best picture showcase: film #7

it just doesn’t click. a gorgeous facade, masking the vagueness of the dialogue and intentions and feelings of the characters. dripping with scenic appeal, but i’m only slightly charmed by it. what tries to be one of the most sincere movies in years only feels hollow to me, even when i try to let it in. oliver and elio are different ages, but it’s the maturity level that bothers me here: one, a man, going out by himself until dawn. the other, only a boy, sitting with his parents, being read a fairlytale while it rains outside. he puffs out his chest and acts older than his age. and that’s what it is: an act. he can be intelligent and wise and ready for love, but is he mature enough for a relationship like this. it’s that imbalance that has me trying to break down the walls of this thing and see it more clearly. the way they talk and interact rings empty to me, only getting glimpses of true tenderness, split seconds of actual romance. oliver comes off the emptiest of all, i counted on one hand the times i could see his true nature, and half of those, i didn’t like what i saw. maybe he loved elio, but i can’t quite see it. and what i’m left with is a chilly ending, reflected in flames by the best bit of acting the movie has to offer

but, all that said, i’m aware of the fact that people love it so. love it, relate to it, are enchanted by it. and i’m trying to let that be what it is, because the above is only my opinion, and we all have such drastically different opinions. in the end, all we can do is scribble our thoughts down and move on. discussion is maybe the most important aspect of a movie like this, or a time like this: to be open to discuss a movie and it’s good sides and it’s bad sides, even if you hold it dear to your heart. or despise it
 
this is a glorious, sun-drenched daydream for some, but not for me. and that’s ok