Shadows on the Wall

Queer

dir Luca Guadagnino
scr Justin Kuritzkes
prd Lorenzo Mieli, Luca Guadagnino
with Daniel Craig, Drew Starkey, Jason Schwartzman, Lesley Manville, Henrique Zaga, Drew Droege, Andra Ursuta, Ariel Schulman, Andres Duprat, Omar Apollo,David Lowery, Lisandro Alonso
release US 27.Nov.24,
UK 13.Dec.24
24/Italy 2h15

VENICE FILM FEST
TORONTO FILM FEST

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Based on the novel by William S Burroughs, this drama is strikingly visual and packed with colourful characters. Filmmaker Luca Guadagnino sharply captures the feeling of this time and place, creating an eye-catching and heady mix of sex and drugs. But this is a story about the yearning desire to make a proper connection with another human being, and it centres around one of Daniel Craig's best-ever performances.

Living off the grid in 1940s Mexico City after a bit of personal trouble, Lee (Craig) hangs out with other Americans in the expat community, flirting with wary young men. Then he spots Southern boy Eugene (Starkey), a discharged soldier. They become friends, and Lee can barely suppress his lust as they hang out together. Amid the general promiscuity of the gay scene here, Lee is surprised that his feelings are running so deeply for Eugene, who doesn't seem to reciprocate them. Then they decide to travel to the mountains, beaches and rainforests of Ecuador.

A gently rolling pace gives the film an almost dreamlike tone. Guadagnino cleverly captures how, even for men living so far from home, homosexuality is something that has to remain hidden. This is revealed in a number of clever touches, including dreamy glimpses of Lee's longing to stroke Eugene's face in public. Or his hilarious conversations with his friend Joe (Schwartzman). The film is also accompanied by a terrific collection of anachronistic songs, plus a moody Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross score.

Craig is riveting as a man who uses alcohol and heroin to escape the feeling that he can never have a happy life. So Lee is thrown when he meets Eugene and begins to think that perhaps he can have a real relationship after all. By contrast, the excellent Starkey is coolly aloof, seemingly aware of the swoony effect he's having on Lee, and yet he remains just out of reach. Side roles are enjoyably lively, with a scene-stealing appearance from Manville as a jungle botanist.

Because everything is seen through Lee's eyes, the film gets deep under his skin, especially in some outrageously surreal moments. "I'm not queer, I'm disembodied," he says while on one of his drug-induced trips. And Eugene echoes the same line with a different meaning. Where this film goes feels a little undercooked, since the final ambitious swirl of scenes are deliberately elusive. But it's a provocative story that gives us plenty to chew on.

themes, language, violence, sexuality 11.Nov.24

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