THUMBS UP
First and foremost, the movie Challengers delivers on entertainment, with two hours of sex, jealousy, tension and competition. On one hand, Challengers is a story about tennis and a collegiate love triangle. On the other hand, it is a movie that seeks to say something much deeper about ego, athletics and passion. Between its steamy make-out scenes that almost too easily lend themselves to TikTok edits, Challengers raises some extremely compelling questions about the nature of human connection.
Art and Patrick’s flirty bromance straddles the line between friendship and romance. In Art, we find a regimented, yet somewhat meek and soul searching character. There is a certain intensity and power to Art’s sensitivity. Meanwhile, Patrick exudes an effortless confidence and assurance. He stands as a sort of foil to Art and it seems that the very confidence that distinguishes him from Art is what ultimately seduces Tashi. One might think about how Tashi serves as a vessel for them to express their desire for one another. The homo-erotic undertones of Art and their relationship are potent but subtle enough that the audience is left pondering the nature of their connection.
On a sheer entertainment level, the movie delivered. The EDM soundtrack perfectly reflected the movie’s tone. There was something rhythmic and pulsing about every scene. Uncle ACE by Blood Orange, the song playing during the movie’s viral threesome scene, was on repeat for me for days after. The zoomed-in shots in which your POV is the tennis ball are exhilarating and the electronic beats heighten the intensity, making the shots even more immersive.
Also, frankly, scenes of these sculpted athletes getting it on are tough to not appreciate. But, the sex scenes are tasteful and appeared tactfully in service of illustrating something else about the dynamics between the three characters. Tashi is so much more than the sexy centerpiece of the film. Her true love transcends the men who long for her attention. Tennis. She is an athlete and romance appears fairly auxiliary for her. Tashi is ambitious, greedy and frankly, insensitive to the love-struck boys vying for her attention. It was refreshing to see a selfish female character still emerge as likable.
The directors behind Challengers artfully packaged a really powerful social commentary in what appears to be a shallow, frivolous story of a love triangle. I stand in awe of their ability to so savilly strike a balance between entertainment and substance.
THUMBS DOWN
When Challengers hit theaters, I was excited to watch. However, the movie ended up disappointing me. It was predictable and I quickly became pretty bored. Challengers, down to the shots and the soundtrack, was so stylistically overdone that at points it felt more like a TikTok edit than a film. While the tennis scenes were fun and the up-close shots were definitely exciting, these scenes dragged on and the soundtrack began to remind me of Wii sports resort. Although Zendaya’s acting does not disappoint, her presence in the movie and a couple of fun scenes are really the only reason I finished it.
This movie jumped so often from flashbacks to flash-forwards that it was hard to feel invested in any one scene, and often felt choppy. In just over two hours, this movie spans fifteen years, and I felt that each scene was cut short before it could develop any real substance. I did not develop any attachment to any of the protagonists and the love-triangle based mainly on infatuation over Tashi did not really leave much room for analysis. The plot leaned heavily on overused tropes, like the injured-athlete comeback story and the predictable love triangle centered around the attractive girl.
Art and Patrick, who were doubles partners in the junior leagues, find the trajectories of their tennis careers going in completely different directions. However, it is never made clear the reason that Patrick’s career falls off so much to the point that he is living out of his car. The blandness of Patrick’s competitor, Art, paired with his amount of screen-time was an unappealing combination.
Tashi, the female protagonist, suffers from a knee injury that destroys her shot as a tennis player and she becomes Art’s tennis coach and wife to live vicariously through his success. When in various scenes she transitions to her role as mother, her character does not feel very believable given that it is very at odds with the sharp bad-ass she is portrayed as otherwise. Generally, the outcomes of these players felt exaggerated which made each storyline seem inauthentic.
The dialogue consisted mostly of yelling matches, and a lot of airtime was dedicated to discussing technicalities of the tennis match and strategy. Even as someone who enjoys tennis, I was pretty indifferent to all of this jargon. Additionally, a significant portion of the dialogue is dedicated to the characters just insulting each other. However, the lack of wit or originality in these conversations, along with the under-developed plotline, made these scenes boring and repetitive.
The culmination of all the years of competition and pining over Tasha was a one-night stand in a car. For me, this cheapened the whole intense build-up of the story. It seemed like the windstorm was geared at enhancing the drama of this scene, but this instead came across to me as a little too on-the-nose and overdramatic. While Challengers definitely has a couple amusing moments and an attractive cast, it lacks a certain X-factor that would make this a truly captivating or fun movie.
