It\u2019s a case of \u2018Love Flirty\u2019 in Luca Guadagnino\u2019s new film Challengers<\/a>, a romantic drama set in the world of professional tennis. <\/span><\/p>\n The Italian director is best known for helping launch the career of Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet<\/a> in the sensitive gay-themed Call Me by Your Name. In 2022, he reunited with Chalamet for Bones and All, a grim cannibal odyssey across America\u2019s Midwest. <\/span><\/p>\n But Challengers is a much cheerier affair, largely thanks to the presence of Chalamet\u2019s Dune<\/a> co-star Zendaya<\/a>, who is every bit as sassy off the court as she is on it. <\/span><\/p>\n She plays Tisha, a rising star in the tennis world. Although, when we first meet her, she\u2019s very much risen. <\/span><\/p>\n She and her husband Art Donaldson (Mike Faist) are seemingly living the dream, parenting their young daughter Lily in expensive five-star hotels and watching the money roll in as they participate in a glossy advertising campaign for Aston Martin, with their picture next to the slogan \u2018Game Changers\u2019.<\/span><\/p> But underneath this luxury lifestyle lurk problems: Art is on a losing streak and, despite looking to complete a career grand slam at the US Open, losing his love for the game. <\/span><\/p>\n Tisha is a win-at-all-costs Type A personality (\u201cDecimate that little b***h,\u201d she demands of her hubbie), and as we\u2019ll see from a story that zips around in time quicker than a Federer backhand, she moved from playing to coaching at a certain point in her career. <\/span><\/p>\n When she advises Art to enter a local New York tournament, to play some journeymen and get his confidence back up, the plan backfires for the simple reason that Art\u2019s old friend, Patrick (Josh O\u2019Connor), is in the tournament. <\/span><\/p>\n Fleshing out their backstory, the film heads back 13 years, when Art and Patrick were doubles partners and Tisha was the hottest thing in the college tennis circuit. <\/span><\/p>\n Both fall for her, and after an amusing night swigging beer and enjoying a three-way kiss in a hotel room, Tisha cheekily says she\u2019ll only give out her number to whoever beats the other in a match. So begins a love rivalry to match anything these two players have contested on the court. <\/span><\/p>\n When the story moves back to the present day, Patrick is down on his luck, without enough money to even pay for his motel room (he\u2019s soon using Tinder to score a date and get a roof over his head).<\/span><\/p>\n What results is a film about friendships, how they can get trampled by love, and how life isn\u2019t always about winning, despite how professional athletes are groomed to crush all-comers. <\/span><\/p>\n Best of all, it\u2019s a neat peek into the world of professional tennis, something Hollywood has rarely bothered with (let\u2019s forget that Paul Bettany-starrer Wimbledon, shall we?).<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Josh](\"https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2023\/06\/Challengers-trailer-47c81f2.png?quality=90&resize=619%2C413\" "\\"Challengers")
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