Review of Call Me by Your Name (2017) by John C — 19 Feb 2018

Summer romance. So this is about a seventeen-year-old boy named Elio (Timothée Chalamet) in Italy. There is a much older man (Armie Hammer) staying with his family over the summer. Elio is still learning who he is as a person, especially with his sexuality, and they begin to spend more and more time together.

I know what you're probably thinking: this is just this year's gay Oscar movie. I know that's what I was thinking before I watched this. Well, you're not wrong, but it is a lot more than that, and there are many other major reasons why there are so many people who have fallen so deeply in love with this.

From the description, I thought that this was going to be this year's An Education. It's not really quite that, and I think that this is something better. Even though there is a rather large age disparity between these two, it never feels at any point like either of these two are doing anything wrong.

It's a forbidden romance and taboo to be sure, but it is all initiated by Elio, so it never at any point in time feels predatory. These two actors have great romantic chemistry with each other, and they are both straight in real life, so that speaks volumes to their acting abilities.

I know Armie needed a hit in a big way, so it's good to see him succeeding. Chalamet is definitely an actor to keep an eye on, and I am all but certain that he is going to break even further into the mainstream in these upcoming years, so keep your eyes open for him.

I also have to give a big tip of my hat to one of my favorite character actors working today, Michael Stuhlbarg. He plays only a small part here as the Elio's father, but he comes in and gives what I consider to be the monologue of the year as this is wrapping up, and it is an emotional punch that you hold on to long after you have stopped watching.

In fact, it is giving me chills simply thinking about it. This is an intimate film that makes you feel lucky that you found it. It's all about sexuality, but at the same time, it doesn't make a big deal about these characters being gay.

It is just who they are, and I love that about this. It is a positively gorgeous film; not that I think this is a difficult feat to make Italy look great mind you, but I most definitely want to travel there now, and that's not just because everybody who lives there never seems to be working in this.

The runtime is a bit on the long side, but this isn't something I'm deducting points for, as I was in it from start to finish.