Arts & Culture
‘Challengers’ Review: A Sports Movie Out of Left Field
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Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers has everything, and nothing, to do with tennis. As Zendaya’s character Tashi puts it, “Aren’t we always talking about tennis?” The film, though set primarily in 2007 and 2019 and sometimes in between, jumped around in time as the movie’s narrative progressed.It was shot on 35mm which gives the story a vintage, almost timeless feel just like Guadagnino’s previous movies. The film is centered around three characters: Tashi (Zendaya), Patrick (Josh O’Conner) and Art (Mike Faist). All three are exceptionally good tennis players poised to go pro as teenagers; Tashi and Art play at Stanford, while Patrick immediately tries to go pro. While the movie jumps around in time, it begins and ends with a titular Tennis match: Art vs.