Film Review: PETER HUJAR’S DAY (2025): Ira Sachs’ Intriguing Two Character Film Showcases Ben Whishaw at His Best
Peter Hujar’s Day Review
Peter Hujar’s Day (2025) Film Review, a movie directed by Ira Sachs, written by Linda Rosenkranz and Ira Sachs and starring Ben Whishaw and Rebecca Hall.
One of the most acclaimed independent movies of the year is Peter Hujar’s Day which zeroes in on photographer Peter Hujar (Ben Whishaw has never been better)’s lengthy conversations with renowned writer/journalist Linda Rosenkrantz (Rebecca Hall). From the opening discussions of Elle magazine models to the closing scenes set by candlelight, the movie is very fascinating to watch even though it’s essentially just a movie about an interview. Set in the mid-1970’s, the film drops names like Allen Ginsberg as Hujar’s collaborators and gives the viewer a feel that they’re back in the time frame the movie presents. Hujar is portrayed as an every-day artist just looking to live his New York City lifestyle the best way he can.
Linda and Peter are very comfortable with one another. They were friends and the movie sheds light on how Hujar went about his daily endeavors as he expresses both his financial concerns about his art and his living expenses and raises more precise questions about the process of his artistry. How his work was done, where it was to be published and the cost of his meals are all topics interwoven into the movie in such a way that the movie feels truly authentic.
This picture is based on an unpublished interview that was discovered and it often feels like the information discussed may be a bit slight to the ordinary viewer. However, coming some 50 years after the interview took place, this film partially serves as a history lesson of the NYC art scene and those who were immersed in it. Anyone looking for more specific information on Peter Hujar’s career as a whole may want to research him more, but the movie gives us an overview of his daily endeavors during a specific time that is much more interesting to absorb than a basic Wikipedia article that goes into detail about his entire life history.
Hall has the more intimate role as the listener and Linda offers very little to the mix in terms of steering the conversation in a particular direction. She speaks with her outer-borough accent and basically just makes sure that she keeps Whishaw’s Peter talking non-stop as anyone who would have encountered such a gifted photographer at the time would do. Hall’s performance is not showy, but it is still impressive due to the physical mannerisms she displays on-screen that make us convinced she’s totally intrigued by almost everything her conversation with Peter brings to light. Hall plays off Whishaw with terrific precision that is proof she’s one of our most underappreciated actresses.
Whishaw strikes gold with his complex characterization of Peter, a man who is a hustler because of his trade and a gifted artist to boot. Those two things go hand in hand as Peter does what he can do to be sure his work is showcased properly and that he knows something about the behind-the-scenes process of the places that used his photography. Director Ira Sachs takes the action to a rooftop as Peter takes a cigarette break at one point. He’s the quintessential New York artist of yesteryear as portrayed by the gifted Whishaw who never misses a beat in terms of the quality of the performance here which captures the essence of Peter Hujar to a tee.
Of course, the viewer has to do a little work while watching and listening to this film. It takes an attentive ear to add things to the film that the dialogue hints at but doesn’t fully spell out for the audience. The intimate setting of the living room that the movie’s action mostly takes place in also gives the viewer a “fly on the wall” feeling and it’s almost as if we occasionally hear things that we shouldn’t be hearing. As Hujar expresses his thoughts and viewpoints quickly. there’s sometimes not much attention given by the man as to whether or not all the points he is trying to make truly connect. This interview could certainly use an edit, but the movie isn’t interested in a clear, concise view of the artist as much as a believable one. Artists are only human and have just as many daily concerns as everyone else. This film makes us fully aware of that.
Peter Hujar’s Day is, at its core, a short feature film about a day in the life of an artist. There isn’t a story line per se. Instead, Sachs’ movie is a well-conceived project that sometimes wears its ambitions on its sleeve. While thematically, the movie is all simply about an interview, the cinematography makes the viewer feel like one is right there in the apartment the movie takes place in, eavesdropping on a conversation between two friends. There are probably reasons this material hasn’t surfaced until now, but given the passage of time, the movie feels relevant and important to help one understand the New York City beat at a time when things were a bit different in many ways, but surprisingly, still the same, too, in other respects. This is a quality independent film that deserves to find an audience.
Rating: 7.5/10
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