Call Me by Your Name

A super-lush, atmospheric tale of the intense infatuation/love of a super intellectual bougie American-Italian teen and the summer guest at his parents' Italian house. NSFW. NSFA(irplanes) - seriously, shit gets kinky and I was very awkwardly trying to hide my Kindle out of sight from my seatmates.

Haaanyway, so Elio is Timothee Chalamet. Okay, it's impossible not to see Chalamet. I haven't actually seen the movie yet. But anyway, Elio is this gorgeous, uber-intellectual professor's son living in someplace, Italia. It's the summer, the cicadas are buzzing, the apricots and peaches are in full bloom, it's the 1980s, it's ITALY, BABY. And, every summer, Elio's professor dad (who is the American one, I believe?) invites a new grad student to their villa to do grad student things. I think the dad was a prof of art history? Or European philosophers? Something very very humanities.

Anyway, in comes Oliver, this year's grad student, and Elio's heart and loins are IMMEDIATELY AFLAME. What follows is a verrryyy wonderfully (and accurately!) portrayed love story, entirely from Elio's perspective, a real sexuality explosion. Elio's 17 (iirc?) and Oliver is 24 and super dashing, American, New Yorky. Elio didn't realize he was attracted to men (I guess?) but BOY IS HE ATTRACTED TO OLIVER. The bulk of this book is Elio's gloriously articulate pining for Oliver; and who among us has not pined like this, like a real crazy person. It's aww-inducing and eyeroll-inducing; Elio is both so over the top dramatic, and so sweetly in love.

Anonymous 1980s Italian summer, btw, is also portrayed beautifully - and with some authenticity. Grazie, grazie... Not guaranteed in non-Italian writing!

So I loved the first 2/3 of this book, and found the writing just pitch perfect. The atmosphere, the interior of Elio's adoration for Oliver, is just gorgeous, moving, and lovely. BUT! The spell broke for me when Oliver had to inevitably return to the US, and the two men take a Roman holiday weekend. I love Rome, and felt the city (and the bougie intelligentsia glitterati they party with) was accurately drawn, but - here - at least, I felt like Anciman's wry, loving, “isn't this kid crazy” distance - which worked so well in keeping us grounded in reality while Elio flew away on his flights of horndog amore - anyway, that all went out the window. At least, I thought the party people were totally lame, and I was disappointed Anciman's portrayal of Elio's adulation of them seemed so, bleh, uncritical? I was like, ugh, these people are just boring snobby Dolce Vita types. (They were like the party people in La Grande Bellezza - I mean, this whole “Roman upper class intellectual parties amidst general decay” is kind of a stereotype, and has been for millennia. But at least La Grande Bellezza - like La Dolce Vita, like Seneca - is somewhat satirical. It doesn't take these people and their parties seriously - and certainly doesn't worship at their feet, as Elio does!)

Similarly, I won't spoil anything, but the coda was also just bleeghhh, oh come on. The spell was TOTALLY broken for me, by that point. Maybe that was the point? But given the critical reviews of the sequel to this, maybe the wheels just came off?

Either way, I am very excited to watch the movie.