This is my spoiler-free attempt to organize my thoughts about this complex, beautiful, and deeply human film.

In Luca Guadagnino’s newest book-to-film adaptation Queer, Daniel Craig portrays Lee, a middle-aged gay man living a relatively peaceful, if a bit lonely, existence until he crosses paths with Eugene (Drew Starkey) and is inexplicably drawn to him. The two characters spend the rest of the film coming together, pulling apart, and coming back together, only to pull apart again (etc). The choices made by both Craig and Starkey were really nothing short of phenomenal, and I watched as both Craig and Starkey’s previously constructed personas melted away and left only the truth of their characters.

Luca Guadagnino is always picking really interesting source material to work with and is extremely skilled at making it his own, and his work in Queer is no exception. His style is very self-assured– the camera feels like a character of its own, attempting to pull the two leads together, being reluctant to let them separate, and relishing in their closeness. In the lead-up to any physical interaction between Lee and Eugene, a brilliant double exposure technique is utilized so that while Lee sits next to Eugene, the ghost of Lee’s arm reaches out and touches Eugene’s face. The visual is haunting and sets up the film for its later departure from realism in favor of abstractly depicting the emotional state of the leads.

So many visual techniques utilized in the film caught my attention upon a first watch, and I’m sure I would pick up many more if I were not also focused on following the plot, which makes a rewatch very very tempting. Noticeably at times, the film depicts only half of Lee and Eugene’s faces, especially in the context of their scenes together. If they aren’t turned away from the camera, both men are often lit only on one side of their face, leaving the other half in shadow. Lee and Eugene struggle with displaying vulnerability, and even where Lee seems possibly more emotionally available, or at least invested, it is still a very curated front to protect the more vulnerable parts of himself, seen with his addiction and deep rooted insecurities. Eugene is a bit of an enigma to both Lee and the audience, and it’s unclear at any given moment exactly what his intentions are. This hot and cold act only draws Lee in more, and as the two seem to be drawn closer together, the momentum seems to then push Eugene away in equal measure.

The film begins as one thing and morphs into a different beast entirely, with visuals starting very Call Me By Your Name-esque but turning into more Suspiria (2018). The first two “chapters” are excellent, and the surrealism and dreamlike state that the film finds itself in in chapter three could alienate some viewers, but these sequences are revealing of Lee’s deepest desires– he wants so desperately to understand Eugene’s mind, whether that be because he simply wants to know how he feels about him, or because he wants to be able to understand what it’s like to be young again, with a wide open world of opportunities.

The use of music worked well for me to set the scene, even if it was anachronistic. Within the first few minutes of the film Nirvana’s “Come As You Are” plays over a slow-mo shot of Lee walking through his community, with various types of people shown around him in the frame. The film is set in 1950s Mexico, but I think it was still a good song choice for setting up Lee’s character and lifestyle.

I was really impressed with Drew Starkey’s performance as Eugene, which honestly surprised me. He definitely should go on to get more roles from this, because the range he’s already shown is kind of insane. I watched season one of Outerbanks in 2020 and that was all I had seen of him ever, so imagine my surprise when he shows up on screen and completely captivates the audience. Daniel Craig also turned in a genuine and grounded performance that was wildly different from anything I’d seen him do, either, but the fact that Starkey held his own opposite such a veteran actor, even outshining him in certain scenes? It leads me to believe he will have many, many options after this.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this film and am so grateful to be able to see limited releases early :”) & I hope if you were on the fence about seeing it, you decide to give it a shot !

xx
kendall