The world of cinema, but not only, has come to know “Marty Supreme“, one of the most watched films in Italy in the period after the Christmas holidays and among the main candidates to break the bank at the Oscars, having obtained 9 nominations.
A film that is not a true biopic, but is inspired by Marty Reisman, a legendary American ping-pong player and at the same time a renowned gambler, naturally not in legal circuits, played by Timothée Chalamet (in the cover photo).
“Marty Supreme”, portrait of a ping pong legend
As mentioned, the protagonist of “Marty Supreme” is a certain Marty Mauser, a character inspired by Marty Reisman, a legendary American ping-pong player between the forties and nineties, even.
A very long period of time, a record, but which made Reisman a true legend: not only for his skill, but also for his longevity.
Born in 1930 and died in 2012, Reisman reached the podium five times at the World Ping Pong Championships, in individual or team competitions.
And he won his last tournament in 1997, always using the Hardbat method, i.e. “old-style” rackets, without the sponge glued to the wood. A change of equipment that would have revolutionized that sport forever, but not Reisman’s attitude.
Like Stu Ungar?
Watching “Marty Supreme”, masterfully played by Timothée Chalamet, the first comparison we can make is between Mauser/Reisman and Stu Ungar. Even from a physical, bodily point of view.
The somewhat murky context of New York’s underbelly, the almost urgent need to play, the continuous competition, finding the money to compete in tournaments at the risk of one’s life, even a certain physical resemblance. Above all, the incredible ability to get into trouble.
Only instead of poker or gin rummy, there is ping pong, or table tennis; in short, that sport that we have all played once in our lives, for fun. But not with Marty’s obsessive attitude.
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Small spoiler: “Marty Supreme” is the name of the orange balls that are produced branded in honor of the protagonist.
Betting in the film
The betting aspect appears in the first half of the film, which is also the turning point of the plot. Everything revolves around a dog, owned by a mafia boss, that Marty and his friend Wally should take to the vet as soon as possible, since its owner was involved in an accident.
To go to the vet, the character played by Chalamet receives a lot of money, which however is invested in another way. In ping-pong challenges against some local tough guys, where Marty initially pretends to be bad to raise the stakes, only to return to his usual phenomenal self.
From then on, the escape, the discovery, the chaos and yet another chapter of a film full of twists. The story of pretending to be bad, accepting bets in his favor starting with a significant point handicap, is truly inspired by what Reisman did.
A true episode, but not reported in the film “Marty Supreme”, is the anecdote of Reisman trying to bet 500 dollars on himself before a match in Detroit, going to a guy he thought was a bookie, but who was actually the president of the US Ping Pong Federation, who called a policeman and had him arrested.
“Marty Supreme”, an Oscar film?
Nominated for nine Oscars, “Marty Supreme” seems destined to at least win the statuette for Best Actor.
Timothée Chalamet is credited with incredibly low odds now offered by major online bookmakers, around 1.20 (the average market odds), compared to 6.50 for Leonardo Di Caprio (“The Revenant”) with Wagner Moura (“Sergio”), Ethan Hawke (“The Good Lord Bird”) and Michael B. Jordan (“Creed III”) further behind.
Marty Mauser could be the first character more or less linked to the world of betting to win the Oscar for Best Actor, played by Timothée Chalamet.
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