![]() |
Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer are lovers drawn together in Call Me By Your Name |
Director: Luca Guadagnino
Cast: Timothée Chalamet (Elio Perlman), Armie
Hammer (Oliver), Michael Stuhlbarg (Professor Perlman), Amira Casar (Annella
Perlman), Esther Garrell (Marzia), Victoire Du Bois (Chiara)

Refreshingly, Guadagnino’s film is relentlessly positive and
devoid of tension or disapproval. You’d expect a romance such as this –
especially a gay one – to lead to an eventual outburst of furious disapproval
from someone or tear-filled remonstrations that what the couple have isn’t
wrong. These are avoided completely, for something that feels intensely real
and convincingly grounded, especially as it follows Elio’s stumbling attempts
to identify his own sexuality and understand how his feelings affect him.
This is also a showcase for acting, a film like this living
or dying on the chemistry between the two lead actors, and Chalamet and Hammer
have this in spades, suggesting from the very start a deep bond, that grows in
emotional intensity. The relationship is a slow dance, with both of them
blowing hot and cold at different times. Oliver’s first tentative approach is
resoundingly rebuffed by Elio, only for Elio’s fascination with Oliver to grow
into a deep unexpressed longing, which Oliver is nervous about responding to
for a host of factors, from the age difference to his residence in Elio’s
parents’ house. Even after the two come together, Elio’s confusion about his
own feelings leads him to turn colder before the two finally find an
equilibrium that works.
It’s also a classic coming of age story, as Elio moves out
of adolescence and into adulthood. Elio never feels like a traditional teenager
in the first place, a musical prodigy and talented autodidact who seems to have
read nearly everything (“Is there anything you don’t know?” Oliver jokingly
says at one point after Elio explains the detailed history of a war memorial).
But in other ways he is the same as any other teen: sex-obsessed and confused,
spending a lot of time with two female friends who he seems to be unsure of his
feelings are towards, indulging in explorative sexual fantasies and fumbled
exploration of his own and others’ bodies, working out what he likes and what
he doesn’t.
It leads to a superb performance from Chalamet (youngest
ever nominee for Best Actor at the Oscars), who perfectly captures both the
intelligence of Elio, and his confused lack of understanding of who or what he
is. Chalamet’s body language – a mixture of awkward teen and assured adult, is
a perfect physical expression of his part-adult, part-child psyche. Like any
teenager, he’s at times selfish, greedy or plain annoying. But at many others
he’s sensitive, delicate, vulnerable and desperate to express his love.
Chalamet juggles all these competing emotions and hormonal drives brilliantly,
and his face is a true instrument of expression, a sliding kaleidoscope of
confused urges that compels your attention.
It’s a perfect match-up with Hammer, who is superb as just
the sort of boisterous, confident, exciting and sexy presence you can imagine
being drawn towards. But Hammer also laces Oliver with a tenderness, a concern
and a gentleness beneath his joie de vivre
that really expands the character’s soul and makes him not just a force of
vibrancy but also a genuinely lovely man. Hammer is very careful (as is the
film) to avoid the possibility of Oliver being seen as a seducer, and it does
this by giving him a touching restraint as well as manipulation-free openness,
an honesty and an emotional freeness that helps make him more often the pursued
rather than the pursuer.
Guadagnino lets this gentle love story unfold over a
luscious, gorgeous Italian summer, with his camera drifting contentedly around
the two lovers and their environment, as much a part of the dance of their
initial attraction. The film is resolutely “in the moment” and has no
flashbacks, flash forwards or any real reference to any narrative events
outside of what we see on screen. It unfolds gracefully and naturally, with the
camera work largely taking an unflashy but still warm view on everything we
see.
Guadagnino deliberately treats much of the central romance
element with reserve, avoiding too much nudity and panning discretely away from
sexual encounters between the two. (I will say though, that he has no such
reserve with Elio’s heterosexual encounters, where female nudity and sex are
shown in full.) It does successfully preserve a sense of innocence and purity
in the relationship – and keeps the focus on the fact that this love between
the two is about them becoming better people, who understand themselves better,
through the relationship.
This positive message is reinforced by the acceptance of
Elio and Oliver from all in the film, including Elio’s parents. Michael
Stuhlbarg in particular has a scene near the end of the film of wonderful power
– cementing his status from this film as a dream dad – with a speech to his son
so full of acceptance, encouragement and love that you’ll feel your heart melt.
Both Elio’s parents are very aware of the relationship and tacitly encourage
it: according to this film at least, if you’re young and gay, growing up in a
Bohemian, academic household does make your life easier! (Even Oliver comments
that Elio has no idea how lucky he is.)
This film is also refreshing for its lack of casualties.
Sure the two girls Elio and Oliver flirt with are disregarded swiftly, and the
film gives only a little time to their rather shabby treatment, but generally
it’s a film about learning who you are by spending time with someone else. And
if that includes a few moments of teen awkward sexual exploration that are
almost unbearable to watch (a scene with a curious Elio and a peach is a case
in point, replete with queasy sound effects) then so be it.
Call Me By Your Name
is a terrific coming-of-age tale, emotionally honest, true and mature and
directed with a graceful ease and unshowy skill that is a testament to the deep
confidence and grace of its director. With two superb performances and some
excellent support work, it’s a glorious summer movie of love that will speak to
you regardless of sexuality.
No comments:
Post a comment