Zendaya Serves with “Challengers”
A hotel room. A cafe. Another hotel room. And of course, a tennis court. These seemingly mundane locations are the settings of the fast-paced drama that is Luca Guadagnino’s “Challengers.” Guadagnino, the visionary director behind 2018’s “Suspiria” and 2017’s “Call Me by Your Name”, has an eye for turning the ordinary and casual into cinematic stories of love, jealousy, and desire. “Challengers” is no exception. The film spins a decently straightforward love triangle plot on its head, leaving the audience spinning but more than along for the ride.
Much like “Call Me by Your Name”, “Challengers” explores desire, jealousy, and the lengths people are willing to go to for what they see as love. The film’s main focus is a tornado of a character: Tashi Duncan. Tashi is a prodigal tennis player until an accident takes her out of the competition, and although she is out of the court she is not out of the game. Tashi is single-minded, but not simple-minded, and we learn this throughout the sprawling timeline of the story. Tashi is brought to life spectacularly by Zendaya, who breathes so much life into the character that you swear she is in the room with you. Zendaya has fully proved herself to be one of the greatest actresses of our time and a sought-after addition to any film.
“Challengers” also focuses on two childhood friends, Art Donaldson and Patrick Zweig (played by Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor). From the moment they see Tashi in the film, they are fully under her spell. The men instantly start making ploys to get her, and they both succeed… at separate times in the timeline. Tashi and Art end up married, with Patrick and Art not speaking. What seems like a loving and successful relationship on the outside is slowly crumbling in on itself. Tashi’s love is tennis, and she makes this clear very often. Art is just a tool in her methods of getting back on the court, as she coaches him to his full potential so that he can get the career she couldn’t. Her methods are threatening, manipulative, and dishonest, and things only get worse when Patrick shows up again to muddy the waters.
Both O’Connor and Faist give riveting performances in some of the best work of their careers. The cinematography shines in showing their emotions and the games they’re playing. Although a surface-level glance shows Tashi as the master manipulator of the film, a deeper look and multiple rewatches will start to unravel the story as a whole, and who puppets who.
Clothing is a huge part of the film and something that one should pay attention to while watching. The clothing of the characters can help you decipher the puzzle-like timeline, and tell you who is currently at a good point in their career and who isn’t. Another big portion of the underlying plot is the sense of privilege the boys have in comparison to Tashi. Tashi worked for her career with raw talent, and the boys bought their careers but never reached Tashi’s level. Patrick plays tennis not because he values it, but because he has nothing better to do. Tashi plays because it is her whole life and her passion, yet she is the one whose career is stripped away and has to watch everyone rise while she falls.
All of these pieces come together to create a whirlwind of a film, stunning audiences everywhere. Although the film is about tennis, people who don’t enjoy the sport will still love the film and the stylized way the game is portrayed. After this amazing ride of a film, you will be left feeling like a ball on the court, soaring over the action as it all unfolds below you.