Let me get straight to it: The newest film from writer-director Ira Sachs is shaping up to be my least favorite movie of 2025. I expect this will cause some disagreement, especially among those who like art films, particularly given its (unexplainable) five Independent Spirit Award nominations. Nevertheless, it’s hard to deny that this has become one of the most overpraised releases this year for several reasons. The film draws from a book with the same title by Linda Rosenkrantz, a close friend of Peter Hujar, a New York photographer who didn't achieve much recognition during his lifetime (1934-1987) but has since become more well-known and been featured in several retrospective gallery exhibitions. In 1974, Rosenkrantz (Rebecca Hall) started a project where she asked her artist friends to write down everything that happened in a day, planning to then interview them about their accounts; Hujar (Ben Whishaw) was one of those she wanted to speak with. The book never materialized, but years later, a transcript of Rosenkrantz’s conversation with Hujar appeared, which served as the foundation for both the book and this film. Essentially, what we have here is a recording of that interview—a day-long discussion between the two friends, similar to “My Dinner with Andre” (1981). I realize that experimental films like this aren't for everyone (and it certainly isn’t for me), but I try to approach them openly, which feels like an obligation when it comes to this production. The conversation and its recording is shallow, unfocused, uninteresting, and above all, boring. It’s a collection of rambling thoughts, trivial details, surface-level talk, and blatant name dropping of their friends in the New York art scene, including Alan Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs, Fran Lebowitz, and Susan Sontag, among others. And unless you're familiar with any of these people, those references will probably mean nothing to you. The same goes for the subjects they discuss. From what I can see, the people behind this project have a personal fondness for its subject, which is fine, except that it doesn’t make for very compelling viewing; the content is too exclusive to be truly meaningful. Those “in the know” might find it fascinating, but most moviegoers likely won't. Fortunately, the film runs only 1 hour and 16 minutes (though it feels much longer), and that’s probably its sole redeeming quality. Sachs is usually a dependable filmmaker, but he really missed the mark with this one; unless you’re a dedicated fan of Hujar and his work, I suggest staying away.

Source on TMDB