Queer - Movie Review | Venice Film Festival 2024 | Can Daniel Craig Finally Get His First Oscar Nom?

hey up everyone so continuing the venis film festival coverage today's movie I'm discussing on the channel is the latest film from one of my favorite filmmakers Luca gu Nino the man has been on something of a hot streak in the last few years with call me by your name susperia bones and all and most recently challenges which we had earlier this year his latest film queer is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by William S borz this was actually my most anticipated film in the entire Venice lineup this year because you've got a legendary gay filmm telling a movie which is about a gay story with Daniel Craig in the lead role okay my anticipation levels were off the charts just want to State for the record right away I have not read the book so yeah I have nothing to compare this film to I can't tell you if this is a faithful adaptation of the source material but I finally saw this movie today and it is safe to say that queer is probably going to be the most polarizing film of the entire Venice Film Festival after I came out of the screening the reactions and the responses were all over the place some people were saying it was one of the best at the festival and others were saying like this is luuka guo's worst film he's ever done and you know what I totally get it I see both sides of the argument I understand why some people absolutely adore this film and I can understand why others hate it but how did I feel as I was watching this film I'm going to say that I'm a fan of this film I'm not going to say that this is one of my favorite guing Nino films I do have some issues with this film but it did deliver what I wanted from this movie which was a worldclass performance from Daniel Craig while the movie is is a bit mixed I can say that he absolutely shines in this I saw this film just a few hours ago but immediately after I left I already felt like I needed a second viewing of it I kind of shot myself in the foot by saying on Twitter that I was going to get more view for queer up on the same day that I saw it because queer really is one of those movies that you need some time to digest it okay there is a a lot to unpack with this film honestly if you read or watch 10 different reviews of queer today you're probably going to get 10 different interpret ations from all the critics that have reviewed it it really is one of those films where you can watch it like a dozen times and each time you watch it you'll get something new from it cuz this is a film with layers upon layers of meaning okay there is so many different ways to read this film so yeah bear in mind that I am just one guy who hasn't read the book and hasn't had that much time to process everything that he just watched a few hours ago but I'm going to do my best to tell you what I thought it was about set in Mexico City during the early 1950s queer follows a gay American exper called William Lee who's playing this film by Daniel Craig and his hopeless Pursuit for love and companionship Lee becomes infatuated with a younger man called Eugene alleron played in this film by Drew starky I would say that the first two-thirds of this film are pretty conventional it's a boy meets boys story it explores the relationship between Lee and Eugene which feels like an unrequited situation it feels like Lee is far more invested in the relationship than Eugene is and the first two-thirds also showers Lee's struggle with opioid addiction okay he's a heroin addict if anything I would say the first two chapters of this film are really a star vehicle for Daniel Craig to show us just exactly what he's made of like Daniel Craig's performance in this is just phenomenal he really throws himself into it 110% however as we progress into the third chapter of the film this is where things start to get a little bit more unorthodox surreal and even a little bit experimental William invites Eugene on a trip to South America for what seems like a holiday at first but it's actually a quest for something much deeper you see William is looking for a substance known as yahi and you guys might know it as awasa it's a psychedelic substance which is found typically on tree bark or vines in the jungle and Lee believes that yahi has the capacity to open up one's minds and get this has telepathic properties yes sorry I hear myself saying out loud it does sound so weird saying it out loud yeah I did warn you the third act does get very weird and I can totally understand why not every audience member will appreciate this random change in Direction in the last third because yeah you've spent a good hour and a bit like watching what feels like a conventional drama about a self-destructive gay man for to then shift into this sort of like odd Indiana Joneses Journey where he is literally like chopping Vines Through the Jungle with a machete in hand encountering poisonous vipers yeah this is all stuff that happens in the movie so you can find this yahi specialist called Dr CS who's playing this fil by an almost most unrecognizable Leslie Manville like I said there is a lot going on in this film okay it is the type of film that requires multiple viewings in order to get a proper grasp of the themes and ideas that it's exploring but this is how I read the film okay fundamentally I think this is a story about human connection because William Lee is a lonely self-loathing man rejected by his own country just for being gay and he's internalize that hatred because he says he comes from a long line of self-proclaimed perverts okay and and he's a boozer he's also a junkie and he's filling that void of loneliness and sorrow with sex booze and drugs and he's seeking out this yah substance Because he believes its telepathic properties will help him with his communication with others to make physical contact with others to forge a tangible connection guing Nino's films are always very sensory whether it's taste smell sound inquire there's a real emphasis on the sense of touch that fundamental desire to be connected to another person through physical touch so