I remember the exact moment that Call Me By Your Name finished its world premiere at Sundance. Of course, I wasn't actually at the festival- I remember because I opened Twitter on a late January evening to find a massive tidal wave of rapturous reviews for a film I had heard little about. I knew director Luca Guadagnino from his 2016 thriller A Bigger Splash, but I was more excited by the prospects of his first foray into the horror genre with the pending remake of Suspiria. However, the hype for Call Me By Your Name reached daunting levels almost immediately, as the buzz quickly turned into hysteria from some of its biggest fans. Awe-inspiring filmmaking, an Oscar-worthy performance by relative newcomer Timothée Chalamet, a monologue for the ages from Michael Stuhlbarg- if the early buzz was to be believed, I had to see this movie as soon as possible.
But then Sony Pictures Classics set the film for a November 24 release date. And since I wasn't attending any festivals this year, I knew I would have to wait. So I waited. And waited. And waited. And then thanks to the world's slowest rollout from SPC, I waited some more. Finally, I got the chance to see the movie I had heard so much about. After a full year of buzz and excitement, virtually unprecedented in my experience, there was no way that Call Me By Your Name could live up to my astronomical expectations, right?
Oh, how wrong I was.
Everything you've heard, everything you've read, every enthusiastic comment from a buzzing cinephile- to quote Han Solo, "It's true, all of it." Call Me By Your Name is a true masterpiece, one of the few that I've encountered in the stellar crop of films that hit theaters in 2017. Every piece is in place, every move made is a brilliant one. It all feels so right- the performances, the soundtrack, the imagery, and the little moments in between carry a kind of gentle brilliance, remarkably affecting and truly powerful. It's the kind of film that engulfs you in its atmosphere, a feeling that is both intoxicating and heartbreaking. It's sweet and tender, but it also achieves a sense of reality that few films can claim to accomplish. I could spend the rest of this review breathlessly listing off superlatives- this movie is that good. From the moment that I finished watching, I wanted to rewatch the film and experience it all over again. Call Me By Your Name is cinematic bliss in every shape of the word. It is just as purely perfect as you've heard.
It's the summer of 1983 in Northern Italy, and as always, there isn't much to do. Elio (Timothée Chalamet) spends his days reading books, playing music, and relaxing in the sun with his friends, especially Marzia (Esther Garrel). His father (Michael Stuhlbarg), an esteemed archaeology professor, has a research assistant each summer that stays with the family and studies. This year, that assistant is Oliver (Armie Hammer), a handsome American man who exudes confidence and charisma. Despite Oliver's traditional nonchalant American attitude towards just about everything, there's an instant feeling of electricity between him and Elio. As a young man on the cusp of adulthood, Elio is grappling with his sexuality, flirting with Marzia but pining for Oliver. As the tension reaches a breaking point over the course of a quiet, cozy Italian summer, Elio and Oliver begin a whirlwind romance that has profound emotional consequences for both of them.
Before the love story evolves into one for the ages, Call Me By Your Name immediately grabs you with its overwhelming sense of atmosphere. Guadagnino's last film, the thrillingly uneven A Bigger Splash, was also set in the Italian countryside, and it gave that story an energy that felt sultry and dangerous. Those two adjectives don't exactly apply to Call Me By Your Name, a film that utilizes its sense of time and place in a different, but equally intoxicating way. From the very first frame, this is a movie that you can feel. It surrounds you, envelops your heart and soul, creating a vision of a place that feels real, and simultaneously conveying the feeling and warm memory of a relaxing summer day. It's rare to step out of a movie and find that the world feels different, but that's exactly what happens here. Its atmospheric quality is so dense and memorable that you can practically feel the rain on your skin or the sweat of a long night dancing. You can smell the fruit in the garden or the dusty old books in Dr. Perlman's office. You can feel each touch, each warm embrace between friends or lovers. It's an amazing kind of experiential cinema.
Of course, this starts with Guadagnino's brilliant direction, but Call Me By Your Name's exhilarating sense of tangibility is dependent on the work of both cinematographer Sayombhu Mukdeeprom and the entire sound team. While the film is equipped with an outstanding soundtrack that I've been listening to for days now, the sound design work here is nothing short of brilliant. Each little natural sound builds Guadagnino's story and enhances the atmospheric effect, and it's the rare movie that knows when to use music and when to be silent. Too many indie films are obsessed with the all-powerful effect of silence, but Guadagnino and his team know precisely what is necessary at each and every moment. There are scenes where it's just the gorgeous images and the quiet sounds of the Italian countryside, creating something that is both mesmerizing and alluring. Other scenes feel vibrant and energetic, moving to the rhythm of upbeat classical music or the subtle lyricism of Sufjan Stevens' masterful songs. Through it all is Mukdeeprom's cinematography, so rich and detailed, so seductively beautiful. There's a grainy feeling to the 35mm photography, and it only makes the film feel that much more alive, that much more awe-inspiring to behold.
