Sundance: Luca Guadagnino's 'Call Me by Your Name' heats up a frigid festival

Flimmaker Luca Guadagnino, left, Timothee Chalamet, Armie Hammer, Michael Stuhlbarg and Walter Fasano attend the "Call Me by Your Name" premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

By Justin ChangFilm Critic

Jan. 23, 2017 8:45 PM PT

Film Critic

It’s become something of a film-festival truism that certain movies play better at high altitudes. Exhibit A would probably be “The Blair Witch Project,” which took Sundance by storm in 1999 and generated tremendous word-of-mouth buzz, but was widely considered a disappointment by those who flocked to see it in theaters. As the conventional wisdom goes, the movie’s lost-in-the-woods premise played like gangbusters in chilly, secluded Park City, Utah, in a way that it simply couldn’t replicate closer to sea level.

Which is not to suggest that films featuring frigid forest settings have some sort of Sundance advantage. The reverse, in fact, can also be true. For viewers experiencing the frost fatigue that always sets in mid-festival, a movie set over the course of, say, a long, hot summer in Italy — where young people lie about in the sun, imbibing fresh-squeezed fruit juice and the sight of each other’s beautiful bodies — might be just the thing to take the edge off that Park City chill.

For the record:

8:49 p.m. Nov. 26, 2024The character Elio’s age was corrected to 17 years old.

And so it was excellent meteorological counterprogramming that the festival chose one of its coldest, snowiest days so far to unveil Luca Guadagnino’s intoxicatingly al fresco new movie, “Call Me by Your Name.” Adapted from André Aciman’s novel about a teenager’s summer of love in the 1980s, the film has all the wild beauty and simmering erotic languor we’ve come to expect from the director of “I Am Love” and “A Bigger Splash,” both of which followed characters looking for love in all the wrong (but fabulously beautiful and luxurious) places.

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John Lithgow and Salma Hayek from the film “Beatriz at Dinner.”

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Director and actress Michelle Morgan from the film “L.A. Times.”

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Director Dan Sickles, left, director Antonio Santini and director of photography Adam Uhl from the film “Dina.”

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Director of photography Adam Uhl from the film “Dina.”

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Director Danny Strong, left, actor Nicholas Hoult and actress Zoey Deutch from the film “Rebel in the Rye.”

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Actress Lois Smith from the film “Marjorie Prime.”

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Actor Jon Hamm from the film “Marjorie Prime.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Mark Hamill from the film “Brigsby Bear.”

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Actor Nick Offerman from the film “The Hero.”

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Director Jovanka Vuckovic from the film, “XX.”

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Actress India Menuez from the Amazon series “I Love Dick.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Laura Prepon from the film “The Hero.”

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Actor Sam Elliott from the film “The Hero.”

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Director Annie Clark (also known as the musician, St. Vincent) from the film “XX.”

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Director Joshua Z. Weinstein, left, and Menashe Lustig from “Menashe” at the Sundance Film Festial in Park City, Utah, on Jan. 23.

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Actress Zoe Chao, left, co-director Celia Rowlson-Hall, co-director Mia Lidofsky and actress Meredith Hagne from the television movie “Strangers.”

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Actor Martin Donovan, left, actress Julia Ordmond, director Mark Palansky and actor Peter Dinklage from the film “Rememory.”

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Actress Madeline Weinstein from the film “Beach Rats.”

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Ryan Horrigan, left, Paul Raphael, Felix Jajeunesse and Sebastian Sylvan from the film “Miyubi.”

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Actor Harris Dickinson from the film “Beach Rats.”

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Director Eliza Hittman from “Beach Rats.”

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Actresses Nefessa Williams, left, Adriyan Rae, Steve Harris, Seryah and Imani Hakim from the film “Burning Sands.”

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Actor Jon Daly, left, director Janicza Bravo, actress Judy Greer, actress Shiri Appelby and actor Brett Gelman of “Lemon.”

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Director Julia Ducournau from the film “Raw.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Anya Taylor-Joy, director Cory Finley and actress Olivia Cooke from the film “Thoroughbred.”

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Director Matt Heineman, second from right, and citizen journalists Mohamad Almusari, left, Hamoud Almousa and Abdalaziz from the documentary film “City of Ghosts.”

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Subjects Raj Majethia and Victoria Harrelson from the documentary film “The Mars Generation.”

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Subject Raj Majethia, left, director Michael Barnett and subject Victoria Harrelson from the documentary film “The Mars Generation.”

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Actor Adam Horowitz, left, actress Emily Browning, director Alex Ross Perry and actress Analeigh Tipton from the film “Golden Exits.”

