23/21
In 1950s Mexico City, a 40-something American immigrant lives a solitary life in a small American community. However, the arrival of a young student inspires the man to finally make a meaningful connection with someone. Daniel Craig is ultimately the one who convinces Luca Guadagnino to cast Drew Starkey after watching audition tapes with Guadagnino and telling him “That’s the guy” after seeing Starkey. William Lee: Sit on your ass! Or what’s left of it after four years in the Navy. Starring in The Graham Norton Show: Daniel Craig/Nicola Coughlan/Jesse Eisenberg/Kieran Culkin/Flo (2024). I’ve never seen Naked Lunch (1991) but I found myself thinking about it frequently when screening Queer at the 2024 London Film Festival: this was probably to be expected, as William S Burroughs provided the source material for both films. In 1950s Mexico, William Lee, an American writer on the wrong side of… forty? Fifty?, spends his days getting drunk, shooting up and having casual sex with other men. One day, young, muscular Eugene walks into the bar and Lee is smitten. But what does Eugene himself want? Plus, there’s this telepathic drug to think about… I’m not sure what, stylistically, director Luca Guadagnino is trying to accomplish with this film. The sets are decorated almost exclusively in solid colors – dull reds and olive greens, for example – and have this vaguely unrealistic, clean Technicolor look that made me think the intention was to pay homage to the films of the era in which the film is set . But if that’s the case, why the decidedly non-rock, techno soundtrack from the 50s? Daniel Craig (is it my imagination or is he starting to sound like Sid James?) is hampered in the lead role by having to constantly deliver nonsense in an accent that’s clearly not his own. Drew Starkey is able to give a more subtle performance as the manipulative Eugene, and certainly looks the part. Lesley Manville is unrecognizable as a doctor living in the South American jungle – kudos to the makeup team! This is the kind of film that seems to me to be more about art style than narrative substance. It was nice to see once, but I won’t watch it again.
