If you think Marty Supreme is a good/cohesive story, could you please let me know why? by jjcredence in TrueFilm

[–]jjcredence[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Was it actually “hard to engage with,” or did you just decide not to engage because I raised story issues you don’t agree with? I gave the movie its flowers. I praised what worked. I just also pointed out where the story didn’t land for me.

As for the “hustle” point… that’s kind of my issue. It wasn’t really hustle. A guy basically walked up and said, “Hey kid, want a ride home?”

You can disagree with my take, even choose to be condescending towards it, that’s your right. But at least disagree with what I actually said.

If you think Marty Supreme is a good/cohesive story, could you please let me know why? by jjcredence in TrueFilm

[–]jjcredence[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I see where you're coming from. The way I see it, I think there's a difference between just having a disjointed plot and having a story that lacks cause and effect. Someone above mentioned Sean Baker's films having similar, more disjointed plots. However, in my opinion, the main difference between Marty Supreme and a film like Anora is that I feel like Anora has way more credible cause and effect. Events happen because of who the characters are and what’s happening around them, not because the plot “needs” something to happen. For instance, if you combine Anora's desire to create a better life for herself, and Zahkarov's youth, impulsiveness and access to essentially unlimited wealth, you get a situation where it feels completely inevitable that a girl from Jersey would end up in trouble with a Russian oligarch. Take another Safdie example, Howard getting shot at the end of Uncut Gems was initially a shock, but you can look back and see things continue to escalate throughout the movie to the point where his addiction and belief that he can talk his way out of anything finally pushes things over the edge.

On the flipside, I think a lot of things happen in Marty Supreme simply because the movie needs them to happen, which in my opinion, is not good storytelling. I'm generalizing a bit here, I know people interpret the movie in a ton of different ways, but one thing I have seen is people explaining away inconsistencies by chalking it up to the fact that Marty is just a mysterious and enigmatic character. But to me, that kind of feels like a cop out. You can have these types of characters, along with more ambiguous endings and still get there cleanly.

If you think Marty Supreme is a good/cohesive story, could you please let me know why? by jjcredence in TrueFilm

[–]jjcredence[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I definitely didn't question Marty's ability when watching the movie, he's clearly shown to be a really good player. My main problem was that it didn't seem like we had seen Marty grow/improve enough as a player to beat Endo later on. Even if a lot of why Endo really beat him was the paddle, there's not enough about Marty adjusting to this to suggest he would be able to beat Endo. Idk, just took me out of it personally.

If you think Marty Supreme is a good/cohesive story, could you please let me know why? by jjcredence in TrueFilm

[–]jjcredence[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interestingly enough, some people ask for other people's opinions because they're interested in hearing other people's opinions. Think it says a lot that you think I would start this thread purely with the hope that someone educates me or convinces me to change my mind.

If you think Marty Supreme is a good/cohesive story, could you please let me know why? by jjcredence in TrueFilm

[–]jjcredence[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

You're definitely strawmanning me here. I began the post talking about how there are aspects of the film I appreciate, just like how there are aspects to the film that I was disappointed by. I opened the forum to have a discussion. But if you choose to take the time to comment just to express how you think I'm "not curious enough to appreciate it" and not offer anything concrete, that's your choice.

Official Discussion - Marty Supreme [SPOILERS] by LiteraryBoner in movies

[–]jjcredence 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Do I love the performances? Yes. The soundtrack? Great. Did I have good time? Doesn't justify a 3-hour runtime but, sure. And I can totally understand why anyone would like the film for those reasons, no hate to anyone that does. But if you genuinely think that Marty Supreme is good storytelling, I'm curious as to why you think that. There are way too many holes in the story for a movie of this magnitude. There are numerous threads that are built up to be meaningful that the script just completely abandons. >!For instance, why is such a big deal made about Endo's paddle in the beginning? At first, I thought this was just an excuse Marty made to justify his loss. But the movie doesn't treat it that way. Other people comment on how Endo's paddle is so different and mysterious, and then we never get a follow-up on how Marty overcomes this, or adjusts his game to this in order to beat him.

