Wasn't sure if I'd enjoy this since I'm not really into tennis. I liked the time jumps, not confusing at all; you could fill in the gaps with educated guesses. I don't think I'd ever date an actress, not that I'd ever meet one lol, but throughout the movie, all I could think about was Tom Holland.
It's funny at times and I loved the dynamic between the two guys, the brotherhood essentially. At certain points, each character became unlikeable, yet I still found myself engrossed in their story. The scene with the injury was gruesome, even though I knew it was coming-the movie's free-flowing time jumps made me almost forget about it. Despite feeling longer than it actually is, it never felt dull. The use of music to heighten tension was superb, and the acting was spectacular. The movie just felt quite lively.
Essentially, it's a love triangle with layers of psychological complexity. The common thread among all three characters is their passion for tennis. Surprisingly, the film is also quite sensual; while there are more explicit scenes, I loved the subtler, innocent moments that still managed to be horny. The movie doesn't rely on graphic content for this; instead, it cleverly portrays the characters' obsession, I liked that these two guys were in completely enamored by zendaya, but at the same time the movie also shows how in love all three were with tennis as well. It's a unique way of making tennis seem horny without resorting to flooding us with a bunch of sex.
I like that it kept you guessing about the last match. But I really just wanted the action to get going at some point. Like it perfectly built tension and suspense for me, but then it kept on going. Maybe I'm just impatient lol. The 'middle of the racket' thing was nice though. It harked back to an earlier scene where Tashi said she didn't want to be a home-wrecker, hinting at deeper connections between Art and Patrick. The final scene brought everything full circle, making me realize that the movie's focus was more on the friendship between Art and Pat than on the love triangle. Tashi played a crucial role, but ultimately served as a catalyst for their bond.
It's a bit frustrating because the movie kinda feels abstract; we learn a lot about the characters, but there's still much left unseen. For example, like how did that bedroom scene impact the friendship/brotherhood between the two main characters? There are several scenes like this that leave me wanting more insight. It's like there's a facade of depth in the characters. While I liked the ease of following the time jumps, they also disrupt the tension at times. Also, clearer character motivations would have been helpful, as we're left to make educated guesses about why they act the way they do.
I have mixed feelings about the actual end though. Like the actual last shot. I feel like it's a great ending but I just can't put a finger on it. Like I'd like to see how they interacted afterwards, all three of them, without actually seeing it.
You don't have to dissect the movie to notice or feel things. It just feels like so much care was put into every scene visually, and done so in a way that it's noticeable to us watching. All the details. Reminds me of Past Lives as it's also a love triangle movie I've watched most recently.
I'm not the biggest fan of Luca Guadagnino, I've watched "Call Me By Your Name" and "Bones and All" and I didn't like them much. Both times going in with really high expectations because people loved them. As with all movies about sports I have no interest in, I was a bit unsure but some movies completely absorb you into it regardless of your interests. This movie does that.
The big thing I'd is that some stuff just aren't adequately explained. For instance, these characters clearly care about each other, yet they're so consistently mean. It's hinted at in the movie itself, and that's when I started questioning, thinking "If you love him, why do you hate him so much?" This is similar to why I've had reservations about Luca's previous films; it often feels like more emphasis is placed on visuals and direction than on exploring the characters. As I mentioned earlier regarding the bedroom scene, when stuff like that aren't followed up on, it leaves the movie feeling somewhat superficial to me, not as emotionally charged as you'd think.
But with that said, this is my favorite out of all the movies I've seen of Luca Guadagnino. It's lively and fun, horny and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I think if you just go in and watch just as a movie it's fun, but when I sat down to think about it, it's not that deep. But I'd still recommend. I once said one of my life's tragedies is that I never loved Luca Guadagnino's films the way other people do and I wish I did; and now here's one of his I enjoyed.
It's funny at times and I loved the dynamic between the two guys, the brotherhood essentially. At certain points, each character became unlikeable, yet I still found myself engrossed in their story. The scene with the injury was gruesome, even though I knew it was coming-the movie's free-flowing time jumps made me almost forget about it. Despite feeling longer than it actually is, it never felt dull. The use of music to heighten tension was superb, and the acting was spectacular. The movie just felt quite lively.
Essentially, it's a love triangle with layers of psychological complexity. The common thread among all three characters is their passion for tennis. Surprisingly, the film is also quite sensual; while there are more explicit scenes, I loved the subtler, innocent moments that still managed to be horny. The movie doesn't rely on graphic content for this; instead, it cleverly portrays the characters' obsession, I liked that these two guys were in completely enamored by zendaya, but at the same time the movie also shows how in love all three were with tennis as well. It's a unique way of making tennis seem horny without resorting to flooding us with a bunch of sex.
I like that it kept you guessing about the last match. But I really just wanted the action to get going at some point. Like it perfectly built tension and suspense for me, but then it kept on going. Maybe I'm just impatient lol. The 'middle of the racket' thing was nice though. It harked back to an earlier scene where Tashi said she didn't want to be a home-wrecker, hinting at deeper connections between Art and Patrick. The final scene brought everything full circle, making me realize that the movie's focus was more on the friendship between Art and Pat than on the love triangle. Tashi played a crucial role, but ultimately served as a catalyst for their bond.
It's a bit frustrating because the movie kinda feels abstract; we learn a lot about the characters, but there's still much left unseen. For example, like how did that bedroom scene impact the friendship/brotherhood between the two main characters? There are several scenes like this that leave me wanting more insight. It's like there's a facade of depth in the characters. While I liked the ease of following the time jumps, they also disrupt the tension at times. Also, clearer character motivations would have been helpful, as we're left to make educated guesses about why they act the way they do.
I have mixed feelings about the actual end though. Like the actual last shot. I feel like it's a great ending but I just can't put a finger on it. Like I'd like to see how they interacted afterwards, all three of them, without actually seeing it.
You don't have to dissect the movie to notice or feel things. It just feels like so much care was put into every scene visually, and done so in a way that it's noticeable to us watching. All the details. Reminds me of Past Lives as it's also a love triangle movie I've watched most recently.
I'm not the biggest fan of Luca Guadagnino, I've watched "Call Me By Your Name" and "Bones and All" and I didn't like them much. Both times going in with really high expectations because people loved them. As with all movies about sports I have no interest in, I was a bit unsure but some movies completely absorb you into it regardless of your interests. This movie does that.
The big thing I'd is that some stuff just aren't adequately explained. For instance, these characters clearly care about each other, yet they're so consistently mean. It's hinted at in the movie itself, and that's when I started questioning, thinking "If you love him, why do you hate him so much?" This is similar to why I've had reservations about Luca's previous films; it often feels like more emphasis is placed on visuals and direction than on exploring the characters. As I mentioned earlier regarding the bedroom scene, when stuff like that aren't followed up on, it leaves the movie feeling somewhat superficial to me, not as emotionally charged as you'd think.
But with that said, this is my favorite out of all the movies I've seen of Luca Guadagnino. It's lively and fun, horny and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I think if you just go in and watch just as a movie it's fun, but when I sat down to think about it, it's not that deep. But I'd still recommend. I once said one of my life's tragedies is that I never loved Luca Guadagnino's films the way other people do and I wish I did; and now here's one of his I enjoyed.