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Director Wally Wolodarsky, left, actor Jack Black, actress Jenny Slate, director Maya Forbes, actress Jacki Weaver and actor Willie Garson from the film “The Polka King.”

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Director Rory Kennedy and surfer Laird Hamilton, from the documentary film “Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton.”

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Actress Julia Jones from the film “Wind River.”

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Actress Kelsy Asbille from the film “Wind River.”

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Director Kogonada from the film “Columbus.”

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Actor Rory Culkin, left, actor John Cho, actress Michelle Forbes, actress Haley Lu Richardson and actor Parker Posey from the film, “Columbus.”

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Director Taylor Sheridan from the film “Wind River.”

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Actress Gigi Gorgeous and director Barbara Kopple from the film “This Is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous.”

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Actress Gigi Gorgeous, from “This Is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous.”

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Executive Producer Danny Glover, left, and director Yance Ford from the documentary film “Strong Island.”

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Actor Sam Elliott, left, actor Nick Offerman, director Brett Haley, actress Katharine Ross and actress Laura Prepon from the film “The Hero.”

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Co-Executive Producer Sarah Gubbins, left, actor Griffin Dunne, actress India Menuez (kneeling), actress Roberta Colindrez, actor Kevin Bacon, director Jill Soloway, actress Kathryn Hahn and Lily Mojekwu from the Amazon series “I Love Dick.”

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Actress Kathryn Hahn, actress Roberta Colindrez and director Jill Soloway from the Amazon series “I Love Dick.”

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Actor Jason Isaacs and Crash from the film “Red Dog: True Blue.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Sasheer Zamata, director Sydney Freeland, actress Danielle Nicolet, actor David Sullivan, actress Rachel Crow and actress Ashleigh Murray, from the film “Diedra and Laney Rob a Train.”

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Actor Daniel Houck and director Stefan Avalos from the documentary film “Strad Style.”

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Actor Jeremy Renner from the film “Wind River,.”

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Director/actor Zoe Lister-Jones from the film “Band Aid.”

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Actress Chloe Sevigny from the film “Golden Exits.”

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Actor Jack Black from the film “The Polka King.”

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Surfer Laird Hamilton, subject of the documentary film “Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Julia Jones from the film “Wind River.”

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Actress Kelsy Asbille from the film “Wind River.”

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Actress America Ferrera from the new Web series “Gente-fied.”

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Director Miguel Arteta from the film “Beatriz at Dinner.”

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Actress Connie Britton from the film “Beatriz at Dinner.”

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Actress Salma Hayek from the film “Beatriz at Dinner.”

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Actor Jay Duplass jumps behind writer-director Gillian Robespierre, actress Jenny Slate, actress Edie Falco and actress Abby Quinn from the film “Landline.”

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Actor Blake Jenner, actor Logan Lerman, actress Elle Fanning and actress Michelle Monaghan from the film “Sidney Hall.”

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Actress Natalie Paul, left, actor Lakeith Stanfield, screenwriter Matt Ruskin and actor-producer Nnamdi Asomugha, from the film “Crown Heights.”

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Actress Judy Greer, left, actor Woody Harrelson and actress Laura Dein, from the film “Wilson.”

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Actress Isabella Amara, from the film “Wilson.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Josh O’Connor, left, director Francis Lee and actor Alec Secareanu, from the film “God’s Own Country.”

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Jaque Fragua, director Michelle Latimer, center, and Sarain Carson-Fox, from the documentary film “Rise.”

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Director Amir Bar-Lev, left, Steve Parrish and Trixie Garcia, from the documentary film “Long Strange Trip.”

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Actress Connie Britton, from the film “Beatriz at Dinner.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor-producer Nnamdi Asomugha, from the film “Crown Heights.”

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Director Andrew Dosunmu from the film “Where Is Kyra.”

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Actor John Lithgow, from the film “Beatriz at Dinner.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Director Shawn Christensen from the film “Sidney Hall.”

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Actor Garrett Hedlund, director Dee Rees, actor Rob Morgan, musician Mary J. Blige, and actress Cary Mulligan from the film “Mudbound.”

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Geremy Jasper, director and writer of the film “Patti Cake$.”

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Actress Danielle Macdonald from the film “Patti Cake$.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Laia Costa from the film “Newness.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Mamoudou Athie from the film “Patti Cake$.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Nicholas Hoult from the film “Newness.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Siddharth Dhananjay from the film “Patti Cake$.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Mamoudou Athie, left, actress Cathy Moriarty, actor Siddharth Dhananjay, director-writer Geremy Jasper, actress Bridget Everett and actress Danielle Macdonald from the film “Patti Cake$.”

