Luca Guadagnino's Call Me by Your Name isn't exactly about Hanukkah so much as it is about living life in the moment, as explored through a shockingly raw gay romance. However, one of the film's most important scenes is set during the holiday, and it's one that embraces the spirit of the festival in such a way that makes Call Me by Your Name one of the best Hanukkah movies around.
While Call Me by Your Name explores the love story between the young, capricious Elio (Timothée Chalamet) and hunky, illusive Oliver (Armie Hammer) in Italy, the two are not able to remain together forever. Towards the end of the film, Oliver returns to the United States, devastating Elio, who must remain in Italy. Several months after the lovers separate, Elio learns Oliver is engaged and walks into a dining room decorated for Hanukkah. Elio pauses in front of a menorah lit for the seventh night of Hanukkah before sitting in front of his family's fireplace and crying for almost three full minutes.
To understand just why Call Me by Your Name is such a good reflection of Hanukkah, it's important to understand the festival's origins. Also known as the Festival of Lights, Hanukkah celebrates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, which occurred when the Maccabees revolted against the Seleucid Empire. The story goes that when the Jewish people re-entered the temple and prepared for ceremonies, there was only enough oil left to light a lamp for one single night. However, a miracle occurred and the oil lasted for eight nights. Ultimately, one of the story's chief themes is that of endurance.
As Elio sits in front of the fire, tears pouring down his face, the pain he is in over Oliver is obvious. But what's incredible about this scene is that Elio's emotions begin to change as he sits in front of the fire. At first, he seems to be in agony, haunted by his sadness. Then a miraculous transformation occurs and he begins to smile. This moment seems to indicate Elio has endured through what he's suffered and, as his father suggests earlier in the film, grown from his grief. In this moment, Elio embodies that theme of endurance, leaving the movie on an uplifting note rather than one of grief.
Emotional endurance and belief in a brighter future are key to Hanukkah, and Call Me by Your Name really embodies those themes. In its last scene, Call Me by Your Name becomes inextricably bound up with Hanukkah, making it one of the best movies tied to the celebration.