many significant moments happen in this film when Lee and Eugene touch something as simple as Eugene just popping his leg on top of Lee as they fall asleep is charged with so much passion in the early stages of the film we see Lee's desire to touch Eugene manifest visually it's almost like his soul is coming out of his body and we see an overlay of Lee touching Eugene it's almost like he's a ghost or something and there's a sex scene later on in the film where Lee is high as a kite on drugs and you can see their bodies arriving together in the sweet sweet Agony of sex and their bodies kind of like merge meld and melt together to quote the spice skills when two become one this is another guing Nino film which is just dripping in sensuality okay nobody does desire it in film like gu Nino does so that's how I read the film as a lonely man's desire and hunger for intimacy and connection when you've seen qu do let me know your interpretations of the film in that comment section down below I will say in an odd way challenges and we do share that similar idea of communication because challenges was all about semiotics subtext reading between the lines okay that is all in a sense a form of communication and in queer Lee is seeking out the yah Because he believes it will help him to telepathically communicate with others okay and what is telepathy if not communicating but without talking this applies to all of guano's films but the way he shoots his scenes there's always so much more going on than what you can see on just the surface and queer is exception okay there is a lot of visual imagery going on in this film uh the game of chess is something that's often brought up throughout the film and chess is a very strategic game and in the beginning of the film we watch Lee seduce a young man at a bar and the way that guino shoots the scene is almost like a game of chess because Lee brings over a shot full of tequila to offer this young man that he wants to have sex with and the way that they move the shot glass back and forth between the two of them it's like they're playing chess across the table okay it's moves and counter moves until Lee gets that's his Checkmate even the scene where Lee and Eugene meet for the first time is loaded with symbolic tension because it's literally them locking eyes across each other in slowmo as a literal fight is taking place on the street yeah fights yeah sub text so yeah well I know the third Act of this film will lose a lot of people I still really did appreciate the film overall and the risks that guino is taken and how much visual imagery he brings to this film yeah what else is good about this film well quing you know call in his a team for queer cuz you've got a lot of returning Talent from Challengers all delivering excellent work here okay we've got Trent resar and attakus Ross doing the score again and you know how Challengers had the iconic uh doofy doofy Belling nightclub viby feel to the score well this is very very different okay it's still very erotically charged but it's more Melancholy and uh almost softer but like it's it's beautiful it just goes to show how versatile Trent adus Ross art as composers also the soundtrack choices were really good too say mcde prom his back doing more delectable cinematography there certain shots in this where I was just in awe of the cinematography like this one scene where Lee sits on a bench and it's through a bunch of like purpley petals or leaves on a tree it's absolutely stunning Jason Schwartzman was good in this he has this small role as another queer friend of Le called Joe and he's kind of this hapless gay uh having the worst luck with the many sleeps because they're always like Nick in his watch and wallet he was really good in this really funny also Leslie Manville as Dr CZ okay always the professional always bringing her a game she was so good in this again I didn't even recognize it was her until like five minutes into her scene the woman is a chameleon okay she disappeared into this role that's another thing to mention the hair and makeup in this is really good as well that's probably an aspect that you had zero expectations for in a film like this but yeah the hair and makeup in this was fantastic especially on Leslie Manville and Jason schwarzman okay they really trans formed into those parts you got Leslie Manville with that massive forehead and hairline and then you've got Jason schwarzman who's been transformed into a bit of a pudgy chap also I adored the World building of queer like they really do bring Mexico City to life in this film like with the exterior shots on the street but also the production design of the Interior sets like Lee's apartment as well as um the ship aoy uh bar where they hang out and play chess and drink uh and also even the jungle but that's how good the production design in this film was okay I wasn't sure if they were actually shooting in a real jungle or not yeah the sets were fantastic just incredible work from Stefano basy as for negatives I do think this film is saying so much that there was too much for me to get on a first viewing okay I'm waiting for another YouTuber to do a video essay on this movie explaining all of it because there's bits of it I didn't get on the first time I still don't know what the symbolism of the centipedes was all about you think you know let me know in that comment section below also some of the editing was a little jarring in places and I think that just really comes down to the fact that I read read somewhere that this was originally like a three-hour film of Luca guos but they've you know trimmed it down to 25 so yeah if they've had to cut out a lot then it makes sense that some scene to scene transitions might feel a little bit jarring in places but yeah I did notice some eding choices that seemed I don't think they were intentional let's just say that also I'm just realizing I haven't really mentioned anything about Drew starky I'll say this okay he gives a lovely performance but I honestly would have liked a little bit more from his character because honestly he really is just like a passenger on board for the