sales job who dreams of becoming the number one table tennis player in the world. He is willing to do quite literally whatever it takes to get there. Whether that means traveling the globe to compete or taking advantage of the people closest to him, his focus is singular. He wants to be known, he wants recognition, and he will settle for nothing short of being the best.

I am not a Timothée Chalamet superfan, but I do generally enjoy him in most roles. I recently had a conversation about actors who can completely ruin a movie for you. My list is fairly short, though there are a few names that others seem to adore and I will never fully understand. Timothée falls firmly on the opposite list for me. More often than not, I end up liking the movies he is in, and Marty Supreme was no exception.

The film is categorized as a sports drama, a genre we have seen a lot of this year. Boxing in particular seems to be having a moment, though few of those releases have really stood out. Given that table tennis is not exactly high on most people’s list of favorite sports, it was refreshing to watch a movie that both informs and entertains. I can now confidently say I understand at least some of the pros and cons of using white balls in competitive play. And despite being labeled a drama, there were several moments that had people in my theater genuinely laughing out loud.

That said, the movie is not without its flaws. My biggest issue was the runtime. At nearly two and a half hours, it simply felt too long. Around the two-hour mark, I checked my watch, which is always my personal sign that a film is overstaying its welcome. It wasn’t necessarily a pacing problem, and I did not take issue with the content itself. I was just ready for it to wrap up. By that point, it felt like we all understood where things were heading.

One thing that genuinely surprised me was learning after the fact that the movie is loosely based on a true story. I had no idea going in, and a quick post-watch Google search was what clued me in. I would have expected that to be mentioned at the beginning, or at least acknowledged with a brief update before the credits rolled. Knowing that context beforehand might have changed how I viewed certain moments. I can’t fully explain why it matters to me, but it did feel like a missed opportunity.

This movie may have flown under your radar. I’ve heard that from several people already. If that’s the case, I do recommend checking it out. I don’t expect it to be a major awards frontrunner, even if it lands a nomination or two, but I am always in favor of supporting original stories that feel different from the usual releases. Marty Supreme may not be perfect, but it is definitely worth your time.