QUEER: Requiem for a Gay Odyssey
By Harrison J. Bahe
1950. William Lee, an American expat in Mexico City, spends his days almost entirely alone, except for a few contacts with other members of the small American community. His encounter with Eugene Allerton, an expat former soldier, new to the city, shows him, for the first time, that it might be finally possible to establish an intimate connection with somebody.
Author William S. Burroughs, who wrote the book the movie Queer is based on, was a fascinating man who is responsible for the publication of 18 novels and novellas, 6 collections of short stories, and 4 collections of essays. He was one of the authors who began the Beat Generation movement which explored and influenced American culture and politics in the post World War II era. Director Luca Guadagnino is an Italian filmmaker whose films often relish in the visceral display of eroticism, emotional complexity, and lavish visuals. The 2017 book adaptation of Andre Aciman’s Call Me By Your Name is what shot him into worldwide recognition. Pairing these two indelible men together would create such a bizarre, unkempt, truly odyssey-like foray into love, madness, addiction, sex, drugs, murder, and hallucinations. Such is the film Queer.
There is a standard upon which Guadagnino set with Call Me By Your Name, which presented a unique love story filled with a longing for the “what ifs” of a relationship that ended prematurely. The story within that film was tragically beautiful and left you longing for a long lost summer of 1983 you never experienced. I went into Queer expecting a Call Me By Your Name. I’m here now to tell you that you should NOT go into this film expecting anything closely resembling that film. Queer is a whole other beast. Dare I say monster? Queer begins as a normal picturesque film with all of the visual tells of Guadagnino’s previous works. His grounded cinematography and erratic edits set the stage for a lovely LGBTQ+ romance but it slowly devolves into a hypnotic nightmare stemming from a heroin addiction. The first half is most likely what you’re expecting this film to be, but the second half is like some half remembered dream of an older gay man’s heroin induced recollection of a one sided romance gone wrong in a strange, foreign land. Buckle up and enjoy this bizarre carnival ride because it’s a bumpy one!
Daniel Craig, who most notably played the iconic character of James Bond, delivers a powerhouse performance as William Lee, an older gay man addicted to heroin who pursues sometimes hopelessly the dashing new arrival Eugene Allerton played by Drew Starkey. Craig brings a certain vulnerability to his character who drinks by day and shoots up by night all while cruising Mexico City in search of love in all the wrong places. Starkey, who comes primarily from a TV background and smaller roles in film, brings a young stoic naivety to his character, oftentimes practicing control and rejection over William Lee. He very much wishes to remain in control of whatever this relationship is which is ultimately a one sided, toxic relationship doomed from the beginning. The film rides a fine line between drama and comedy and the actors balance both of those themes beautifully because let’s face it, you’d need to have a certain sense of humor to get through the weirded aspects of the film; especially with the second half.
This is certainly Guadagnino’s weirdest film to date and sets itself apart from his other films. I can certainly see how this film would divide audiences. A core group of people, me included, would go in expecting a tragic romance and instead get a bizarre, disjointed third act on par with the finale of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. There is no denying though that Queer is a unique LGBTQ+ film with strong direction, powerful performances, and one hell of a weird finale. I’d expect nothing less from A24. One part Call Me By Your Name, one part Requiem for a Dream, one part 2001: A Space Odyssey, this film is a hypnotic foray into love, madness, addiction, sex, drugs, murder, and hallucinations with an erratic style of filmmaking and storytelling that sometimes works for and against the story it’s trying to tell, which is why I give Queer—
3 Guns out of 5
Queer is Rated R for strong sexual content, graphic nudity, strong drug content, language and brief violence. It is currently playing in limited theaters.