đŹ Call Me By Your Name (2017)

đŹ Call Me By Your Name unfolds in the summer of 1983, bathing northern Italy in golden light as 17-year-old Elio Perlman (TimothĂ©e Chalamet) encounters Oliver (Armie Hammer), a 24-year-old American scholar staying with his family. Directed by Luca Guadagnino, the film opens with Elioâs languid daysâplaying piano, reading, swimmingâdisrupted by Oliverâs brash arrival at the Perlman villa. Their slow-burn connection ignites over bike rides and late-night talks, blossoming into a tender, fleeting romance that grossed $43 million against a $3.5 million budget, a sleeper hit from its January 2017 Sundance premiere.
The narrative traces Elio and Oliverâs danceâtentative glances at a volleyball game, a charged nosebleed momentâbuilding to a peach-fueled confession and a clandestine affair. James Ivoryâs Oscar-winning script peaks with their Bergamo escape, a euphoric interlude cut short by Oliverâs departure for the States. The final sceneâElioâs tearful fireplace stare as Sufjan Stevensâs âVisions of Gideonâ playsâlands like a gut punch, cementing its 94% Rotten Tomatoes score. Itâs a patient build, though some X posts note pacing drags for modern binge-watchers.
Thematically, itâs a meditation on first love and lossâElioâs awakening steeped in desire and ache, Oliverâs confidence masking restraint. The Perlmansâ intellectual haven (Michael Stuhlbargâs Professor Perlman, Amira Casarâs Annella) cradles this rite of passage, with Stuhlbargâs late monologueââWe rip out so much of ourselves to be cured of things fasterââa masterclass in empathy. Posts on X still dissect its âqueer classicâ status, though Hammerâs 2021 scandals (cannibalism allegations, per Variety) cast a shadow, nudging fans to focus on Chalametâs raw turn. Itâs timeless yet tethered to its moment.
Visually, Guadagnino and Sayombhu Mukdeeprom paint a sensual EdenâCremaâs orchards and piazzas glow with 35mm warmth, every apricot and sweat bead a character. The camera lingers on touchâfingers brushing, bodies in waterâwithout explicitness, a choice Guadagnino defended (The Guardian, 2017) to keep it âerotic, not pornographic.â Stevensâs trio of songsââMystery of Loveâ an Oscar nomineeâweaves aching folk into the haze, though some X rewatches call the peach scene âoverhyped.â Itâs a feast of restraint, every frame deliberate.
Chalametâs Elioânervy, brilliant, fragileâearned a Best Actor nod at 22, a breakout matched by Hammerâs golden-boy Oliver, their 7-year age gap mirroring the storyâs tension. Stuhlbarg and Casar ground the family, while Esther Garrelâs Marzia adds a bittersweet foilâher forgiveness of Elio a quiet sting. The castâs chemistry, honed in Cremaâs villa (Chalamet to Vogue, 2017), sells the longing, though Hammerâs later fall dims his shineâX fans now champion Chalametâs âcareer-definingâ sob. Itâs a duo for the ages, flaws and all.
Ultimately, Call Me By Your Name (2017) endures as a lyrical triumphâfour Oscar nods, one win, and a 2018 BAFTA push cement its glow. Its $43 million haul (Deadline, 2018) belies its indie roots, outpacing Moonlightâs $65 million with less hype. X rewatches in 2025 still weep over âElio, Elio, Elio,â a testament to its heartâGuadagninoâs Suspiria (2018) and Challengers (2024) owe it lineage. Itâs not just a film; itâs a summer etched in memoryâbruised, beautiful, and forever out of reach.