A story of surprising honesty, Call Me by Your Name is a gorgeous, sensual journey to the heart of a young man discovering love. Elio, a Jewish American boy living in northern Italy, likes to read, study and play music, and lounge about in the summer sun with his girlfriend Marzia. His father, a professor, annually invites a graduate student to help him with his research and administrative work, and this summer another Jewish American arrives, named Oliver. Elio and Oliver are about as different as two young men can be, and Oliver's charismatic, carefree, sporty persona rubs the introspective Elio the wrong way many times.
There's a strange attraction involved, though, and Elio can't stop watching Oliver. Perhaps he sees in him the kind of man he himself wants to be, or the kind of man he wants to be with. With only six weeks of the summer left them, Elio reveals his conflicted feelings to Oliver, and the two embark on a romantic and sexual relationship. Of course, Oliver must leave by the end of summer, and a heartbroken Elio is consoled by his father, who encourages him to find joy in his grief because grief only comes after love. Love like that doesn't come many times in life, he says, and even when Oliver calls again months later to tell them that he's getting married, Elio's melancholic feelings are assuaged by remembering the pleasure they had together.
A film filled with gorgeous Italian countrysides and architecture, Call Me by Your Name is an exercise in escapism. Its intensely '80s production design, costuming, and soundtrack recall an idyllic pre-AIDS age of sexual adventure and freedom. The pounding piano music over much of the proceedings is as sensual as the sunwashed visuals and warm Italian scenery. It all takes on the trappings of a youthful fantasy, complete with humor and heart, honesty and hope. Timothee Chalamet is the focus of the film, and his performance as Elio is a masterclass in acting among coming-of-age films. Michael Stuhlbarg, though only marginally in the movie, delivers a heartrending speech near the end that turns his character (Elio's father) into one of the greatest dads ever seen on screen.
Yet, for all my praise, I can't deny my own disappointments. The film is fine, but the hype around it has worn me down for, what, two months now. It's not the "gay" film of the year, unless bisexual is the new gay. And it's difficult to swallow a film like this being so widely praised when Moonlight happened only a year ago. Whereas that film featured people of color, Muslim actors, poor characters, a gay man literally growing into himself, and a happy, hopeful ending, this one contains only white, classically educated, lazy rich people and it still ends with heartbreak. Give me Carol or Moonlight any day over this. I'm not saying it's not enjoyable, and I'm not saying visibility and compassion aren't important. I'm just saying I don't need Armie Hammer in short shorts to feel good about a queer movie, and the representation of future-less queer romances might not be the best message to promote at this time in history.
IMDb: Call Me by Your Name
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