Queer: a Review

Queer- Film Review

Image Courtesy of MUBI 

Queer (Playing in select theatres (Check your listings) and Streaming on MUBI Canada this February)

Staring:  Daniel Craig, Drew Starkey, Jason Schwartzman, Lesley Manville

Runtime: 136 Minutes 

    We live in an Oscar-driven world where Luca Guadagnino somehow made two films this year, both critics and audiences praised and yet they received no Oscar nominations. Let that sink in for a minute. Maybe it is reflective of his quiet outburst moment from the Golden Globes as he walked out after Challengers lost in the Best Picture in a Musical or Comedy to Emilia Pérez. Queer had a limited run this December, alas I did not get a chance to see it due to fighting a cold, with an ear infection, leading to a blocked ear. Alas before the Oscar run MUBI Canada will be streaming it in February. Is it worthy to consider it as an outlier alongside Challengers that was shut out of this year’s Oscars? What I can say about the film is that there is a mystic transcendent quality to the film that is quite different from a normal Guadagnino film, and surrealism is on full display capturing the essence of the source material alongside a strong performance from Daniel Craig. 

    Based on the William S. Burroughs novella by the same title, Queer sees American William Lee (Daniel Craig) an expat in Mexico City who spends his days wandering aimlessly around bars/restaurants looking to connect with people. His inner circle is a small group from the American community in Mexico City, most distancing themselves from Lee when he becomes too close, for fear of a relationship with him, however, he has a friend Joe (Jason Schwartzman). This is until he meets Eugine Allerton (Drew Starkey), who he is always desperately trying to connect with but can’t seem to do. Eugine keeps Lee at an emotional distance often seen with Mary (Andra Ursuta). Lee knows he has a deep connection with Eugine that might be telepathic “I want to talk to you without speaking” in the sense of the film's surrealism, leading to a dream and Lee to remark in his dream “I’m Not Queer. I’m Disembodied”. Lee asks Eugine to travel with him to South America in the hopes of finding Yagé, a plant that is said to offer telepathic abilities.

    Lee suffering from drug withdrawal symptoms becomes a bit more irritable in the relationship and uses Eugine more as a dependant since the doctors are little help. Lee and Eugine meet Dr Cotter (Lesley Manville) in the Ecuadorian jungle who is studying the Yagé plant found in the forest. Using the Yagé plant Dr Cutter created ayahuasca, a psychoactive beverage, that both Lee and Eguine take leading to vivid hallucinations. This leads both men to have the telepathic communication that Lee wanted. Just like in one of Lee’s dreams, Eugine finally lets Lee know that “I’m Not Queer. I’m Disembodied” in a profound transformative moment in their relationship.  Seeing the aftereffects of this experience both men leave and return to Mexico City, despite Dr Cotter wanting the men to continue exploring the effects of Yagé. Both men depart for each other's lives, as Luca Guadagino follows Lee’s final journey as he reconnects in the present with his friend Joe, and then in a metaphysical epilogue conclusion as an old man. 

Queer is a special film about the mystic and transcendent qualities of relationships that is well-directed by Luca Guadagino. Everything is beautiful, from the colour saturation, score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, and the same visual symmetry of Challengers. This is what makes up the surreal beauty of Queer. Matched with a great enigmatic performance from Daniel Craig who radiates the screen with the out-of-body scenes, that become somewhat disembodied by the end of the film. I feel that Queer captures the human connection theme with being subtly flashy through the camera lens, rather than musical numbers. The musical numbers are needle drops of  Nirvana and a cover of a  Nirvana song from Sinéad O'Connor, which is haunting and one of my favourite needle drops of the year. This is what separates it as a worthy film about finding the human connection in a subtle fashion, in a similar vein to All Of Us Strangers by director  Andrew Haigh. Queer should have been considered for a best picture nomination, rather than other best picture nominees. 

Remi is the host of At The Movies Along regular Co-Host Danny Aubery every Tuesday morning from 8-9 AM only on CJLO 1690 AM. They cover local film festivals, have interviews with directors and actors, and talk about a new film or the classics. As well the iconic sounds of present and past film scores and soundtracks.