Marty Supreme, starring Timothée Chalamet in a fictionalized take on ping-pong legend Marty Reisman, has received a wave of early praise after the review embargo lifted on Monday, weeks ahead of its Dec. 25 theatrical release. The film, directed by Josh Safdie, follows Marty Mauser (Chalamet), “a young man with a dream no one respects,” who fights his way toward greatness. The ensemble cast includes Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A’zion, Kevin O’Leary, Tyler Okonma (Tyler, The Creator), Abel Ferrara, and Fran Drescher.
On Rotten Tomatoes, Marty Supreme opened with a staggering 96% score across 54 critic reviews, as of writing marking one of Chalamet’s best-reviewed projects to date. While it falls just shy of his highest-rated film, 2017’s Lady Bird, at 99%, it currently stands as his best-reviewed leading performance, edging out previous solo-driven roles.
Early reviews heavily highlight Chalamet’s electric screen presence and Safdie’s frenetic directorial style.
Marty Supreme's review is fabulous but not his highest
On Rotten Tomatoes, Marty Supreme opened with a staggering 96% score across 54 critic reviews, as of writing marking one of Chalamet’s best-reviewed projects to date. While it falls just shy of his highest-rated film, 2017’s Lady Bird, at 99%, it currently stands as his best-reviewed leading performance, edging out previous solo-driven roles.
What critics are saying on Marty Supreme
Early reviews heavily highlight Chalamet’s electric screen presence and Safdie’s frenetic directorial style.
- Variety’s Peter Debruge calls it “the defining performance of [Chalamet’s] still-burgeoning career,” noting that the actor makes viewers believe in this “instantly iconic character.”
- IndieWire’s David Ehrlich praises the star’s physicality and intensity, writing that Chalamet makes “one of the most colossal movie performances of the 21st century seem as natural as a lay-up.”
- The Hollywood Reporter’s David Rooney calls the film “a wonder,” describing it as a kinetic portrait of a life in constant motion.
- The Wrap’s William Bibbiani, the lone top critic to give a negative score so far, dismisses the film as “shallow self-congratulation for American moxie at the expense of everyone and everything around us.”
