Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (2023)

[BluBonnet]

‘Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe’ Review: Should Best Friends Become Boyfriends?
Produced by Lin-Manuel Miranda and featuring Eva Longoria and Eugenio Derbez, this history-making portrait of two questioning West Texas teens will have many kids breathing a sign of recognition.

As someone who grew up in Texas back in the late 1980s, when “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe” takes place, I can assure you: The last thing any closeted Southern teen wants is to stand out. That must make it a special kind of torture to be named after thinkers one’s peers aren’t likely to read until college. Then again, it’s also a rather wonderful bonding opportunity for two boys who don’t fit in until they find one another — though it’ll take some figuring out to untangle what both of them want in a movie I dearly wish had existed several decades earlier.

Now’s as good a time as any for the world to discover Aristotle and Dante — not the Greek philosopher and the “Divine Comedy” author, but the title characters of Benjamin Alire Sáenz’s beloved YA novel. Imagine “Brokeback Mountain” by way of Judy Blume. Set in El Paso, the book poses a question a quarter-century ahead of its 1987 setting, but perfect for ours: Should best friends become boyfriends? In Sáenz’s two “Aristotle and Dante” novels, self-questioning teens found a frank, age-appropriate parable featuring two Mexican American boys who literally adore each other. But only Dante identifies as gay, so what do they do?

That’s just one of the many refreshingly mature real-world issues writer-director Aitch Alberto responded to when adapting “Aristotle and Dante” to the big screen, and she’s done an impressive job of carrying the complexity of the novel’s themes over to the movie, even if the ambitious helmer (who also happens to be trans) seems to cram too much in at times. Taking big risks on her first feature, Alberto picked a story in which underage boys buy beer, smoke weed and deal with serious anger management issues, where one character gets gay-bashed and another gets so violent he actually beats someone to death, and she insisted on keeping those elements in her script.

Like many an indie production, this one feels rough around the edges, with parts that drag (like the stretch Dante spends in Chicago) and others that demand the benefit of the doubt (such as casting comic star Eugenio Derbez as a closed-off dad with a bad case of PTSD). But it also boasts moments so magical, they seem destined to mark a generation of viewers lucky enough to have such a film. They deserve a corny-endearing romantic symbol like that of two Converse sneakers, one white, the other red, dangling from a low-hanging electric line, the way the cishets had John Cusack blasting Peter Gabriel from his boombox.

Alberto’s toughest challenge was finding two young actors who could do justice to the characters: boys who don’t relate to the horndogs in the locker room, boasting about their fantasies and conquests. Ari had to be simultaneously tough and vulnerable, at once stoical and charismatic enough for audiences to crush on him. Dante should be a free spirit, who talks a mile a minute and walks down the street barefoot, someone bound to thrive decades after the school bullies have peaked.

Alberto gambles on two unknowns, and it works. In Pelayo’s case, audiences can feel the effort the young actor is putting into his performance — a weakness that ultimately works to the role’s advantage, since Ari’s supposed to be stuck in his own head. Meanwhile, playing an English-speaking kid with questions about his Latino heritage, Gonzales is Dante, totally convincing as someone who’s simultaneously vulnerable and uninhibited, capable of asking his buddy about masturbation without tilting the movie into raunchy comedy territory. Their dynamic hinges on a tricky kind of chemistry, where audiences instantly get why they would be friends, but aren’t sure whether they should take it to the next level. (Alberto also found the perfect vintage Chevy pickup, a rusty red 1957 Cameo — what Ari calls “a real Mexican truck!”)

Does it really matter how close Alberto sticks to the source material? Truth be told, I never would have discovered Sáenz’s book had it not been for Alberto’s adaptation, which I’ve now seen three times. It’s not that the movie is so good that I couldn’t get enough (although I guarantee there will be audiences who stream it over and over, memorizing every line). It’s more that I couldn’t reconcile how this story that seemed so original and necessary, so packed with ideas no director had put on-screen before, could wind up feeling like the safe Nickelodeon version of itself.

Taking a page from “Call Me by Your Name,” the movie dares to be sexy, putting its 15-year-old characters in those skin-bearing crop-tops and shorts guys wore in ’80s horror movies like “Nightmare on Elm Street” and “Sleepaway Camp.” But it piles on a few too many after-school affirmational scenes in which parents assure their kids they have nothing to be ashamed of (Eva Longoria embodies Dante’s too-perfect mom, while Derbez plays Ari’s emotionally damaged dad). With the adults on their side, the kids’ conflict is not about resisting a homophobic world that, in 1987, was totally unequipped to deal with the AIDS crisis (referenced in background TV broadcasts). Dramatically speaking, their struggle is largely internal, as the two boys wrestle with themselves.

Seeing the movie compelled me to track down and read the novel (technically, I let Lin-Manuel Miranda read it to me, since the “Hamilton” creator loved Sáenz’s work so much, he recorded the audiobook … and then went on to produce Alberto’s film). Instantly, I got what he saw in it. Yes, it’s a love story, but it’s also an incredibly beautiful exploration of intersectionality and trying to make sense of one’s multidimensional identity — of growing up Latino in a bilingual household, of finding room to be sensitive in a society that celebrates machismo.

