'CHALLENGERS' FIRST REVIEWS: CRITICS CALL ZENDAYA FILM 'TERRIFICALLY FUNNY, SEXY'

The first set of reviews for Zendaya's upcoming sports drama, Challengers, are here. Critics have called the Luca Guadagnino directorial a great blend of sexy and funny in their respective reviews. The film stars Mike Faist, Josh O'Connor and Zendaya in lead roles. Here is what critics are saying. 

Variety called the film complicated and sensual in a section of its review: "The chronology of Challengers is more complicated than it has to be, which winds up being one of the film's pleasures, as all involved — writer, director and cast — strive to elevate what could have been a tawdry Twilight-like YA romance (were it not for the casual full-frontal nudity and R rating). Instead, the result is closer to frisky European art films by Bernardo Bertolucci, François Ozon and Abdellatif Kechiche, so focused is the movie on butts, baskets and various other body parts — less lecherous than sensual as presented here."

Collider called it twisty and compelling. A section of its review read, "In a way, Challengers almost feels like a throwback to Guadagnino's pre-Call Me by Your Name work, with films like I Am Love and A Bigger Splash, which wholly relied on the dynamics between its characters, their romantic entanglements within, and the internal machinations of these characters. It's also one of the twistiest, most compelling, and non-stop horniest films of Guadagnino's career—which is truly saying something."

The Guardian hailed Challengers as 'terrifically absorbing and funny.'

"Challengers is terrifically absorbing and funny, with zinging extended dialogue rallies – though its cop-out ending fudges what we all know about tennis. Like life, it's a brutal zero-sum game of winners and losers," read the publication's review. 

IGN also reviewed Challengers and called it the 'hottest, sweatiest film': "Challengers is physically sexy too. It's the hottest, sweatiest film any American studio is likely to release this year, with charged, muscular lunges on the court arriving where Guadagnino would otherwise employ dance. Tennis becomes both a metaphor and vessel for interpersonal conflict, with frequent shots of scars and injuries as reminders of the toll it takes. In the eyes of Challengers, the sport is as an obsession that reveals the characters' respective worldviews and how they relate to one another on their upward and downward trajectories."

Challengers is set to release in theatres on April 26. 

Watch Live TV in English

Watch Live TV in Hindi

2024-04-15T08:16:48Z dg43tfdfdgfd