Donot betray your inner truth to stay safe
Elio had a homosexual relationship with Oliver. His father came to know about it. Being a father Mr. Pearlman is giving a beautiful advice to his son as follows:
ELIO looks at his father, then drops his eyes to the floor.
PERLMAN (CONT’D)
Look –
you had a beautiful friendship.
Maybe more than a friendship. And I
envy you. In my place, my parents
would hope the whole thing goes
away, to pray that their sons land
on their feet. But
I am not such a parent. In your
place, if there is pain, nurse it.
And if there is a flame, don’t
snuff it out. Don’t be brutal with
it. We rip out so much of ourselves
to be cured of things faster, that
we go bankrupt by the age of thirty
and have less to offer each time we
start with someone new. But to make
yourself feel nothing so as not to
feel anything – what a waste!
ELIO is dumbstruck as he tries to take all this in.
PERLMAN (CONT’D)
Have I spoken out of turn?
ELIO shakes his head.
PERLMAN (CONT’D)
Then let me say one more thing. It
will clear the air. I may have come
close, but I never had what you two
had. Something always held me back
or stood in the way. How you live
your life is your business.
Remember, our hearts and our bodies
are given to us only once. And
before you know it, your heart is
worn out, and, as for your body,
there comes a point when no one
looks at it, much
less wants to
come near it. Right now there’s
sorrow. Pain. Don’t kill it and
with it the joy you’ve felt.
PERLMAN takes a breath.
PERLMAN (CONT’D)
We may never speak about this
again. But I hope you’ll never hold
it against me that we did. I will
have been a terrible father if, one
day, you’d want to speak to me and
felt that the door was shut, or not
sufficiently open.
(From Call me by your name)
whisperer 