With all of these fantastic technical, visual, and borderline ethereal elements already in play, it's astonishing that Call Me By Your Name only gets better from here. But it chronicles a lovely romance, and the story is only enhanced by the atmospheric artistry, not the other way around. This was a passion project for 89 year-old screenwriter James Ivory, and that love and empathetic sense of humanity is felt deeply at every moment. Ivory tells a tender, profoundly moving love story, and Guadagnino's execution of the narrative could not be more perfect. The film's pacing is measured and luxurious but never slow, undeniably requiring patience from the audience and yet entirely captivating at every moment. It's rare to see a film unfolding with this kind of grace and maturity, where each scene clicks into place in a way that feels both natural and elegant.
The relationship between Elio and Oliver evolves beautifully, and that's partially thanks to the romantic tension slowly and carefully nurtured by Guadagnino. Call Me By Your Name isn't a film about obvious flirting or explicit sexuality- it gives the audience a taste of passionate longing, of the kind of romance that comes from understated moments and quiet winks. Guadagnino teases and misdirects, leading the audience on and wonderfully displaying the push-and-pull of this relationship. It all takes a while to develop, but the payoff is so totally engaging and so genuinely sweet that Guadagnino makes it worth the wait. Call Me By Your Name is made by a creative talent in total confidence of his storytelling abilities and filmmaking craft, so remarkably assured and in love with this story and these characters that the viewer can't help but fall in love too.
And then there's the performances. In a year with plenty of great ensembles, Call Me By Your Name's cast stands out by so perfectly embodying their characters, bringing every facet and dimension of their being to life. It starts with Timothée Chalamet, the young breakout star who is almost guaranteed to have a long and prosperous career after this. For Elio, the events of the film are monumental. He's growing up, and along the way, he's experiencing things and coming to terms with himself and his sexuality. Out of every actor in the film, Chalamet has the heaviest weight on his shoulders, and he delivers a performance that is certifiably brilliant. He strikes an unimaginably perfect balance between an adolescent sort of wide-eyed innocence and a quick-witted charisma that makes him so endearing. He speaks with his body language in a way that feels mature, and it's amazing to watch Elio undergo this journey. Chalamet's range of emotion is staggering, and his soft, quietly magnetic performance shines through in the film's best moments. It's one of the best performances I've seen from a young actor in a long time.
In a way, Armie Hammer's Oliver is Elio's opposite. He's extroverted and supremely self-assured, bold and accepting of his place in the world. Oliver has come to understand that no matter how great the love, he'll never be able to live as an openly gay man in his world. But Hammer's sensual performance allows Oliver to go on a journey as well, and it's so thoroughly pleasant to watch these two characters move from their two opposite ends of the spectrum, falling in love along the way. Beyond the two leads, Michael Stuhlbarg gives the best supporting performance by an actor in 2017 as Dr. Perlman, a man who exudes warmth and optimism at every moment. I feel like this could be taken as a hyperbolic statement, but Perlman is perhaps the cinematic personification of good, of humanity at its absolute finest. There's a scene towards the end of the film that has rightly been praised as a work of sublime genius, but even in the early stages of the narrative, Stuhlbarg understands this character so keenly and thoroughly that it's impossible not to be charmed by his intelligence and sage-like knowledge. And although these performances have gained significantly less traction, I feel like Amira Casar and Esther Garrel may just be the most underrated members of this excellent cast.
Nothing in Call Me By Your Name rings false. Every performance, every musical cue, every story beat- it's all in place. It's a film of startling intimacy, telling the story of a once-in-a-lifetime love affair between two truly good people. It's a film with an emotional core that is so strong and so sensitive that it's impossible not to fall in love with it as a viewer; it's just irresistible. And perhaps most importantly, it's a film comprised of unforgettable moments, brilliantly realized by a director who may just be at the top of his game. Call Me By Your Name is everything you could want a big-screen romance to be and then some. It's exquisite filmmaking, made with a compassionate European sensibility that is a welcome respite from Hollywood's theatrics. These characters touched my heart, and this film moved me deeply, in a way that I never expected after a full year of hype. If you're not shaken by the time the story reaches its natural conclusion, I don't know what to say.
