The Movie Call Me by Your Name, how is it? [review+summary]
Call me by your name and I'll call you by mine.
And there went rounds after rounds of Elio Oliver Elio Oliver game.
CMBYN is a story about finding, falling, letting go, moving on.
My goldfish memory says why I am writing a review right after watching it yesterday as who knows after 1 more day, my memory might just go dead.
Summary
(The summary below is literally just a summary where I am briefly writing out the storyline without many details. So if you have watched the movie or read the book, you could skip to the review part.)
Every summer, Elio's father would have a graduate student coming over for help and the same went for that year, when Oliver would stay with the family for some days.
As Oliver and Elio got close, developing a friendship that slowly evolved into something more than just a sheer friendship, Elio discovered his homosexuality and was put into a dilemmatic situation of confessing or burying his love.
He made up his mind to tell Oliver. The turn out wasn't bad though, it seemed Oliver had some feelings for him as well and that wasn't one-sided. They went through a great time together, having sex in the middle of the night secretly without his parents knowing, sneaking out for a swim and going to the river where Elio spent most of his time reading and writing. Blahblahblah fun time.
Still, days went by, Oliver had to leave albeit how much Elio was unwilling to let him go. They spent their last few days together in a trip to Bergamo as his parents suggested.
There, they climbed a mountain with an enormously majestic waterfall meanwhile called each other by their own names out loud :Elio Oliver Oliver Elio...., they got drunk and had sex again.
Elio broke into tears the day Oliver got on the train, not only leaving, but saying goodbye to whatever that was special between them, parting away.
Life went on for everyone.
The following year, on Hanukkah, Oliver called and Elio answered the phone. He was surprised with joy until Oliver told him that he was engaged, it all turned bittersweet. Ending the call, he moved himself to the fireplace and couldn't hold back the tears he had been trying to swallow anymore...
The end.
Not a happy ending I guess.
Review
Maybe it was the love-at-first-sight which explained why Elio planted a liking or an infatuation on Oliver really fast, straight after they met. Maybe it was the matter with the theme that throughout the whole film the two main actors were either shirtless or partially shirtless.
And, Elio never closed his side of the bathroom door in his adjoining bedroom with Oliver, so he could hear him pee? He even got jealous because Oliver was being too zealous towards the girls.
When Elio first came clean to Oliver about his homosexuality and how it was only triggered for HIM pft, Oliver seemed being not into it and added he would just act as if Elio had never said that. But then, he was the one who lured and teased Elio when the two were lying on the grass, bathed by the Sun. He freaking made the first move by touching Elio's lips just to provoke Elio to lick his fingers, I swear that was deliberate. The two started kissing and when Oliver asked if that made Elio happy, I rolled my eyes so hard that my orbs couldn't come back down.
Every time they had sex and during the PEACH scene, I HAHAHHAAHHAHA underwent silent laugh and HAHHAHAHAHA quickly bit the back of my hand. The next thing I did was face-palming because I am only 17.
Why was Oliver acting on and off? no idea. After what he did to Elio on the grass, he gave him the silent treatment until Elio found it unbearable and dropped him a note. Then the next day, it may be the magic of the note, Oliver was not only back to his usual self but he even asked Elio to meet him in that midnight, which led to you-know-what. That was very chameleonic, Oliver.
One of favourite quotes from CMBYN is what Elio's dad said:
In your place, if there is pain, nurse it, and if there is a flame, don't snuff it out, don't be brutal with it.
We rip out so much of ourselves to be cured of things faster than we should that we go bankrupt by the age of thirty and have less to offer each time we start with someone new. But to feel nothing so as not to feel anything - what a waste!
Most of our parents could be okay and respectful towards homosexuality but when it happens to their kids, they just couldn't find their way to accept it wholeheartedly. However, that wasn't the case with Elio's parents. They accepted their son for who he really was.
Oliver was engaged in the end. It made me wonder if he was a bisexual, perhaps? Because I don't believe a male can make out with another male in real life if he is sheer straight. I hope someone can clear my clouds.
Overall, the movie is good but not overwhelming enough to elicit my senses. It was a lil' plain.
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