Queer

In some ways this felt as dreamy as Call Me By Your Name and as nightmarish as Suspiria. It reminded me of Edward Hopper paintings and Douglas Sirk movies with the way shadow and colour was used, and I felt like the use of an Old Hollywood-esque sound stage set gave the film an artificial feeling in line with the fact these are a bunch of white American men using Mexico City as their playground. Daniel Craig’s performance as Lee in this is another level - he plays his heart on his sleeve entirely, to the point it’s difficult to watch him, but at the same time the movie makes no mistake in portraying the way he corners specifically younger men and pushes and pushes until he gets what he wants. Seeing him work so hard for any crumbs from Drew Starkey’s character (who is ice-cold yet hands out a smile or two enough to keep Lee addicted) is heartbreaking, frustrating and uncomfortable. I felt like I understood where both characters were coming from with their situation, and the way the age gap came into play. Ultimately it felt like a movie about loneliness, and wanting to be wanted. To the point you’d take them to the South American jungle to try and read their mind. The yearning, anger and desperation was so palpable and beautifully portrayed, both from the one reaching out for it and the other side stepping it. I will be thinking about the set design, styling, cinematography, soundtrack….the entire movie, for a long long time. Only Luca could make 90s Nirvana work perfectly in a film set in 50s Mexico City. Also Jason Schwartzman was incredible every time he was on screen. Loved loved loved it, another masterpiece from Luca!