journey with Lee in this film like he's literally there along for the ride like he doesn't really have much to do other than just be there with him like he's just a companion and I kind of just wanted a little bit more from him I wanted to know what made him tick I wanted to know how queer exactly was he like it's sort of implied that he's not 100% you know gay but uh yeah I felt like I just wanted more from him and while the performance is good the character wasn't written to Great depth okie dokie shall we talk about its Oscar's chances so I went into queer thinking that this was going to be an Oscar's player and for the first two-thirds of the film I thought yes this does have a chance I thought maybe this could be like the prestige pick of the year you know like tar or something but as the film progressed into the third act and it got more and more obtuse and more weird it all of that just evaporated I was like this is not going to be a massive player of the Oscars honestly now that I've seen the movie I feel less confident about saying that Daniel Craig is going to be a lock for best actor I still think he can get into best actor but I don't think it's a guarantee anymore the polarizing nature of this film could damage his chances of getting his first Oscar nomination but I will say this he is absolutely worthy of getting that best actor nomination it is a phenomenal performance and for the first two-thirds of the film he is doing every sort of box checking thing that you kind of need to get nominated okay cuz for one he's playing he's a straight man playing a gay role okay he's a heroin addict okay the scenes where he's like detoxing where like he's he's writhing in agony and pain and yeah the physical side of his performance is fantastic he's doing an American accent okay and not one like he's doing in the knives out franchise okay this feels like a genuine like believable American accent he's got a lot of big speeches in this there's a lot of emotion on display but that third Act is where things start to get very weird and there's things in his performance which would be weird to some and no I'm not referring to the gay sex okay that was hot yeah all that weird unorthodox imagery that happens in the third act could be too offputting to some voters and in a year where best actor is actually looking pretty competitive that could be the difference between making the F for best actor and not I'm hoping that Daniel Craig is like the male equivalent of anade Aris in blonde or Christen Stewart in Spencer you know films that were polarizing not liked by everybody but everybody could see that the central performance in those films was a career highlight for the actor so they gave him a nomination anyway I'm hoping that's the case for Daniel Craig here because I do think he is deserving of that nomination I can see an outcome where Daniel Craig is the sole nomination for queer kind of like common Domingo in Rustin last year unless the tea leaves suggest otherwise that's probably how I'm predicting queer will do with Oscar nominations on Oscar's morning but I do think it is deserving for acknowledgement in other categories like production design cinematography score even hair and makeup or visual effects yep even visual effects those are all unlikely but not imposs possible and then there's categories where I don't think it has a chance like best picture direction or best adapted screenplay okay I think the film is going to be too divisive to get those nominations honestly now that I've seen the movie I think there is a likelihood that maybe cuz quea is going to be so polarizing it's actually going to throw Focus back onto guo's other film challenges and it might actually get more nominations there because that is the more accessible and Commercial guino film that came out this year plenty of people won't like queer but so many people love challenges but yeah I'm really Keen to see how the two Luca guino movies do at next year's Oscars what do you guys think what are you predicting for both queer and Challengers Oscar nomination wise let me know in that comment section down below all right then let's ask them three questions firstly would I watch this again yeah absolutely like I said this is a film that actually demands more viewings in order to understand it better so yeah I'll definitely be watching again at some point question two do I recommend it for you guys ooh God that's a tough one this film is not going to be for everybody if you're a fan fan of Daniel Craig then I would say it is worth watching for his performance But I'm warning you the film is a lot okay so he's great in a movie that I know not everyone's going to like but he is so good that it's worth checking out I think this is a film more for the cinfiles than the Casual movie go okay they I do recommend it but if you don't like bold unusual long movies then yeah this might not be for you and third question what score I'm going to give it out of 10 I had a really good time with qu okay I'm not going to say it's one of my favorite guing Nino films in fact I would say it's one of my least favorite of his works but even guing Nino on a bad day is still better than most yeah there was a lot about this film that I really liked particularly Daniel Craig's performance so I'm going to give queer a score of 6.5 out of 10 but as always guys it is just one bl's opinion I want to hear from you are you excited for queer have you seen it if you have what did you make of this film how does it rank for you in all guing n know movies whatever you have to say do let me know in that comment section down below if you guys have enjoyed this video and want more Oscar season content don't forget to click subscribe please help me reach my end of your goal of getting to 10,000 subscribers and if you want to stay up to date with all my Venice Film Festival coverage be sure to follow me on the socials you can find links to all these in that video description down below and as always thank you guys so much for watching for more things related to movies TV the Oscars and popcorn culture I'm Luke Airfield and I'll see you next time