Cold Open · Essay · okt 16, 2025

Why Luca Guadagnino Is the Master of Desire

Few filmmakers translate longing into texture the way Luca Guadagnino does — the specific warmth of sunlight on skin, the tactility of a meal, the charge between people who haven't touched yet. With After the Hunt in cinemas, Laura Gommans and Tom Ooms trace how desire functions across Guadagnino's filmography: from the peach scene of Call Me by Your Name to the sensory overload of Challengers. Tom pushes back on the aestheticism; Laura revels in it. Between them, they locate exactly what Guadagnino is doing — and why it works.

By Laura Gommans

Film Journalist · Celebrating Cinema

Few filmmakers explore desire with as much curiosity and elegance as Luca Guadagnino. His cinema doesn’t just show yearning, it makes us feel it. With After the Hunt now in cinemas, Laura Gommans and Tom Ooms trace how the great films of desire have shaped Guadagnino’s work, from the charged glances to the slow unraveling of restraint.

But while Laura revels in the sensuality of his worlds, Tom questions the pretension that can often surround them, avoiding conflict. Together, they ask why cinema remains so obsessed with the ache of wanting, and where exactly the lines of attraction are drawn — both on screen and in ourselves.

Get tickets to ⁠After The Hunt⁠ @ LAB111

Subscribe to our podcast