Call Me by Your Name ***** (2017, Armie Hammer, Timothée Chalamet, Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar, Esther Garrel) – Movie Review

Director Luca Guadagnino’s gloriously, unashamedly, outrageously romantic gay movie coming-of-age tale of first love Call Me by Your Name is based on André Aciman’s acclaimed debut novel published in 2007. This is one heck of a fine romance. Like both of its heroes, the film is handsome and charming, and politely asks you to love it.

It is set in northern Italy in the summer of 1983, where the extremely bright, educated, cultured 17-year-old American-Italian Elio Perlman (Timothée Chalamet) enjoys life in his Jewish family’s 17th century villa, playing music, reading and flirting with his friend Marzia (Esther Garrel).

Happily, Elio has a loving relationship with his Jewish classical scholar professor father (Michael Stuhlbarg) and translator mother (Amira Casar). But unhappily, Elio has never been in love yet.

But then handsome, charming 20something American post-graduate scholar Oliver (Armie Hammer) comes to live with Elio’s family and study for six weeks over this one glorious summer in 1983. And things change.

After a lot of polite dithering, the two men finally join up to share an unforgettable summer full of music, food and romance. Oliver says: ‘Call me by your name and I’ll call you by mine.’ Sweet! Stuhlbarg enjoys a remarkable scene at the end of the film giving fatherly advice to Elio. That’s sweet too.

The acting by the five principals is ideal, superb actually, with Hammer and Chalamet creating memorable characters out of what could be stereotypes, giving uninhibited, natural, charming performances. Stuhlbarg and Casar are thoughtful, subtle and compelling as the understanding parents.

And James Ivory’s screenplay keeps things quirky and interesting to avoid the perils of what could be a novelettish situation. Italy looks to die for, or to fall in love with. It is the perfect backdrop for a gay love story.

It America it is rated R for sexual content, nudity and some language, while in the UK it has a 15 certificate for strong sex. The incident with the peach is probably what they are talking about! But all this might misrepresent the movie. It is much more sensual than sexual.

It premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival on 22 January and has since being doing the rounds of all the festivals worldwide, including the London Film Festival on 9 October. Sony Pictures Classics acquired the film for distribution even before Sundance and release it in the UK on 27 October and in the US on 24 November. The weird thing is, however, it is not a Film Festival kind of movie at all, though if the applause at the UK press show is anything to go by, it is a most welcome visitor.

Filming took place at Crema, Bergamo and Sirmione, all in Lombardy, Italy. They managed to shoot this lovely looking movie for just €4 million so it should be a safe and sound investment.

Luca Guadagnino is the maker of A Bigger Splash (2015) with Tilda Swinton.

Call Me by Your Name was nominated for four Oscars: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Chalamet), Best Motion Picture of the Year, and Best Original Song (Sufjan Stevens for ‘Mystery of Love’).

The film is a personal triumph for Chalamet, who was nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars, for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama at the Golden Globes and Best Leading Actor at the Baftas. The London Film Critics voted him Actor of the Year. The Los Angeles, Chicago, Florida and Kansas City Film Critics voted him Best Actor.

Huge congratulations also to James Ivory, winner of the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar at the 2018 Academy Awards, making him the oldest Oscar winner at 89. Ivory also won the Bafta for Best Adapted Screenplay.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Movie Review

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com

Hammer, Chalamet and director Luca Guadagnino.

Hammer and Chalamet at the 2017 Berlin Film Festival.

Chalamet in 2014.

Timothée Chalamet, born 27 December 1995.