Luca Guadagnino seems to be in a sweet spot in his career where he can turn his passions into full-fledged movies. Before the huge success of Call Me By Your Name, he gave us A Bigger Splash, and more recently, there’s the steamy sports drama Challengers. It feels like he’s taking bold swings and hoping they hit the mark.

If the result is something as rich and captivating as Queer, then who can complain? A story like the one in Queer, which is loosely inspired by William S. Burroughs' novella of the same name, can’t be told without a bit of flair. Honestly, a film like that wouldn’t even be worth making otherwise.

The concept

Split into three chapters and an epilogue, Queer is arguably Luca Guadagnino's most challenging film. It's intense, stylistically restless, and feels more polished than it might want to let on. The narrative kicks off in 1940s Mexico, where we meet William Lee, an American expat and middle-aged writer, who spends his time getting wasted, stumbling out of bars, and trying to charm gay men.

Lee encounters the charming and attractive Eugene (Drew Starkey), who gives off a bit of a queer vibe but doesn’t make it super clear. The early part of the film revolves around figuring out if Eugene is actually into Lee, especially since he sometimes sneaks glances at him but often opts to hang out with another woman who could be his girlfriend. When they finally hook up, the chemistry is intense and raw. However, Lee still feels like he doesn’t really know Eugene all that well.

What’s effective

Guadagnino, collaborating with Challengers writer Justin Kuritzkes on the script, brings these scenes to life with incredible style and energy. He’s supported by the fantastic score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, while Sayombhu Mukdeeprom’s cinematography adds a warm glow to the polished, artificial outdoor settings. The standout here is definitely Daniel Craig’s central performance, which is refreshingly unguarded and boldly vulnerable. It’s arguably the best work of his career.

However, the film stumbles in the second half when the characters embark on a quest for a drug called yage. Lee's fixation starts to feel overbearing, and his interpretive choices come off as excessive under the director's guidance. Leslie Manville’s later appearance is less ridiculous than the obviously fake CGI snake that frightens both men in the woods. It just doesn’t feel right.

Lee becomes consumed by his desires, but the film seems to lose its way even more. Guadagnino captures a raw, mesmerizing essence in portraying this man's relentless search for connection, yet it clashes with the film's modern, hyper-real aspects. The two characters unravel without a clear direction. Queer manages to be both stunning and unsettling, struggling to find its identity. That’s the nature of obsession, as Guadagnino implies, and we’re left to embrace both sides.

You can catch Queer on MUBI.

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