Call Me by Your Name
What makes for a truly timeless love story? In Call Me by Your Name we see what one is by seeing what one isn't.
It's 1983, and young Emilio (played by Timothée Chalamet) and his family are spending several seasons in their home in northern Italy. Along comes Oliver (played by Armie Hammer) to stay for the summer and work with Emilio's father as a research assistant.
Emilio develops feelings for Oliver over the course of these warm weeks. Oliver, though not denying interest, rebuffs the young man in a series of back-and-forths that pull him closer and push him away.
In the classic romance, even a gay one, the two lovers are meant to be opposed to their counterpart until each can no longer refute the love they feel for the other. The main characters' core relationship starts out this way, but it carries on for so long that it hedges on the cruel, and this is the reason why the film isn't a genuine love story.
As a filmgoer, it's difficult to believe in the strength of Oliver's love for Emilio given the way he sometimes treats him. Indeed, we can't feel that we can count on his love to be steadfast, and this reaction is prophetic since Oliver does end up leaving Emilio behind and goes on with his life as if the whole thing was a meaningless summer fling.
For Emilio's part, this is his first love. It's apparent that he has deep feeling for Oliver, the magnitude of which the object of his affection can never match.
Viewed in its most distilled form, the movie's theme is more "young love" than "endless love". So, the heartbreak is just a few reels away.
The life experience the story depicts is one that many walk on the path to adulthood. But it's not one that has the payoff of a great romance.
The film is beautifully shot. I just wish more of that beauty had been put into the love story rather than the scenery.
It's 1983, and young Emilio (played by Timothée Chalamet) and his family are spending several seasons in their home in northern Italy. Along comes Oliver (played by Armie Hammer) to stay for the summer and work with Emilio's father as a research assistant.
Emilio develops feelings for Oliver over the course of these warm weeks. Oliver, though not denying interest, rebuffs the young man in a series of back-and-forths that pull him closer and push him away.
In the classic romance, even a gay one, the two lovers are meant to be opposed to their counterpart until each can no longer refute the love they feel for the other. The main characters' core relationship starts out this way, but it carries on for so long that it hedges on the cruel, and this is the reason why the film isn't a genuine love story.
As a filmgoer, it's difficult to believe in the strength of Oliver's love for Emilio given the way he sometimes treats him. Indeed, we can't feel that we can count on his love to be steadfast, and this reaction is prophetic since Oliver does end up leaving Emilio behind and goes on with his life as if the whole thing was a meaningless summer fling.
For Emilio's part, this is his first love. It's apparent that he has deep feeling for Oliver, the magnitude of which the object of his affection can never match.
Viewed in its most distilled form, the movie's theme is more "young love" than "endless love". So, the heartbreak is just a few reels away.
The life experience the story depicts is one that many walk on the path to adulthood. But it's not one that has the payoff of a great romance.
The film is beautifully shot. I just wish more of that beauty had been put into the love story rather than the scenery.
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