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In this so called "new Greek wave" drama we follow the story of a young migrant that decides to surrogate for a wealthy couple. Problem is there is nothing new, or even Greek about this film. The shots are plain and stale. The acting is nowhere to be found and the film lacks soul. The actors tend to stare deep into each other's eyes for no particular reason expecting to raise tension and you can almost hear their sigh waiting for the director's "Cut" shout. The film is directed like linking the dots between objects that try hard to overshadow the lack of talent. The writing is dry and you get the feeling that no one had fun shooting this. Unnecessary is the best word to describe this film and it's high time Avranas found a new hobby cause apparently filming is not for everyone.

If you have ever stumbled upon an Insta story of a brunch table with a polo shirt lightly hanged on the brim of the chair, a visibly used Penguin edition of a Thomas Mann roman and a moleskin notebook full of pretentious calligraphy, all serving as props, welcome to Guadanino's world. The characters are moving advertisements of Polo and Lacoste who carry books they have never read as medals, cite snippets of poets they never got and surround themselves in a world of art to boost their shallow egos. Every character of this film is a poor copy of a real life personality: see the professor who is a more handsome, gay friendly version of Umberto Eco. Under all this stylization lies nothing. All the spontaneous action feels terribly staged and you can taste a fear in the air. The fear that if an actor misses one step of this mind numbing choreography, the whole world will crumble. Don't ask me to think highly of a director who dedicates a whole scene to advertise espresso.