Near masterful

Rating: Null/10 (26 November 2017)

It's hard to put into words exactly the way I felt watching this film. Hours later it's hard to even begin to write my opinion on it. To put as simply as I can, the film perfectly captures its setting and atmosphere in a way few films do. The biggest credit needs to be given to director Luca Guadagnino, who is able to capture the smallest of details. Technically, the film is a marvel and I struggle to think of one flaw. It's beautiful, sensual, luscious in its execution, with absolutely marvelous pacing. In terms of pure directorial achievements, it's definitely one of the best of the year. The performance of Timothée Chalamet is also a pretty perfect portrayal of the character in the novel, and a completely internal performance that is reminiscent of Rooney Mara's wonderful work in Carol. Armie Hammer is also quite strong in the role, although it's a tricky character to get completely right. The novel is told completely through Elio's eyes and so we only imagine and see Oliver from a distance. He's more of an enigmatic figure in the novel than a real, tangible person. So much of that is due to the writing and the way Elio sees him as, so in terms of difficulty, I can imagine how Hammer had quite a task on his hands. Due to the literal nature of film, it's a type of character that always had to lose some of its mystery to its translation from the page, and it's as good one as can be.
I have so much I want to say about this but still can't find the right words, but the one thing I will say is that while the story here is pretty simple, the film really does capture, more than any other in recent memory, the feeling of that fleeting force of love and passion that can come to define one's life. It does so in a melancholic, beautiful way that makes it stand out from others of its kind. I can see why some people wouldn't take to it (and in fact the almost-unanimous positive reviews surprise me) because at the end of the day, the technical aspects work to create a film that can only be defined by a feeling that some people will experience watching the film and that others won't. All that sounds incredibly enigmatic, but it's a difficult feeling to pinpoint and considering the film, I think it's fitting.