‘Challengers’
One of the buzziest movies of the year just dropped on streaming… of course, I’m talking about Luca Guadagnino’s steamy sports rom-dram Challengers. The movie stars Zendaya, Mike Faist, and Josh O’Connor as Tashi, Art, and Patrick, respectively, and jumps back and forth in time to follow the trio’s relationships with each other over 13 years. It centers around a high-stakes challenger match between Art and Patrick — best friends as kids turned virtual strangers as adults — where Tashi is also present as Art’s coach and wife. In the past, duo meet Tashi when they’re all teenagers, and… I’m sure you’ve seen the trailer that teases a threesome moment by now. Guadagnino’s direction, a script by Justin Kuritzkes, a techno-inspired score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, and genuine chemistry with every pairing of the movie’s central love triangle come together for an electric 2 hours and 11 minutes that never takes its foot off the gas and will leave you invested until the credits are done rolling.