Call Me By Your Name feels pure and right in just about every way. It's a total masterpiece from start to finish. After almost a year of waiting, it feels good to be finally joining the chorus, singing the praises of one of the very best films of the decade.
THE FINAL GRADE: A+ (10/10)
But then Sony Pictures Classics set the film for a November 24 release date. And since I wasn't attending any festivals this year, I knew I would have to wait. So I waited. And waited. And waited. And then thanks to the world's slowest rollout from SPC, I waited some more. Finally, I got the chance to see the movie I had heard so much about. After a full year of buzz and excitement, virtually unprecedented in my experience, there was no way that Call Me By Your Name could live up to my astronomical expectations, right?
Oh, how wrong I was.
Everything you've heard, everything you've read, every enthusiastic comment from a buzzing cinephile- to quote Han Solo, "It's true, all of it." Call Me By Your Name is a true masterpiece, one of the few that I've encountered in the stellar crop of films that hit theaters in 2017. Every piece is in place, every move made is a brilliant one. It all feels so right- the performances, the soundtrack, the imagery, and the little moments in between carry a kind of gentle brilliance, remarkably affecting and truly powerful. It's the kind of film that engulfs you in its atmosphere, a feeling that is both intoxicating and heartbreaking. It's sweet and tender, but it also achieves a sense of reality that few films can claim to accomplish. I could spend the rest of this review breathlessly listing off superlatives- this movie is that good. From the moment that I finished watching, I wanted to rewatch the film and experience it all over again. Call Me By Your Name is cinematic bliss in every shape of the word. It is just as purely perfect as you've heard.
It's the summer of 1983 in Northern Italy, and as always, there isn't much to do. Elio (Timothée Chalamet) spends his days reading books, playing music, and relaxing in the sun with his friends, especially Marzia (Esther Garrel). His father (Michael Stuhlbarg), an esteemed archaeology professor, has a research assistant each summer that stays with the family and studies. This year, that assistant is Oliver (Armie Hammer), a handsome American man who exudes confidence and charisma. Despite Oliver's traditional nonchalant American attitude towards just about everything, there's an instant feeling of electricity between him and Elio. As a young man on the cusp of adulthood, Elio is grappling with his sexuality, flirting with Marzia but pining for Oliver. As the tension reaches a breaking point over the course of a quiet, cozy Italian summer, Elio and Oliver begin a whirlwind romance that has profound emotional consequences for both of them.
Before the love story evolves into one for the ages, Call Me By Your Name immediately grabs you with its overwhelming sense of atmosphere. Guadagnino's last film, the thrillingly uneven A Bigger Splash, was also set in the Italian countryside, and it gave that story an energy that felt sultry and dangerous. Those two adjectives don't exactly apply to Call Me By Your Name, a film that utilizes its sense of time and place in a different, but equally intoxicating way. From the very first frame, this is a movie that you can feel. It surrounds you, envelops your heart and soul, creating a vision of a place that feels real, and simultaneously conveying the feeling and warm memory of a relaxing summer day. It's rare to step out of a movie and find that the world feels different, but that's exactly what happens here. Its atmospheric quality is so dense and memorable that you can practically feel the rain on your skin or the sweat of a long night dancing. You can smell the fruit in the garden or the dusty old books in Dr. Perlman's office. You can feel each touch, each warm embrace between friends or lovers. It's an amazing kind of experiential cinema.
Of course, this starts with Guadagnino's brilliant direction, but Call Me By Your Name's exhilarating sense of tangibility is dependent on the work of both cinematographer Sayombhu Mukdeeprom and the entire sound team. While the film is equipped with an outstanding soundtrack that I've been listening to for days now, the sound design work here is nothing short of brilliant. Each little natural sound builds Guadagnino's story and enhances the atmospheric effect, and it's the rare movie that knows when to use music and when to be silent. Too many indie films are obsessed with the all-powerful effect of silence, but Guadagnino and his team know precisely what is necessary at each and every moment. There are scenes where it's just the gorgeous images and the quiet sounds of the Italian countryside, creating something that is both mesmerizing and alluring. Other scenes feel vibrant and energetic, moving to the rhythm of upbeat classical music or the subtle lyricism of Sufjan Stevens' masterful songs. Through it all is Mukdeeprom's cinematography, so rich and detailed, so seductively beautiful. There's a grainy feeling to the 35mm photography, and it only makes the film feel that much more alive, that much more awe-inspiring to behold.
