Challengers
There are two men. Apparently exhausted, they sweat, challenging each other in a tennis match that seems to hide something deeper and more intimate, something that only they can understand. Their performance on the court turns into pure sex as the game progresses—shot by shot, serve by serve, response by response. That's where "Challengers" comes in, Luca Guadagnino's new movie that's making people go crazy and filling theaters worldwide. Right from the start, it's all about the narrative and aesthetic rhythm, using the images to captivate, engage, and, above all, provoke.
Courtesy of Challengers
If there is a leitmotif that runs through Luca Guadagnino's entire body of work, it is undoubtedly desire. The director's aesthetic develops precisely on nostalgia, sensuality, on the allure of normality perpetually in between the forbidden and the attainable. In “Challengers," tennis becomes a romantic, physical, and emotional affair—a clash, an unbreakable bond, a mutual intimacy among three people trying to shake up their lives and finding something new, something practically impossible to put into words. "Challengers" manages to seduce and enchant, making a difference in terms of sensations, producing an eroticism that goes beyond just appearances, despite its strong presence.
It's no surprise nowadays that movies have sponsors; the real question is whether cinema has become a more complex form of advertising. When “Barbie,” directed by Greta Gerwig, hit the theaters in July 2023, pink-mania erupted: the trend was driven by the film's merchandising and strong press campaign, and many companies took advantage of it by riding the Barbiecore wave. "Challengers" is doing something similar, shaping trends with savvy product placement within the film: tenniscore is the latest craze—whites, polo shirts, cardigans, and pleated skirts. Instead of hiding the collaboration, the film flaunts it, with brands prominently featured. JW Anderson (the designer entrusted by Guadagnino with costume design and selection) explained: “Instead of keeping them low-key, I thought it'd be interesting to highlight them. [...] It's the reality we live in: we forget that the world around us is branded.”
Fashion (and its explicit display) becomes crucial in telling the characters' stories and evolution and in faithfully recreating the world of tennis, which, at the elite levels depicted in the film, involves sponsorships and intense relationships with luxury brands. The film, in fact, subtly criticizes sports as the ultimate expression of capitalism. Alongside the construction of a film that turns human forms and gazes into a trademark, you've got tennis becoming both a physical metaphor and a commercial context. In the story, just as in real life, products are inevitably necessary: Uniqlo, Camel, Nike, Adidas, Wilson, to name a few, are examples of work that goes beyond the physical, becoming objects of desire and feeding consumer hunger.
At the beginning of the story, Tashi (played by Zendaya) is a young tennis prodigy and has a sponsorship deal with Adidas: she's playing in a white outfit with the typical super short skirt that highlights her legs. Her image is sought after off the court too: at the party celebrating her victory, she's wearing a dark blue dress with black tulle inspired by JW Anderson's Fall 2020 collection. On the other hand, Art and Patrick, played by Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor, are less aware of their image: they wear polo shirts, khaki-colored pants, jeans, sports brands like Nike, Adidas, and New Balance. In the final part of the story, when Tashi and Art are a power couple in tennis, there's a sort of definitive evolution that narrates the characters' growth: Tashi embodies the so-called quiet luxury, the way rich people dress. Camel-colored cashmere sweaters, tailored pants, stiletto heels, Cartier jewelry and watches, and Loewe's Flamenco leather bag.
For the final match, she shows up in a blue and white cotton shirt dress by Loewe, Chanel espadrilles, and a pair of Persol sunglasses: "In the end, success pushes people toward conformity. [...] everyone's got the same luggage and jewelry," explains Anderson.
So, "Challengers" takes us into a universe steeped in duality, where normcore and rampant consumerism intertwine in a game of seduction and audacity. Normcore, with its apparent simplicity and banality, conceals a powerful magnetism that attracts and seduces the viewer. Guadagnino shows us how the details of everyday life can transform into elements of desire and sensuality, revealing that even in the ordinary lies an incredible beauty. On the other hand, rampant consumerism tightens its grip on us, offering a distorted view of reality where luxury and excess become synonymous with status and success. However, even in this frenzy of purchases and superficiality, a form of sexiness emerges that fascinates and enchants, emphasizing the unstoppable attraction towards the new and unexplored.
