Challengers

I streamed “Challengers” on Prime Video. I don’t think it is a bad movie, but I didn’t like it at all. Seemed like it wanted to be a serious and dramatic film, but it didn’t work. 

The movie is about 3 young tennis players that form a love triangle. We follow them through a 15 year period of their lives. The entire way it all felt very silly to me. I think the story is silly. The characters come across as very one-note. This is a combination of the plot itself and the performances by the actors. I like Zendaya, but I don’t think she was cut out for this role. Mostly she just made weird faces to indicate drama was happening.

I did like how the movie revealed information about the relationship between the characters. It doled it out in a way that you shifted who you were rooting for. But in the end I felt apathetic toward all of them. 

As I watched, I kept asking myself whether I thought the movie wanted me to take it seriously. I could never tell. I did get invested in seeing how it all ended… and I was not dissapointed. And, I got a clear answer. The very last sequence made me laugh. 

This movie has been reviewed quite negatively. But, it performed well in the theater. I suppose if you advertise Zendaya in a threesome you will get some interest. I mean, there are a couple sexy parts… but don’t watch it expecting a hot movie. It is not. If it was trying to be, it failed at that too. There is no romance or passion in this movie at all. In fact, the dialog of the movie points out the fact they are always talking about tennis, even when they are about to get it on. 

If you have Prime I would probably recommend watching “Challengers”. It is well made. It is interesting. I wasn’t bored by it. But, I don’t think it is a very good movie, and I don’t think it has much of a point. I’d be interested to hear what others think. 

The filmmaker has an interesting style. We watch tennis matches through the POV of the ball. I didn’t like that, but I did like the 90’s techno synth soundtrack. It plays over most of the tennis matches as well as the fights along the way. I also like how Applebee’s was prominently featured as a date spot. It took me back. 

Filed Under: Amazon Prime, Film