[Ravenclaw]

I loved this film, I really hope it gets a physical release down the line!

[CrossRhodes94]

Originally Posted by Ravenclaw

I loved this film, I really hope it gets a physical release down the line!

Is it likely not gonna have a physical release? How soon do you think it’ll be up on digital? I seen it today and absolutely loved it. Read the book a few years back and it’s a very good adaption.

[Jennifer Lawrence Fan]

I saw this on Friday. I was the only one there.

Sure this will be on digital in a few weeks.

[truecineaste]

Originally Posted by Jennifer Lawrence Fan

I was the only one there.

Ditto for me in the theater I saw it. Outstanding film!

[Jennifer Lawrence Fan]

After Thursday its leaving my theater after a week. So not to surprising

[SmittysGelato]

I came here wondering if we were gonna get a kickass adaptation of The Commedia. No such luck, lol.

[MazeRunner]

I was the only one in my theatre as well, and it’s also leaving that theatre this weekend.

The book is one of my favorites of all time, and although I enjoyed the film, I was still somewhat disappointed.

It’s definitely very low budget. The two young lead actors have amateur acting. They felt like two guys randomly hanging out every now and then, instead of two guys who slowly establish a connection.

Aristotle’s dad and Dante’s mom are the only two good actors in this. And all the adults probably filmed their scenes in a few days.

The two young leads don’t develop chemistry together until that scene in the truck but by then it’s way too late.

[Show spoiler]The emotional scenes were so flat. And they were so great in the book too. The hospital scene after Dante got jumped should’ve been more impactful. I kind of wish they’d shown the attack. The actor who played Aristotle barely showed emotion, and he barely showed emotion in the scene where his parents tell him they know he loves Dante. But he did a great job during the fight scene where he beats up that guy.

All the cute moments between Aristotle and Dante had to be cut for runtime but they could’ve made the movie 2 hours. Let their friendship build up. Instead it felt like one random scene after the other with no connection.

There’s also some very bad ADR probably to secure a PG-13 rating. But one of those words was “f*g” and the other two were “f*ck” and all were badly dubbed to “freak” and “freaking” and it was so obvious.

Overall I went in with too high of expectations. Maybe I’ll enjoy it more on repeat watches.

[MazeRunner]

Weekday numbers weren’t reported and it’s losing -430 theatres this weekend and will only be in 95.

Ouch.

[CrossRhodes94]

Honestly I wish I could say I was shocked. the film had next to no promotion. I don’t recall seeing any promotion for it at all and only knew to keep up with it since I read the book a few years back. Hopefully it does better on digital. I’ve seen more about Red White and Royal Blue. And it seemed to do pretty well on Amazon Prime.

[Ravenclaw]

Originally Posted by CrossRhodes94

Is it likely not gonna have a physical release? How soon do you think it’ll be up on digital? I seen it today and absolutely loved it. Read the book a few years back and it’s a very good adaption.

I’ve looked at Blue Fox Ent. Other films and they rarely have physical releases, even DVDs. Between that and the shoestring promotional campaign for the film, I don’t have high hopes. I won’t go down without fighting though, I’m gonna try and be so annoying to this production company to get a physical. I know Aitch visited the Criterion closet, maybe we could eventually get a Criterion release! (It would be good to diversify their collection anyway!).

For a digital release, I believe Aitch mentioned sometime around November!

[CrossRhodes94]

Looks like this will be out digitally on November 14th.

[MazeRunner]

Hopefully they release the original cut with the F words. Someone from a test screening said that was the cut they saw.

[Ravenclaw]

Originally Posted by MazeRunner

Hopefully they release the original cut with the F words. Someone from a test screening said that was the cut they saw.

I hope so too.

And if anyone else was wondering, I mentioned the need for a Blu-ray and got “stay tuned” in response from BlueFox’s official instagram!

[Ravenclaw]

Blu-ray and Dvd coming Feb 6 according to Aitch on Instagram. The digital film also reportedly has the original language back in, not the dubbed over harsh words.

[Dannyboy69]

According to BL Shippers Planet it is now available on demand (in the US) on various platforms. It should available on Blu-ray on February 6, 2024

[MazeRunner]

Glad that it’s getting a Blu-ray release but why is this not on vudu?

[Bubbles-11]

Originally Posted by Dannyboy69

According to BL Shippers Planet it is now available on demand (in the US) on various platforms. It should available on Blu-ray on February 6, 2024

I hope it's distributor also makes The Inventor (an animated film) available on Blu-ray pressed too

[sec127]

Originally Posted by MazeRunner

Glad that it’s getting a Blu-ray release but why is this not on vudu?

It’s now on Vudu!! I got it, it was an adorable film, so sweet. I really hope they make the sequel.

[MazeRunner]

Originally Posted by sec127

It’s now on Vudu!! I got it, it was an adorable film, so sweet. I really hope they make the sequel.

Yay