Review of Challengers, directed by Luca Guadagnino

I have been waiting for Challengers to release for such a long time. Back when it had its original release date, I was slated to be the critic at MovieWeb who was supposed to review the film and interview the cast, but then it got the delayed release.

In April 2024 I was also slated to interview Mike, Josh, and Zendaya along with reviewing the movie, but unfortunately life happened (turns out I’m moving to two different countries in Asia in a little bit after posting this), and I had to drop out of the interview and turn it over to someone else.

Regardless, I was hype for this movie. When it came out, I told my sister were going to see it no matter if she wanted to see it or not, and then we got our tickets for a Sunday afternoon. I knew what to expect going into this movie, and because of that I genuinely loved it.

It was also really great seeing this with an audience that reacted to what was going on. They were screaming and hollering at all of the right moments, and quiet with no phones during the rest. It was exactly what I wanted in the end!

Let’s get into the review.

When two young male tennis players get caught with a rising star, it unearths their problems with each other and a competitive streak.

This is a movie that toggles back between the past and present, filling in the gaps. The editing of this movie is pretty sharp when it comes to this, and uses a lot of fade outs and overlays of music over dialogue to create even more tension and urgency throughout.

We begin with the tennis match that defines everything the movie stands for: the showoff between Art and Patrick, two former friends and high school classmates that are no longer friends. Art has become a famous, successful tennis star who has endorsements from major brands. Patrick sleeps in his car and bums around for the next paycheck.

While we start with this moment, we begin to move backward in the past. They were once doubles partners at the U.S. Youth Opens, and that’s where they ogle at a rising star, Tashi, together from the stands. They both think she’s hot, especially after she lets out a big victory cry, and attend her party later to try and talk to her.

After getting her to come with the beach to smoke, they invite her back to their hotel room. Surprisingly, she comes, and the three end up chatting and then engaging in major threesome territory when it comes to making out. She thinks they have the hots for each other, though, which they deny, and they accidentally make out with each other thinking that the other person is Tashi.

In the present, Art is married to Tashi and they have a child together. We see how she brought him to this tournament in New Rochelle so he could get some matches in, as his headspace hasn’t been great lately. He wants to retire, but she doesn’t let him, forcing them to continue in this vicious cycle where she starts to resent him.

As Patrick progresses through the tournament, he runs into Tashi while trying to bum a play to stay off of a Tinder date. She tells him to never go near them again, and we dig deeper into their shared past.

Patrick went professional after beating Art in a match at the Opens, while Art went and played for Stanford with Tashi. Tashi and Patrick dated, but when Art starts to subtly mess with their relationship (which Patrick encourages, as Art never does things like this), it leads to a major argument between Patrick and Tashi.

Patrick doesn’t come to one of Tashi’s games, and she has a career ending injury while on the court, effectively ending that relationship. Tashi ends up in the back with Art, and the rest is history from there. At an Applebee’s, the two end up chatting after their college days, and Art brings her on as his coach.

Turns out the day before the match, Art and Patrick had a confrontation, where Art cruelly tells Patrick that he is going to be nothing and Art will be remembered in tennis history because of all the hard work he put in. We learn that Patrick asked Tashi to be his coach, and she considered it, even screwing him in the back of his car the same night.

She wanted Patrick to throw the match, which led to her being in his car in the first place in the middle of the night. Patrick also told her that he knew that Art wanted to retire and leave all of this behind, and that Tashi would never stand for that, especially when it comes to how Art is a stand in for her own lost tennis career.

Patrick does end up throwing the match in some ways, with some horrible serves and purposely hitting the net. But on his last serve, he gives the signal to Art telling him that he did it with Tashi, which Art understood immediately. Now angered and passionate, the two engage in a massive battle together on the court, with it ending as Art sails over the net to smash the ball.

Tashi can be seen screaming in the background the same way she did when she won her game all of those years ago, while Art and Patrick embrace. I think this ending could be interpreted in different ways, especially as one could take it that they end up together, they all end up in a threesome, or Art and Tashi’s marriage is over.

I also read online that if you hit the net while doing that, you can lose the point. Pretty sure Art hit the net, but don’t quote me on that.

Overall Thoughts

Not only did I love the movie because of the chemistry between the three leads, but there were some seriously tasteful shots and blocking done throughout all of this. Like those tennis scenes were insane to watch, and it was risky even attaching the camera to the ball. That shot could’ve gone badly, but it worked so well.

That said, I could see how someone might not like the movie. My sister and I agreed that it needed to shave off a little bit from the run time, as it started to drag halfway through the final arc. I also could see someone somehow not expecting a threesome from this, which is obvious from the trailer, and then freaking out at some scenes.

Regardless, I loved this film. If you’re even vaguely interested in it, go see it in theaters in Dolby. That sound was fantastic, especially with the tennis and music.

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