08/01/2026
It's the weather for hunkering down with a good movie! ESP reviewer Mike Clarke is batting for Marty Supreme...
FILM REVIEW: MARTY SUPREME (15) ESP RATING: 4.5/5
Ambition has rarely looked this frantic – or this exhausting – on screen.
I almost made the same mistake with Marty Supreme that I once made with Whiplash.
I remember thinking: ‘Why would I go and see a film about a drummer when I have no interest in drumming?’ That film completely floored me and now comfortably sits among my top films of all-time.
So yes, I could very easily have looked at Marty Supreme and thought: ‘Why would I go and see a film centred around table tennis?’ But I didn’t. I went in with an open mind –
and I absolutely loved it.
Directed by Josh Safdie, one-half of the filmmaking duo behind Uncut Gems, Marty Supreme is very much cut from the same cloth.
This is a sweaty, high-stress, relentlessly-paced character study that uses sport as a backdrop rather than the main event. Table tennis just happens to be the arena in which this story unfolds; at its heart, this is about obsession, ego, and a young man’s all-consuming need to be ‘somebody’.
The film stars Timothée Chalamet (Dune, Wonka) as Marty, a fictionalised take on legendary real-life table tennis hustler Marty Reisman. We meet Marty scraping by on raw talent, bravado and sheer nerve – bouncing between dingy clubs, smoky back rooms and underground tournaments where pride and cash are always on the line. As his reputation grows, so does his ego, pulling him into increasingly risky situations – bad deals, toxic relationships and self-sabotaging decisions that threaten to undo everything he’s fighting for.
Chalamet throws himself into the role with ferocity. This isn’t the soft-spoken, romantic version we’ve seen elsewhere – this Marty is twitchy, abrasive, arrogant and often deeply unpleasant. And that’s exactly the point. His ambition is so overwhelming that it leaves very little room for empathy, loyalty or self-reflection.
Interestingly, there are very few people to root for here. You don’t walk out thinking: ‘Oh, so-and-so seems lovely – I’d like to be more like them’. Everyone on screen is selfish. Everyone is flawed. Almost everyone is awful in their own way. Everything goes wrong, often through sheer stubbornness and pride. And somehow, that only makes the experience more compelling.
If the tone feels familiar, that’s because the closest comparison really is Uncut Gems. The same clenched-jaw tension runs through every scene. Conversations overlap and collide. The music pulses aggressively beneath the dialogue. The camera rarely sits still, constantly hovering just a little too close for comfort. It’s exhausting – but in the best possible way. You’re not calmly watching events unfold so much as being dragged headfirst through Marty’s spiralling mindset.
What really struck me is how much love is poured into every aspect of the filmmaking. Every shot feels intentional. Every casting choice feels exact. The sound design and score keep you permanently on edge, amplifying Marty’s internal chaos. It’s messy, loud, stressful – and thrilling.
This is very clearly a passion project, and it shows. It’s also no coincidence that Marty Supreme has landed during awards season. This is the kind of bold, divisive, performance-driven film that voters often rally around, and will feature heavily in the conversation over the coming weeks.
You don’t need to care about table tennis to care about this film. Just like Whiplash, the subject matter is almost irrelevant. What matters is the fire underneath it – the desperation, the hunger, and the cost of wanting greatness at any price.
And despite the two and a half hours runtime – it absolutely flew by.
Expect award nominations for this to ping-pong from all over Hollywood and beyond – as this is supremely gripping.
ESP Rating: 4.5/5
Mike Clarke
Showcase Cinema de Lux Peterborough & ODEON Cinemas Luxe Peterborough, Out Now
Cast: Timothee Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A’zion, Kevin O’leary, Tyler Okonma, Abel Ferrara & Fran Drescher
Running Time: 2 Hrs 30 Mins
Director: Josh Safdie
Film Review Venue: Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough
For all the latest film information & showtimes at Peterborough’s Showcase Cinema De Lux & Odeon Luxe cinemas go to www.showcasecinemas.co.uk and www.odeon.co.uk
