🎬 Queer

In 1950s Mexico City, William Lee (Daniel Craig), an exiled American expat in his late forties, lives a reclusive, routine-driven life among a small community of American expatriates and college students. Consumed by loneliness, alcohol, and heroin addiction, Lee’s life changes dramatically when he meets Eugene Allerton (Drew Starkey), a younger, enigmatic discharged navy serviceman. Becoming deeply infatuated, Lee pursues Eugene, convincing him to embark on a journey through the South American jungle in search of Yagé (Ayahuasca)—a mythical telepathic plant. The trip evolves into a surreal, hallucinatory odyssey that tests their complex connection and forces Lee to confront his deepest vulnerabilities and emotional isolation.

⭐ Film Evaluation & Ratings 📈

🟡 IMDb Rating: 7.1 / 10

🍅 Rotten Tomatoes: 77% Tomatometer (Critics)

🗣️ Critical Consensus: Premiering in main competition at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, Luca Guadagnino’s adaptation of William S. Burroughs' novella was praised for its bold visual ambition, hypnotic score, and Daniel Craig’s raw, career-defining lead performance. Critics widely acclaimed the film for transforming Burroughs' notorious prose into a deeply melancholic, feverish, and poetic meditation on unrequited desire and addiction.

Analysis & Key Themes

Unrequited Longing & Addiction: Examines how chemical dependence and romantic obsession intersect, framing Lee's addiction as an extension of his desperate need for emotional connection.

Exile & Alienation: Captures the displacement of post-war American expatriates living in Mexico City, navigating underground subcultures while isolated from societal norms.

Psychedelic Search for Intimacy: Uses the mythic quest for Yagé as a physical and psychological journey into the mind, blurring the boundaries between physical touch and spiritual telepathy.

Vulnerability in Aging: Highlights the emotional power imbalance between an aging, exposed man seeking absolute intimacy and a younger, detached object of affection.

Key Scene

The Ayahuasca Ceremony in South America: The climax of their expedition into the jungle, where Lee and Eugene take the hallucinogenic brew together. The sequence shifts into a breathtaking, surrealist visual movement where their bodies and minds metaphorically entwine, externalizing Lee's intense longing for complete psychological and physical unity.

💡 Did You Know?

Long-Awaited Adaptation: William S. Burroughs wrote the short novel Queer in the early 1950s (as a semi-autobiographical sequel to Junkie), but it remained unpublished until 1985 due to its explicit LGBTQ+ themes.

Challengers Reunion: The screenplay was written by Justin Kuritzkes, marking his second major collaboration with director Luca Guadagnino in 2024 following their hit tennis drama Challengers.

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross Score: The hypnotic, atmospheric original soundtrack was composed by Nine Inch Nails duo Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, blending mid-century ambient sounds with modern electronic rhythms.