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Director Evgeny Afineevsky and subject Kholoud Helmi from the HBO documentary film “Cries From Syria.”

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Subject Marli Renfro and director Alexandre O. Philippe from the documentary film “78/52.”

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Actress Cathy Moriarty from the film “Patti Cake$.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Bridget Everett from the film “Patti Cake$.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actor Nicholas Hoult and director Drake Doremus from the film “Newness.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Ben York Jones, screenwriter of the film “Newness.”

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Actress Aisha Tyler, who participated in the Women’s March through Park City.

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Rashida Jones, Jill Bauer, and Ronna Gradus of the film, “Hot Girls Wanted: Turned On.”

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Co-writer Justin Lader, Director Charlie McDowell, and Alex Orlovsky of the film, “The Discovery.”

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Actor David So of the film, “Gook.”

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Actress Hania Amar of the film “The Nile Hilton Incident.”

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Actor Fares Fares of the film “The Nile Hilton Incident.”

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Director Tarik Saleh of the film, “The Nile Hilton Incident.”

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Director Dee Rees of the film “Mudbound.”

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Director Jim Strouse of the film “The Incredible Jessica James.”

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Actor Tye Sheridan of the film, “Yellow Birds.”

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Actress Pom Klementieff of the film, “Ingrid Goes West” and “Newness.”

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Actor Jack Huston of the film, “Yellow Birds.”

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Director Matt Spicer of the film “Ingrid Goes West.”

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Directors Cary Murnion and Jonathan Milott of the film, “Bushwick.”

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Actress Jasna Fritzi Bauer and Director Helene Hegemann of the film “Axolotl Overkil.”

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Co-Director Sabbah Folyan, Kayla Reed, Tef Poe, Co-director Damon Davis of the documentary film, “Whose Streets.”

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Actress Elizabeth Arjok, actor Fares Fares, director Tarik Saleh, actress Hania Amar, and actress Mari Malek of the film, “The Nile Hilton Incident.”

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Roxanne Shanté, and actress Nia Long of the film “Roxanne, Roxanne.”

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Actor Michael Larnell, actress Chante Adams, Roxanne Shanté, actor Elvis Nolasco, and actress Nia Long of the film “Roxanne, Roxanne.”

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Director Morgan Neville, Cristoph Neimann, Tinker Hatfield, and Scott Dadich of the Netflix series, “Abstract: Art of Design.”

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Cristoph Neimann of the Netflix series, “Abstract: Art of Design.”

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Director Morgan Neville of the Netflix series, “Abstract: Art of Design.”

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Scott Dadich of the Netflix series, “Abstract: Art of Design.”

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Actress Omono Okojie of the film “Gook.”

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Actor Curtiss Cook Jr., and actress Simone Baker of the film “Gook.”

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Actress Brittny Snow and actor Dave Bautista of the film, “Bushwick.”

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Director Austin Peter of the documentary film “Give Me Future.”

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Actress Cary Mulligan of the film “Mudbound.”

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Director and actor Justin Chon of the film, “Gook.”

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Director Lone Scherfig of the film “Their Finest.”

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Actress Pom Klementieff of the film “Ingrid Goes West.”

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Director Alexandre Moors of the film, “Yellow Birds.”

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Actor O’Shea Jackson Jr., actress Aubrey Plaza, director Matt Spicer, and actress Pom Klementieff of the film “Ingrid Goes West.”

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Richard Vevers, Director Jeff Orlowski and Zackery Rago of he film, “Chasing Coral.”

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Actress Chelsea Handler.

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Director Austin Peters, musician Jillionare, and singer/songwriter Diplo, of the documentary film “Give Me Future.”

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Singer/songwriter Diplo, Thomas Wesley Pentz of the documentary film “Give Me Future.”

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Musician Jillionaire of the documentary film “Give Me Future.”

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Actor Lakeith Stanfield of the film “The Incredible Jessica James.”

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Actor Chris O’Dowd of the film “The Incredible Jessica James.”

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Actress Jessica Williams of the film “The Incredible Jessica James.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Aubrey Plaza of the film, “Ingrid Goes West.”

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Actor O’Shea Jackson Jr. of the film “Ingrid Goes West.”

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Actress Jessica Williams of the film “The Incredible Jessica James.”

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Actress Mari Malek of the film “The Nile Hilton Incident.”

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Actress Jasna Fritzi Bauer of the film “Axolotl Overkil.”

