Roundelay:
- (music) A poem or song having a line or phrase repeated at regular intervals.
- A dance in a circle.
- Anything having a round form; a roundel. [Wiktionary]
I sort of expected it to be listed as a portmanteau, as I’ve never heard this word before, but that it’s associated with music explains the matter. I’ve never pursued musical knowledge beyond visiting some Sacred Harp circles. Noted in “The 10 best movies of 2024: ‘Anora,’ ‘A Real Pain’ and home-brewed charm,” Ty Burr, WaPo:
A throwback to when movies were unafraid to be sexy (see also “Hit Man”), this tennis roundelay from Italy’s Luca Guadagnino (“Call Me by Your Name” and other sybaritic delights) casts Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor as participants in a years-long throuple’s match on and off the court(ship). “Challengers,” more than “Dune Two,” stakes Zendaya’s claim as one of the sharpest Gen Z actors around — let’s just go ahead and call it Gen Zendaya — and the movie’s a sensual/sensuous treat on the filmmaking and narrative levels alike. Profound? Hell, no. But it sure hits the sweet spot.
