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aheb2002 's review for:
Call Me By Your Name
by André Aciman
Ok, I must admit. I committed the first cardinal sin of literature, and I watched this movie a few months before I read the book. The book had been on my to-read list for months, but in a 3 am moment of catharsis, I bought the movie online - and I feel in love. The setting was so gorgeous, and the story so poignant, and the emotions so raw. It cemented its place on my top movie list, and I knew that I had to read the book. So, I finally did.
Oh, my god. This book changed my life.
The book was remarkably similar to the movie, and yet at the same time it was completely different. For all of the emotion that the movie held, all of Elio’s desires and Oliver’s late night confessions - this book amplifies them tenfold. Every page drips with gorgeous writing and poetic prose that makes you feel as if you were on the Italian Rivera maybe even more than the movie. But the element that surprised me the most - and moved me the most - was how much more complex Elio and Oliver’s relationship played out in text. As a 17 year old queer teen, I have been in his place. Exactly in his place. I saw myself in book Elio much more than movie Elio - his air of confidence was much less prominent, and his analyzation of every move that Oliver makes is something I am very guilty of.
Another difference I found interesting was the much larger emphasis on the homosexual nature of their relationship. And by larger, I mean any presence at all. The movie focused so much more on the idea that this was the story of two people falling completely in love. Wonderful and refreshing, sexuality isn’t important here. But the WAY that the book highlighted it was even more refreshing and relatable to every queer person - Elio’s constant questioning of “why does this feel so wrong and yet so right?” The shame he is displayed as feeling in the book is so real, and I have yet to read anything that captures it in the same light.
Finally, I want to remark on the ending, as broadly as I can without major spoilers. The ending’s complexity created so much more depth than the movie version, and I enjoyed it much more. All I can say is that, if you watched Call Me By Your Name and craved a sequel, don’t read whatever the heck Find Me is - just read this book, and you will be satisfied.
Oh, my god. This book changed my life.
The book was remarkably similar to the movie, and yet at the same time it was completely different. For all of the emotion that the movie held, all of Elio’s desires and Oliver’s late night confessions - this book amplifies them tenfold. Every page drips with gorgeous writing and poetic prose that makes you feel as if you were on the Italian Rivera maybe even more than the movie. But the element that surprised me the most - and moved me the most - was how much more complex Elio and Oliver’s relationship played out in text. As a 17 year old queer teen, I have been in his place. Exactly in his place. I saw myself in book Elio much more than movie Elio - his air of confidence was much less prominent, and his analyzation of every move that Oliver makes is something I am very guilty of.
Another difference I found interesting was the much larger emphasis on the homosexual nature of their relationship. And by larger, I mean any presence at all. The movie focused so much more on the idea that this was the story of two people falling completely in love. Wonderful and refreshing, sexuality isn’t important here. But the WAY that the book highlighted it was even more refreshing and relatable to every queer person - Elio’s constant questioning of “why does this feel so wrong and yet so right?” The shame he is displayed as feeling in the book is so real, and I have yet to read anything that captures it in the same light.
Finally, I want to remark on the ending, as broadly as I can without major spoilers. The ending’s complexity created so much more depth than the movie version, and I enjoyed it much more. All I can say is that, if you watched Call Me By Your Name and craved a sequel, don’t read whatever the heck Find Me is - just read this book, and you will be satisfied.