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Executive Producer Tim Robbins and his son, Director Jack Henry Robbins, from the short “Hot Winter, A Film By Dick Pierre.”

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Actor Michael Larnell of the film “Roxanne, Roxanne.”

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Actor Garrett Hedlund of the film “Mudbound.”

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Executive Producers Christopher Cohen, Sean Hayes, Mark Herzog (kneeling) and Todd Milliner of the CNN series, “History of Comedy.”

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Executive Producer Sean Hayes of the television series, “History of Comedy.”

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Actress Melanie Lynskey of the film, “I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore.”

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Actress Nia Long of the film “Roxanne, Roxanne.”

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Actress Simone Baker of the film, “Gook.”

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Actress Elizabeth Arjok of the film, “The Nile Hilton Incident.”

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Roxanne Shante of the film “Roxanne, Roxanne.”

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Actor Elvis Nolasco of the film “Roxanne, Roxanne.”

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Jack Henry Robbins, from the short, “Hot Winter, A Film By Dick Pierre.”

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Actress Mari Malek of the film “The Nile Hilton Incident.”

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Actress Jasna Fritzi Bauer of the film “Axolotl Overkil.”

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Actress Maya Stange, director Damien Power and actor Aaron Glenna from the film “Killing Ground.”

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Actress Tavi Gevinson with the film “Person to Person.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Dolores Huerta from the documentary “Dolores.”

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Director

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Actor Jorma Taccone from the film “L.A. Times.”

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Actor Aaron Glenane from the film “Killing Ground.”

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Actress Kate Micucci with the film “The Little Hours.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Dree Hemingway with the film “L.A. Times.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Directors Andrew Smith and Alex Smith with the film “Walking Out.”

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Actress Molly Shannon from the film “The Little Hours.”

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Actor Jason Ritter with the film “Bitch.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Lauren Weedman, actor Jon Gabrus, actress Kate Micucci, director Jeff Baena, actress Alison Brie, actor Dave Franco, Adam Pally and actress Molly Shannon with the film “The Little Hours.”

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Actor Dave Franco with the film “The Little Hours.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress/director Michelle Morgan and actors Jorma Taccone and Dree Hemingway from the film “L.A. Times.”

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Director Marina Zenovich of the film “Water and Power.”

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Actress Abbi Jacobson with the film “Person to Person.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Florence Pugh and director William Oldroyd from the film “Lady MacBeth.”

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Producer Ryland Aldrich, from the film “L.A. Times.”

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Actress Maya Stange with the film “Killing Ground.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Front: Actors Kingston Foster and Jason Maybaum; back: actors Rio Mangini Jason Ritter and Brighton Sharbino from the film “Bitch.”

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Actress Kingston Foster, director Marianna Palka, actress Brighton Sharbino, actor Rio Mangini, actor Jason Ritter, actor Jason Maybaum, actress Jaime King and actor Zac Clark with the film “Bitch.”

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Director Marianna Palka with the film “Bitch.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Brighton Sharbino mingles with the rest of the cast of the film “Bitch.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Director Amanda Lipitz, center, and step team members, from left, Tayla Solomon, Cori Granger and Blessin Giraldo from the documentary “Step.”

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Directors Jon Shenk and Bonni Cohen with the film “Follow Up to An Inconvenient Truth.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Producer Carlos Santana with the film “Dolores.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Team members, from left, Tayla Solomon, Cori Granger and Blessin Giraldo from the documentary “Step.”

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Director Kristen Stewart and actor Josh Kaye with the film “Come Swim.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actress Zoe Kazan with the film “The Big Sick.”

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Joshua Wong and director Joe Piscatella with the documentary “Joshua: Teenager vs. Superpower.”

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From left, producer Barry Mendel, actress Holly Hunter, director Michael Showalter, actress Zoe Karan, writer Emily V. Gordon, writer Kumail Nanjiani, and producer Judd Apatow with the film “The Big Sick.”

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Husband and wife co-writers Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon from “The Big Sick.”

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Consulting Producer Benjamin Bratt of the film “Dolores.”

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Director Kristen Stewart of the film “Come Swim.”

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Actress Holly Hunter with the film “The Big Sick.”

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Actor Logan Miller, actress Cynthy Wu, director Ry-Russo Young and actresses Zoey Deutch, Elena Kampouris, Medalion Rahimi and Jennifer Beals, from the film “Before I Fall.”

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Actress Zoey Deutch, from the film “Before I Fall.”

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Actress Medalion Rahimi, from the film “Before I Fall.”

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Actress Elena Kampouris, from the film “Before I Fall.”

