One Crucial Flaw & Armie Hammer Ruins It for Me

Rating: 5/10 (13 July 2019)

CMBYN had potential to be a film that deserves all the praise and attention it's received. But, for me it fails because of two major problems: Elio's attraction to Oliver seems to come from nowhere and Armie Hammer lacks credibility or depth as an actor.
As a gay man who's been in relationships with an age disparity -- years ago as the younger and in more recent years as the older -- I have a special understanding of those dynamics.
Oliver (Armie Hammer) is presented as a pretentious, semi-obnoxious, aloof character. Somehow Elio becomes intrigued and then obsessed with Oliver, even though there is nothing in the plot nor in the character development to initiate and fuel that interest. (There are a couple painfully contrived scenes: Elio playing piano for Oliver and Oliver giving Elio a brief neck rub.) I suspect the filmmakers were banking on the audience finding Armie Hammer so attractive and appealing that Elio's interest would be taken for granted. Unfortunately, I personally don't see Hammer's allure (he seems asexual to me) and his acting has the depth of a cardboard cutout. I was not going along for that ride -- I needed more convincing, which never came.
By contrast, Elio (Timothee Chalamet) was perfectly cast and he delivered an outstanding performance in every scene. It's a shame he wasn't paired with another equally compelling and attractive actor who would have elevated the Oliver character to the same praise-worthy level. Then, we'd have a hit movie!
There is only one "sex scene" between Elio and Oliver and it seems like a cop-out. It shows the pair kissing in bed, the camera pans to a view of a tree outside the window, then jump-cuts to the two waking up the next morning. The scene was nowhere near as tender and sexy as a previous heterosexual sex scene between Elio and a girl. I immediately suspected the director must be straight, so I was surprised to learn that Luca Guadagnino is gay. I'm left to wonder why the pivotal gay sex scene was glossed-over while the less significant hetero sex scene was presented almost in real time?
I was also disappointed in the overall look and feel of the movie. As a professional commercial photographer, these kinds of things are important to me. The movie lacked the luscious visuals and sensual qualities of light and place that could have made the movie's appearance magical and memorable.