Marty Supreme

In 1952 New York, headstrong shoe salesman Marty Mauser (Timothée Chalamet) chases an improbable dream: world domination in table tennis. An irresistible yet reckless hustler, Marty gambles everything on his own success. As he navigates a series of bizarre upheavals on his way to the Wembley championships, he is thrust into a manic world of risk and temptation, discovering the true cost of the American Dream.

Director Josh Safdie, going solo after the frantic success of UNCUT GEMS, delivers an ode to a sport that is often underestimated. “As a child, I loved table tennis. My father and uncle even played internationally,” Safdie told De Filmkrant. “People don’t realize that table tennis has a whole history.” The film uses the sport as a historical prism to depict the post-war era, a time when table tennis became a source of national pride and a way out of isolation for countries like Japan.

MARTY SUPREME sets itself apart by linking the sport to the rise of global capitalism. Safdie focuses on the clash of cultures: “I wanted to tell a story about the difference in mentality between Marty and the Japanese player Endo, and what it meant to be an American at that moment.” The film captures the turning point where ideals gave way to material possession, all wrapped in an explosive visual style as unpredictable as a hard-fought match at the table.