Call Me By Your Name

Call Me By Your Name

Starring Timothee Chalamet, Armie Hammer, Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar

Directed by Luca Guadagnino

The Story:
In northern Italy in 1983, seventeen year old Elio (Timothee Chalamet) is staying with his parents for the summer.  He's a precocious young man who exudes an intelligence far beyond his years, but underneath his bravado there's a spark of insecurity.  His father (Michael Stuhlbarg) is a professor of archaeology who hosts a doctrinal student every summer to work with him.  This year it's American Oliver (Armie Hammer), a tall, ruggedly handsome man who also gives about an air of confidence.

It's this confidence that draws Elio to him, and the two begin to explore their feelings for each other through one-upping their intellectual capabilities.  As the summer months go on, the two become more daring in their explorations, leading to a summer that will change both of their lives forever.

The Synopsis:
Romantic movies often hold a distinctive pattern that can be read from the onset: two strangers meet, fall in love, and live happily ever after.  It's as tried and true as any modern comedy, and why they're so easily forgettable (you can look to The Hallmark Channel for an abundant list of films of this nature, and you won't remember them after the next one begins).  What's different about "Call Me By Your Name" is not only the aspect of a romance between two men, but how it unfolds.  Director Luca Guadagnino - who brilliantly adapts the film from a novel by Andre Aciman - transforms this narrative while also using the basic framework for it.  Here, the two strangers meet, but don't instantly fall in love.  And, ultimately, there's no happily ever after.

Instead, Guadagnino bides his time, introducing us to the multi-layered facets to Elio and Oliver's personalities - their idiosyncrasies, their bravado, their boundaries, and their insecurities - and allows their relationship to blossom over the course of several months as they perform a passionate pas de deux of one-upping one another in their small, nuanced flirtations.  Oliver - the more advanced of the two - knows to blend his flirtations with when to stop, while Elio is more young and reckless, but also deeply more emotional.  It's this slow-burn effect that further draws the audience to their relationship, and when it finally happens, it becomes more than just a cheap, tawdry affair, but instead a poignant, resonant relationship.

Yet it's against this stunningly beautiful backdrop of a luscious Italian villa that the true heartbreak is felt: we know, as do the characters, that this relationship must end.  Oliver is only there for a summer, and it's because of this impending doom that Elio becomes less a child and more a man, who grows stronger to face his future and explore all the feelings he has. 

Timothee Chalamet is a rising force in cinema, also appearing in the acclaimed film "Lady Bird" as Saoirse Ronan's cocky boyfriend.  Here, he also exudes that cockiness but wrapped in a blend of vacillation and intelligence far beyond his years.  He fluently speaks Italian, French, and English, and he's proficient on the piano and guitar.  Yet he's incredibly naive, and it's because of this we see him pine for Oliver in a way that's very adolescent: in one scene, he complains that Oliver leaves with an almost flippant "later," much like how young girls often say mean things about the guys they like (and vice versa).  Chalamet also has the natural appearance of a young man in Italy in the early 80s - he looks the part without even trying.  He's already been nominated for a Golden Globe, and Oscar will soon come knocking at his door.

Armie Hammer - unlike Chalamet - has been around the business for awhile, but has yet to firmly establish himself.  His few starring roles have ended in disaster, from the heavily lauded "The Lone Ranger" to the underwhelming "Man From U.N.C.L.E.," he seemingly can't catch that break that will propel him to awards status.  That all has changed with "Call Me By Your Name," easily his crowning achievement and now the doors are wide open for his true recognition.  He's able to balance Oliver's pretension with his indecision, opening the path for a budding romance in the hauntingly beautiful villas and lakes of northern Italy.

The Summary:
While this isn't the type of film for everybody - the nature of it, the slow burning script - "Call Me By Your Name" is a passionate, emotional love story that propels it from other generic stereotypes with two actors in their prime.

The Score: A+