Marty Supreme Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Marty Supreme Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 24, 2026

Some of the supplements included with this release attempt to make the case that one Marty Mauser (Timothée Chalamet) is a personified stand in for the United States of America itself, or at least for its perceived spirit, and if one does subscribe to that thesis, it might be jokingly (?) argued that this nation is a lot worse off than many may already think it is. Marty is an inveterate dreamer, certainly something that is often ascribed to Americans as a whole, but he's also something of a grifter, which is not necessarily thought of when "summing up" the United States' national ethos, though again jokingly (?), some may feel that that particular combo platter of characteristics is perfectly American. Marty Supreme kind of famously caught some kind of zeitgeist when it was released theatrically, becoming A24's highest grossing film and raking in barrels of award nominations. Some perhaps ill advised late breaking comments from Chalamet about the supposed death or at least impending mortality of opera and ballet may have scuttled any chances for the film, at least at the Academy Awards. When producers go to the trouble of having prima ballerina Misty Copeland show up at the lip of the stage en pointe, pretty much directly in front of Chalamet, who was in the front row with Kylie Jenner, that may suggest there was some considerable discomfort in the Arts Community as a whole about his apparently off the cuff statements, and this was kind of a presentational "hold my beer" response. That award season controversy aside, while Marty Supreme was greeted with near unanimous praise when it was originally released, there may be some quibbling issues some may have with the film in retrospect now given a bit of hindsight perspective, including an arguably way too long running time and what might be called an over emphasis on an increasingly improbable Series of Unfortunate Events .

Of course the "big hook" that Marty Supreme offers is its focus on competitive table tennis, a sport many tend to associate with a somewhat later timeframe courtesy of what was called "Ping Pong Diplomacy" in 1971. Perhaps surprisingly, then, Marty Supreme takes place in the early 1950s, with the story opening a bit disjunctively (at least in terms of its focal sport) at a somewhat dilapidated shoe store run by Marty's Uncle Murray Norkin (Larry "Ratso" Sloman), who wants to promote Marty to manager. Marty's having none of it, as his avowed "profession" is to be an international table tennis champion. This opening vignette also documents an affair between Marty and his married childhood friend Rachel Mizler (Odessa A'zion), and in fact this couple's early pre-credits assignation in the basement of the shoe store sets the film up for first a somewhat "biological" credits sequence, and then a closing moment some two and a half hours later that brings everything full circle (and/or ovum).

It's what happens in between those bookends that is both fascinating and frustrating in about equal measure. The ping pong element is absolutely fantastic, and in that regard it's kind of interesting to note there have been really rather few feature films or documentaries to center on this sport. When one also considers the fact that at least some of those previous efforts tend to be "live action cartoons" like Balls of Fury* and/or Ping Pong Playa, Marty Supreme's more straightforward and at least reasonably historically accurate portrayal is especially appreciated.

That said, this film drags along a veritable onslaught of "baggage" which is admittedly begun by a recalcitrant Uncle Murray, who fails to pay money he seems to actually owe Marty, sending Marty off on a spree of bad decisions that then informs the bulk of that aforementioned "in between" narrative. The result is often seemingly intentionally vignette driven, and so has a kind of inherent crazy quilt feeling to begin with, but the story is filled to the brim with interesting casting and some memorable supporting performances. In what to my eyes were obviously crafted to garner some kind of Supporting Actress nomination traction which failed to materialize, both Gwyneth Paltrow and Fran Drescher are on hand, with Paltrow as reclusive movie star Kay Stone and Drescher as Marty's put upon mother Rebecca.

Kind of hilariously, but actually quite effectively, Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary portrays Kay's smarmy husband Milton Rockwell. O'Leary is endearingly featured in a supplement stating producers approached him and said, "We need an asshole, and you'd be perfect!" Other quasi-cameos feature a gobsmacking panoply of people, including Abel Ferrara, Isaac Mizrahi, Penn Jillette, David Mamet, and Sandra Bernhard in what might almost be compared to the "spot the star" drinking games that might accompany viewing parties of epics of yore like The Greatest Story Ever Told.

The result is kind of exhausting, really. Any film that can both deconstruct and arguably reinforce stereotypes about Jews (including a horrifying flashback depicting a concentration camp prisoner smearing his body with honey in order to "feed" other prisoners), work in a bathtub crashing through a floor to the room below, and prominently feature what might be called the resurgence of Japanese national pride in the wake of World War II certainly has a lot on its cinematic plate. Now that the awards season furor (in every sense) has died down (and it's I think maybe salient to note the film took home no actual awards at the Oscars, which seems to be some kind of statement), it may be okay to see Marty Supreme in a kind of (appropriate, given the pock mark make-up Chalamet sports) "warts and all" reassessment. This film is big, ambitious, chaotic, often incredibly exciting and at other times frankly a bit of a slog. In other words, American.

*Note: Link points to a Region B release.

Marty Supreme Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Marty Supreme is presented on Blu-ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The closing credits offer "shot on Kodak film", though rather fascinatingly the workflow for this feature also had some (apparently minimal but still notable) digital capture utilized, with everything finished at a 4K DI. The result is incredibly appealing looking, with an absolutely homogenous appearance to my eyes, though there are some moments that are intentionally "distressed" looking, some of which evidently utilized 16mm. The ping pong action is so swift at times that admittedly a lot of what's in the frame can zoom by and be somewhat blurry, but in more stationary narrative moments, this 1080 presentation excels with fine textures on fabrics and sets in particular, all of which is aided by a rather sumptuous production design. The palette is rather interestingly subtle, especially in terms of some of the unusual combinations of tones offered in backgrounds, but everything looks healthy and natural throughout. Grain is tightly resolved throughout the presentation. Shooting on actual film can occasionally introduce "quaint" vestigial issues, and if you look at screenshot 19 at full resolution, you'll see what looks like a little fleck of missing emulsion on Marty's jacket.

Marty Supreme Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Marty Supreme features a really fun and immersive Dolby Atmos track. As is addressed in some of the supplements, the film offers a deliberately disjunctive soundtrack that offers both period appropriate fifties material but also anachronistic (stylistically if not content wise) tunes from the eighties. It's an audacious strategy, as so much of this film is, and if some may quibble with the actual upshot of the disconnect, all of the source cues are spaciously presented and many have nicely full lower ranges. The film's ping pong tournaments are all standouts from a sound design perspective, and I'll simply state with unavoidable punning that these vignettes often offer ping ponging channelization. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Marty Supreme Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: This review is based on the 1080 disc included in A24's Marty Supreme 4K release. I'm assuming it's the same as the standalone 1080 release.

• Commentary with Josh Safdie


• Dream Big: The Making of Marty Supreme (HD; 19:59) is a companion piece of sorts to the Total Immersion supplement on the 4K disc, with more input from Safdie and a number of the stars.


• Camera Test with Commentary by Josh Safdie (HD; 4:06) documents an introductory interchange Safdie arranged between Chalamet and Paltrow.

This packaged per usual A24 standards, with a DigiPack whose left sleeve encloses art cards. A slipcover is included.

Marty Supreme Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I'm well aware that my reaction to Marty Supreme is not aligned with many others, to which I guess I'm forced to ask "what else is new?". There is a lot to really admire about this hugely ambitious enterprise, but some curmudgeons (ahem) may feel there's too much in a number of ways. Technical merits are first rate and the supplements very enjoyable. I'm positive a lot of fans will consider this release a "must have", and may want to add a "highly" to my Recommended.