With all of these fantastic technical, visual, and borderline ethereal elements already in play, it's astonishing that Call Me By Your Name only gets better from here. But it chronicles a lovely romance, and the story is only enhanced by the atmospheric artistry, not the other way around. This was a passion project for 89 year-old screenwriter James Ivory, and that love and empathetic sense of humanity is felt deeply at every moment. Ivory tells a tender, profoundly moving love story, and Guadagnino's execution of the narrative could not be more perfect. The film's pacing is measured and luxurious but never slow, undeniably requiring patience from the audience and yet entirely captivating at every moment. It's rare to see a film unfolding with this kind of grace and maturity, where each scene clicks into place in a way that feels both natural and elegant.
The relationship between Elio and Oliver evolves beautifully, and that's partially thanks to the romantic tension slowly and carefully nurtured by Guadagnino. Call Me By Your Name isn't a film about obvious flirting or explicit sexuality- it gives the audience a taste of passionate longing, of the kind of romance that comes from understated moments and quiet winks. Guadagnino teases and misdirects, leading the audience on and wonderfully displaying the push-and-pull of this relationship. It all takes a while to develop, but the payoff is so totally engaging and so genuinely sweet that Guadagnino makes it worth the wait. Call Me By Your Name is made by a creative talent in total confidence of his storytelling abilities and filmmaking craft, so remarkably assured and in love with this story and these characters that the viewer can't help but fall in love too.
And then there's the performances. In a year with plenty of great ensembles, Call Me By Your Name's cast stands out by so perfectly embodying their characters, bringing every facet and dimension of their being to life. It starts with Timothée Chalamet, the young breakout star who is almost guaranteed to have a long and prosperous career after this. For Elio, the events of the film are monumental. He's growing up, and along the way, he's experiencing things and coming to terms with himself and his sexuality. Out of every actor in the film, Chalamet has the heaviest weight on his shoulders, and he delivers a performance that is certifiably brilliant. He strikes an unimaginably perfect balance between an adolescent sort of wide-eyed innocence and a quick-witted charisma that makes him so endearing. He speaks with his body language in a way that feels mature, and it's amazing to watch Elio undergo this journey. Chalamet's range of emotion is staggering, and his soft, quietly magnetic performance shines through in the film's best moments. It's one of the best performances I've seen from a young actor in a long time.
In a way, Armie Hammer's Oliver is Elio's opposite. He's extroverted and supremely self-assured, bold and accepting of his place in the world. Oliver has come to understand that no matter how great the love, he'll never be able to live as an openly gay man in his world. But Hammer's sensual performance allows Oliver to go on a journey as well, and it's so thoroughly pleasant to watch these two characters move from their two opposite ends of the spectrum, falling in love along the way. Beyond the two leads, Michael Stuhlbarg gives the best supporting performance by an actor in 2017 as Dr. Perlman, a man who exudes warmth and optimism at every moment. I feel like this could be taken as a hyperbolic statement, but Perlman is perhaps the cinematic personification of good, of humanity at its absolute finest. There's a scene towards the end of the film that has rightly been praised as a work of sublime genius, but even in the early stages of the narrative, Stuhlbarg understands this character so keenly and thoroughly that it's impossible not to be charmed by his intelligence and sage-like knowledge. And although these performances have gained significantly less traction, I feel like Amira Casar and Esther Garrel may just be the most underrated members of this excellent cast.
Nothing in Call Me By Your Name rings false. Every performance, every musical cue, every story beat- it's all in place. It's a film of startling intimacy, telling the story of a once-in-a-lifetime love affair between two truly good people. It's a film with an emotional core that is so strong and so sensitive that it's impossible not to fall in love with it as a viewer; it's just irresistible. And perhaps most importantly, it's a film comprised of unforgettable moments, brilliantly realized by a director who may just be at the top of his game. Call Me By Your Name is everything you could want a big-screen romance to be and then some. It's exquisite filmmaking, made with a compassionate European sensibility that is a welcome respite from Hollywood's theatrics. These characters touched my heart, and this film moved me deeply, in a way that I never expected after a full year of hype. If you're not shaken by the time the story reaches its natural conclusion, I don't know what to say.
Call Me By Your Name feels pure and right in just about every way. It's a total masterpiece from start to finish. After almost a year of waiting, it feels good to be finally joining the chorus, singing the praises of one of the very best films of the decade.
THE FINAL GRADE: A+ (10/10)
Images: Sony Pictures Classics/IMDb
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