Queer – REVIEW

Daniel Craig and Drew Starkey in Queer

Luca Guadagnino has slowly become one of my favorite directors working right now. Ever since 2017’s gorgeous Call Me by Your Name (which helped rocket Timothée Chalamet into stardom), Guadagnino has just been, as most filmmakers do, making films. His loose remake of Dario Argento’s cult giallo flick Suspiria and Bones and All, his reunion with Chalamet, were fascinating dips into horror. Earlier this year, though, was when Challengers exploded, which is one of the best movies of the year. He’s not stopping there, though. After the Hunt with Andrew Garfield and Julia Roberts, an Austin Butler-led American Psycho adaptation, and Sgt. Rock, a potential dip into the world of comic book movies with Daniel Craig, are all on the horizon. Right in the middle of all that is Queer, an adaptation of the William S. Burrough’s novella, and it’s Guadagnino’s most surreal film yet. Craig plays Lee, an American expat living in Mexico City, who's been passing the time with bar hops and having sex with younger men than him. One night, he sees another American expat, Allerton, and it’s off to the races. I’ve always enjoyed seeing Craig in movies, but he’s never had that singular performance. He’s known for James Bond and Benoit Blanc, sure, but maybe those aren’t considered acting masterclasses. Queer may just be Craig's finest role yet as a pathetic drunk in search of any sort of connection, even if it’s scraps of one. Drew Starkey, who’s just now appearing on my radar, is equally as mesmerizing as this new enigma in Lee’s life. Not knowing if Allerton really loves Lee, if that connection is real, if their love is real, all hinges on Craig’s blatant desperation and Starkey’s lack of any sort of emotion. Simply, they’re electric. The movie wouldn’t work if Lee and Allerton were played by anyone other than them. The turn into the surreal in the final act is surprising, but earned and is the closest thing to David Lynch I’ve seen in a long time, which will certainly turn off a good amount of watchers. As if Challengers wasn’t enough Guadagnino for a calendar year, Queer feels like catching lightning in a bottle. A hallucinatory, devastating portrait of love that shouldn’t be ignored, Queer is easily one of the best of the year.

Ryan’s Grade: A