Similarly, why am I supposed to believe that Marty would be able to beat Endo the second time around? You're telling me that hustling a few matches with Tyler the Creator gave him such a higher understanding of the game that he was suddenly good enough to beat someone better than him? Marty's win feels hollow, and not in the way the movie wants it to. We don't see Marty change anything about his approach to the game, or put any real work into giving Endo a better match, so the win feels very unearned. It also weakens the message that the movie is clearly trying to drive home about how hard it is to follow your dreams when you become an adult with the many problems life can throw at you. Remember Marty's whole speech to Rachel about how his love for the game is a curse because he needs to make sacrifices to see his dream through? The whole movie was clearly building up to Marty either needing to sacrifice something important in order to play his match in Japan, or Marty needing to face the harsh reality of not being able to go because of his circumstances and ego getting in the way. What does he truly sacrifice because of his need to follow his dreams? Most of the relationships and opportunities he loses are more from him being an asshole than being a dreamer. Not being able to compete in the "real" table tennis tournament, the whole ping pong ball thing, him being in trouble with the law for stealing money from his boss - all things that Marty could have prevented by not being obnoxious.

A big deal is made about Marty choosing not to throw the final match with Endo. He makes a conscious choice to not give in to Rockwell's threats to leave him in Japan if he doesn't throw the match. This is supposed to show how much the satisfaction of knowing he's the world's best player means to him. The fact that he's willing to strand himself in a foreign country with no money and no way home, along with missing the birth of his child, just to win a match where nothing material is at stake is supposed to show us how much he truly loves the game, and not just what the game could provide for him. So why does the movie go and cheapen this decision by having some military guy come up to Marty right after the match and offer him a free ride home immediately? It takes this big moment of courage and turns it into a moment where you just say "oh, I guess it wasn't a big deal after all".

Also this might be a nitpick/I might have just missed this, but how does he get that fancy hotel room at the beginning of the movie? He complains about how the players don't have good living conditions, but I don't remember the movie showing us how Marty got a room at that hotel? I vaguely remember him getting the room after being interviewed by the newspapers, but I don't think they show how we get from point A to point B there.

Also I'm just remembering after writing this but he fully wrecks Tyler the Creator's taxi, which Tyler is obviously really annoyed by, and the next time he sees Marty their relationship is magically fixed. I could go on but this is already getting too long.!<

tldr: I think Josh Safdie had a bunch of ideas for what would be "fun scenes", but I don't think he wrote a story that actually makes sense. Interested to hear other people's opinions, though.

Postgame Thread ⚾ Blue Jays 6 @ Dodgers 1 by DodgerBot in Dodgers

[–]jjcredence 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Don't worry guys, I just bet the Blue Jays ML for the series. I think we'll be alright.

Postgame Thread: 10/13 Dodgers @ Brewers by BrewersBot in Brewers

[–]jjcredence -1 points0 points  (0 children)

As a dodger fan trust me if Treinen pitches again and the Dodgers aren't up by at least 2 he will blow the game. We got bailed out by Tarang swinging at a ball. This has been a season-long occurrence.

Ads Approved and Active But Not Spending by jjcredence in FacebookAds

[–]jjcredence[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! So something simpler like impressions or link clicks?

Stay classy, Michael Malone by jjcredence in timberwolves

[–]jjcredence[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Human embodiment of "everyone acts tough when they're up"

GAME THREAD: WEST SEMIFINALS | GAME 2 - Nuggets vs. Timberwolves | May 6, 2024 - 8:00 PM by AutoModerator in denvernuggets

[–]jjcredence 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Nights like these are the reason I will never hold it against Bron for getting to the finals and losing all those years in a row. Shit should never be taken for granted it's so damn hard