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Actress Jennifer Beals, from the film “Before I Fall.”

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Actress Cynthy Wu, from the film “Before I Fall.”

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Actor Logan Miller, from “Before I Fall.”

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Actor Miles Fischer, from the television show “Playdates.”

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Composer Dan Romer, from the films “The Little Hours” and “Chasing Coral.”

(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Director Jamie Greenberg, who’s at Sundance with the film “Future ’38.”

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Directors Shaul Schwarz and Christina Clusiau, with the documentary “Trophy.”

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Peter Nicks director of the documentary film “The Force.”

(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Composer Dan Romer, attending Sundance with the films “The Little Hours” and “Chasing Coral.”

(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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Actors Paul Scheer and Carla Gallo, from the television show “Playdates.”

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Actors Paul Scheer, left, Carla Gallo and Miles Fisher, from the television show “Playdates.”

(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Elio (a terrific Timothée Chalamet) is the musically gifted 17-year-old son of an American Jewish intellectual (Michael Stuhlbarg) and his French wife (Amira Casar). The three live in a beautiful home in the northern Italian countryside, where each summer they receive an academic houseguest for six weeks. It’s the summer of 1983, and their visitor is an impossibly tall and handsome scholar named Oliver (Armie Hammer), whose intimidating self-assurance and lazy Americanisms (“Later!” is his preferred farewell) stirs in Elio something halfway between intense dislike and equally intense fascination.

“Call Me by Your Name,” which will be released theatrically by Sony Pictures Classics, is a powerfully erotic and affecting love story, albeit one so closely and intimately observed that the term “slow burn” seems almost inadequate. Not a single moment, impulse or emotional revelation feels rushed. Guadagnino isn’t just one of the great sensualists of contemporary cinema; he has become a veritable deconstructionist of desire.

The undercurrents of lust, intrigue, jealousy and sexual anxiety flickering between Elio and Oliver are observed with a precision and playfulness that verge on the Hitchcockian. He knows exactly how to use a slowly panning camera to elongate the sexual tension of a scene, and how to use a lingering closeup — a pair of swim trunks hung up to dry, or a soft-boiled egg being cracked open — to heighten the material’s emotional temperature.

Lusciously beautiful surfaces and sexually suggestive foodstuffs are par for the course in Guadagnino’s work. It’s the compassion and wry wisdom of “Call Me by Your Name” — beautifully articulated by Stuhlbarg as Elio’s erudite, progressive-minded father — that catch you off-guard. The haunting final scene leaves Elio’s blissful summer behind, as if to remind us that, to everything, there is a season. I couldn’t have been the only viewer who exited Guadagnino’s movie and walked out into the freezing cold, feeling sadder but somehow, magically, warmer.

*****

Actors Frank Hakaj, left, Dave Ivanov, Anton Selyaninov, Harris Dickinson; in the foreground, director Eliza Hittman and actress Madeline Weinstein, of "Beach Rats," attend the IMDb Studio featuring the Filmmaker Discovery Lounge during the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

“Call Me by Your Name” would make a dreamy Sundance double bill with the U.S. dramatic competition entry “Beach Rats,” a very different but similarly restless portrait of a young man’s sexual explorations over the course of an extremely hot summer. Eliza Hittman’s assured second feature is set in present-day South Brooklyn, where Frankie (the British actor Harris Dickinson) idles away the hours with his posse, smoking weed, strolling the beaches and watching the fireworks at night. It’s under one of those fireworks shows that Frankie meets a girl named Simone (the bewitching Madeline Weinstein), and after a rocky start, he becomes her boyfriend.

In his personal downtime, though, Frankie goes online in search of (mostly older) men, though he’s initially too shy to pursue an in-person hook-up. But when a family tragedy strikes, Frankie overcomes his reluctance — at which point “Beach Rats” becomes a sweatily evocative portrait of liberated longing, but also its attendant feelings of lingering shame and confusion. Without giving away what happens, the film’ final passages are particularly suspenseful and provocative, as Frankie tries to gauge his friends’ tolerance levels without exactly telling them the truth.

Like Elio in “Call Me by Your Name,” Frankie never self-identifies as gay or straight; this is filmmaking that exposes the inadequacy of labels and, to some extent, the superfluousness of words. Hittman’s debut feature, “It Felt Like Love,” premiered in Sundance’s Next category in 2013, and it brought much the same sensual intimacy and visual confidence to its portrait of a 14-year-old girl’s sexual identity. “Beach Rats” is both a natural companion piece and also a worthy follow-up.

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Sundance: Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Call Me by Your Name’ heats up a frigid festival

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