Call Me by Your Name (2017 Film) Essay Questions

How is Mr. Perlman's area of study relevant to the themes of the film?

Mr. Perlman studies ancient sculpture and is an archaeologist. In Italy, he uncovers many statues and sculptures of the human form, particularly the male form. Thus, in many ways, he is studying the history of homosexual love, as many of the statues he looks at are celebrations of the male nude form and of love shared between two men. At one point, while looking at slides of statues with Oliver, Perlman analyzes the statue thus: "Muscles are firm, not a straight body in these statues. They're all curved, sometimes impossibly curved, and so nonchalant, hence their ageless ambiguity as if they're daring you to desire them." This analysis of the statue might easily be applied to Oliver's admiration of and attraction to Elio.

How do Elio and Oliver connect initially?

In the beginning of their acquaintanceship, Oliver and Elio do not quite know what to think of one another, or how to deal with their mutual attraction. In the early days of their courtship, they find it easiest to talk about intellectual and artistic matters. Oliver asks Elio about the music he is playing, lightly challenging his claims about the compositions. He asks Elio what he thinks of a sentence from his academic work, and they engage in light banter about intellectual matters. Thus, before their connection becomes physical or romantic, it is based on matters of the mind and questions of aesthetics.

Why is Elio so sad at the end of the film?

Oliver is Elio's first love, and not only that, but he is a homosexual object of desire, which makes his attraction and affection all the more complicated. After giving in to his feelings, Elio finds that the summer ends too soon and he and Oliver must say goodbye before he is quite ready. Returning home, he is comforted by his parents, and his father encourages him to feel all of his feelings about the situation rather than try and repress them. That winter, when he learns that Oliver is getting married, he pretends to be happy for his former lover, but he cannot help but feel crestfallen. We see Elio as he experiences his first heartbreak, a deep sense of loss of the love that he wanted so badly, but that slips away from him. While his parents are supportive of his feelings, Oliver confides in Elio over the phone that if his father ever knew about his homosexual desire, he would be sent to an institution. Thus, we see that love between the two men is impossible, and this is what so wounds Elio.

What is the role of nature in the film?

At one point, Perlman says, "Nature has cunning ways of finding our weakest spot." This is just a statement about life, but it also specifically applies to Oliver and Elio's desire for one another. They are both completely changed by their love for one another, and they find that their nature is an inevitable and intense magnetic pull between them. Guadagnino illuminates the theme of "nature"—both the nature that exists within one's psyche and the natural world itself—throughout the film. We often see striking images of nature, which serve as a backdrop for Elio and Oliver's affair.

What are the differences between the book and the film?

The film differs from the novel by André Aciman in several ways. For instance, while the book is narrated by Elio, retrospectively looking back on the affair, the film does not take his perspective. Guadagnino felt that that would give too much away. Additionally, the setting was changed, and there is no mention of the AIDS crisis.