Luca Guadagnino's Best Movies, Ranked
IndieWire's Ranking of Luca Guadagnino's Films Is as Follows:
- Call Me By Your Name (2017)� Textured, immersive, and heartbreaking, Guadagnino's breakout hit and queer romantic drama is iconic and rightfully so. Beautifully acted by Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer and featuring one of the most breathtaking final acts in modern cinema, "Call Me By Your Name" is Guadagnino's most emotionally complex and rewarding film.
- Challengers (2022) Sexiness is a vibe in Guadagnino's sweaty, sensual tennis drama, and the director amps up the sexual tension without ever delivering an actual sex scene. Beautifully shot and boasting strong performances from a trio of attractive leads, "Challengers" is a joyous ode to desire and one of the most pleasurable adult dramas in recent memory.
- A Bigger Splash (2015) Beautifully acted, richly sexual, and surprisingly violent, "A Bigger Splash" is a sizzling romance about a quartet of acquaintances vacationing in an Italian villa. Tilda Swinton, Matthias Schoenaerts, Ralph Fiennes, and Dakota Johnson have maybe never been more attractive than they are here, exchanging lustful glances and petty squabbles alike.
- I Am Love (2009) Guadagnino's weakest effort is still a worthwhile watch, thanks to the always-great Tilda Swinton as a woman who risks her marriage for an affair with a chef. The affair often leans toward melodrama that's a bit too suffocating for the film's own good, but Swinton's moving performance gives the story of a woman caught between tradition and desire real emotion.
- Suspiria (2018) Remaking a classic horror movie is a tall order, but Guadagnino's take on Dario Argento's landmark film is visually distinct and gratifyingly different. Stripping the original of its lurid colors in favor of a starker, colder look, Guadagnino's "Suspiria" is a decidedly different take on the witchy giallo-influenced classic that still contains enough audacious imagery and scares to linger in the imagination.
- Bones and All (2022) Taylor Russell's performance as the enigmatic young cannibal at the center is enough to make this adaptation of Camille DeAngelis' novel worth watching. But overall, the film lacks the romanticism needed to make the love story between two young cannibals traveling the United States worthwhile.
About the Director
Italian director Luca Guadagnino is notorious for overpromising and under-delivering on his ambitious projects, but he has recently been quite productive. His visually stunning and sexually charged films have made him one of the most iconic and discussed directors working today, even if some of his movies have struggled to match their aesthetic beauty with real emotion.