Call Me By Your Name: Not Your Average Love Story

Post By: Sarah Barclay

Call Me By Your Name is a film by Italian director Luca Guadagnino, based on the novel of the same name by André Aciman. It’s a story of summer love and romance between the two main characters, 24 year old Oliver (Armie Hammer) and 17 year old Elio (Timothée Chalamet) during Oliver’s stay with Elio’s family in Italy in the summer of 1983. Now, without spoiling the end for you, I’m going to get into the review.

The movie was filmed using 35mm film which, for me, adds to the authenticity of the film being set in 1983. It gives the film a sense of being aged while still being modern which I really enjoyed. The color grading made everything pop. There was just the right amount of contrast making the already stunning Italian background absolutely breathtaking, but there wasn’t so much that it was distracting, just added to the film’s beauty.

I thought the pacing was good. Nothing felt too rushed or that it was being dragged on. Character development followed suit, nothing forced. There

were great performances by both Armie Hammer and Timothée Chalamet, great on-screen chemistry. Their characters meshed well, like they were meant for one another. It didn't feel forced or rushed which can easily happen when telling a love story. They clicked naturally. It’s one of those aspects that you take for granted until it’s done wrong.

The music worked well and matched the tone of the movie, and evoked emotion. Sufjan Stevens’ songs are a kind of magic that transport you into a field of your own feelings. “Mystery of Love” is a beautiful song about reminiscing a lost love. It fits the theme of the entire movie so well and makes you feel like you’ve had something similar, even if you never have.

"Visions of Gideon” is another beautiful song and is absolutely perfect for the ending scene of Call Me By Your Name. It’s a song that taps into your emotions and makes you want to cry along with Elio, makes you understand how he feels at that moment the song plays. I must admit, before discovering the song was titled “Visions of Gideon”, in that last scene, I misheard “Visions of Elio” which works just as well.

There is an interesting use of language, speaking French while in northern Italy, and an appropriate use of both French and Italian when needed. I was a little confused at first when the time card said “somewhere in northern Italy” and French was the first language I heard. The conversation which explains that does so nicely. It’s scripted well, exploring family heritage and is phrased in such a way that it just makes sense, rather than Elio saying “we speak French because blah blah blah.” The way it’s phrased adds to the family dynamic as well, and I liked that it was addressed.

I felt there was an appropriate use of expletives, not used solely because they could. They are used realistically and more sparingly than other R-rated movies which can throw around curse words as if they’re playing catch with an f-bomb.

The camera at times would intentionally go out of focus during intimate moments. Even if it may have been unintentional, it made it feel we weren’t meant to watch. In addition, the camera would also pan away from the action. It added to the intimacy in the scenes between Oliver and Elio.

I found that there were a few continuity errors involving drastic differences in hand placement between camera angle changes. A fly is also present in the house, crawling on Elio’s shirt as he looks into the fireplace. As this scene takes place in December,

during Hanukkah, it’s very much out of place for a fly to still be alive and crawling around the house. These are small screw-ups, but they’re nothing too major that it would take from the movie in its entirety.

Overall, it’s a very good film. It very much deserves its Oscar nomination. It’s a film that makes you think about your own life and allows you to get in touch with your own emotions.