Queer (c) Yannis Drakoulidis
Film: Queer
In Cinemas Nov 22
Premise: William S. Burroughs is mostly associated with the Beat Generation of 1950s writers along with Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg, and mostly known for his novel, Naked Lunch, which followed his debut novel, Junky. Junky centers around Burroughs’ autobiographical protagonist William Lee and his heroin addiction. Queer was a sequel to Junky but was abandoned and not released until 1985. While the novel still deals with Lee’s addiction to heroin, the main focus is his obsession with young Eugene Allerton (loosely based on Burroughs’ friend Adelbert Lewis Marker) and their on-again off-again relationship. Luca Guadagnino’s new film has Daniel Craig as Lee, in one of his most significant non-Benoit Blanc role after putting James Bond behind him, and Lee is a jittery, obnoxious snob living in Mexico with a small group of queers, including fellow writer Joe (an unrecognizable Jason Schwartzman), when he notices the clean and confidant Allerton (Drew Starkey) who seems to hang out with women (playing a lot of chess) but keeps all the gay men in his orbit curious about how straight he is. Lee is persistent in his pursuit of Allerton, and they become a couple of a sort, with Lee trying to let Allerton have his straight freedom while pining for him by drowning himself with liquor and drugs. On a trip to South America with Allerton, Lee is searching for a new drug called ayahuasca that he hears makes people clairvoyant. His excursion in the jungle leads him to the doorstep of a hippie botanist, Dr. Cotter (an even more unrecognizable Lesley Manville), who has obviously sampled what she’s researching. Cotter warns the two men that ayahuasca is not a trippy drug like heroin, but it will open their minds and consciousness.
Queer (c) Yannis Drakoulidis
My Take: Luca Guadagnino’s Queer shares a theme of misplaced gay feelings as his other 2024 film, Challengers. Tennis is the metaphorical game of love and faults in the latter, while chess is the game of mates and checkmates in the former. The first two thirds of Queer is a darker version of the puppy love affair in Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name, as Lee and Allerton move themselves across the chessboard of Mexico City, trying to figure out their relationship without relinquishing power. This chase is the only plot for this section, with Craig and Starkey convincingly flirty and tentative as this is still the 1940s. But once the pair head to South America, the tone shifts to something more akin to Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Memoria as lost souls look for meaning in their lives (it may also have to do that both movies share cinematographer Sayombhu Mukdeeprom) before Guadagnino indulges in a controversial sequence reminiscent of images in his Bones and All and Suspiria for the big finale. The ending sequence is not that different from the vibe of The Substance, but critics are more amenable to its audacity in the Demi Moore film over this experimental, queer love story. While on point in a metaphorical way, the ending goes to such extremes that it will certainly put some viewers off from the film altogether, as in Alex Garland’s finale for Men (another A24 joint) a few years ago; these moments raised more questions than answers. I found it appropriate in the journey of William Lee after Junkie and before Naked Lunch.
Queer (c) Yannis Drakoulidis
This film should not be seen as about a turbulent gay love affair, but more as a lost man trying to find a connection to humanity. Lee is living in Mexico because his queerness is a crime in the U.S. It just so happens that Allerton is with Lee when he gets close to finding life’s answers through psychedelics. Everything else about this film is classic Guadagnino, with his penchant for his camera-veer toward windows during some sex scenes as well as using music effectively, even when the songs are as anachronistic as Nirvana’s “Come as You Are” (as well as Sinead O’Connor’s cover of their “All Apologies”) and Prince’s “17 Days.” Composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross provide more subtle music than their Challengers score, as well as an original song sung by Caetano Veloso. This is a risky and experimental film for Luca Guadagnino, and after a few more viewings, I think its reputation will be positive. However, on first watch, even I, who mostly admired and enjoyed it, was left a little befuddled.
Queer (c) Yannis Drakoulidis
VIP: Daniel Craig. Craig has returned to his indie roots of Love Is the Devil and Obsession with his no-holds-barred approach to Lee, a man who doesn’t believe in love until he starts to believe in love. He has wonderful chemistry with Drew Starkey, who makes the most of the “ideal” himbo role. Craig would seem to have an uphill battle with Oscar voters with the last part of the film, but I think Daniel Craig will overcome these polarizing hurdles to get the Oscar nomination for a heartbreaking but not sentimental portrayal of a man in pain given a small string of a lifeline.
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