The Man I Love
Memento Films | Release Date: TBA CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
78
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
ColliderTherese LacsonMay 21, 2026
There's no doubt that Sachs is a master when it comes to crafting a stirring narrative. From the script, which he penned with long-time collaborator Mauricio Zacharias, to the vivid cinematography by Josée Deshaies (who was also behind the camera on last year's Urchin), The Man I Love embraces the art of filmmaking to its highest degree. Read full review
90
VarietyOwen GleibermanMay 21, 2026
Ira Sachs’s The Man I Love is a stirringly offbeat drama, small and delicate and disarmingly precise, with a performance by Rami Malek that, if there’s any justice, should finally quiet down all the reviewers who’ve always been so snarky about him. Read full review
80
Screen DailyDave CalhounMay 21, 2026
The Man I Love doesn’t feel so much like a portrait of a time and place rather than something more essential and human: a portrait of a passionate and loving character caught in a final performance he didn’t ask for, and which he wishes would never end. Read full review
100
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyMay 21, 2026
Sachs has not made an AIDS movie we’ve seen a million times, largely because it’s not so much a movie about death as one about wringing every last drop out of life, whether it’s fuel for creativity, love or one last surge of passion and pleasure. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Alison WillmoreMay 21, 2026
Jimmy is a compulsively magnetic figure who keeps everyone at arm’s length, including the audience, and for a film that embodies a voluptuous sense of tragedy, that leaves it undeniably aloof. Read full review
83
The PlaylistGregory EllwoodMay 21, 2026
While Sachs’ vision is at the center of it all, this moment is also a stark reminder of Rami Malek’s considerable and we mean considerable talents. A gutsy and vulnerable version of the actor that has not graced anyone’s screens in at least a decade. Read full review
80
Next Best PictureCody DericksMay 21, 2026
It’s an honest, melancholy tale that pushes against the typical idea of the saintlike sufferer, instead portraying the central character as a credibly flawed individual. And just as he always does, Ira Sachs rejects stereotypes and expectations to deliver something that feels candidly close to life. Read full review
80
IONCINEMA.comNicholas BellMay 21, 2026
Despite displaying a reverence for queer personas and artifacts, this is the first time Sachs has directly recuperated elements of the AIDS crisis, and it serves like an homage for the countless gay men who lost their lives during their prime. Read full review
83
IndieWireRyan LattanzioMay 21, 2026
Sachs, co-writing the film per usual with Mauricio Zacharias, has a deep investment in the Manhattan arts scene of the period that pays off in terms of the drama’s immersiveness. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawMay 21, 2026
The Man I Love is an honestly intended and conceived movie, but that faintly baffling and strenuous lead performance sits uncomfortably. Read full review
67
The Film StageRory O'ConnorMay 21, 2026
The Man I Love is not the “musical” that promotional materials have suggested, but it’s more than worth seeing just the same. Read full review
80
Radio TimesJames MottramMay 21, 2026
Mashing together a heartfelt New York musical with an LGBTQ+ love story, Sachs cradles his cast warmly throughout, crafting a film that feels like a real throwback to his 1996 debut The Delta, in its honesty and integrity of characters on the margins. For sure, it represents the most provocative work of Malek’s career. Read full review
91
AwardsWatchErik AndersonMay 21, 2026
Malek is something of a wonder here, in a career best performance and the most adventurous thing he’s done since Mr. Robot. Read full review
95
TheWrapChase HutchinsonMay 20, 2026
In Sachs’ spectacular, shattering vision, which he co-wrote with his longtime collaborator Mauricio Zacharias, we witness the stories and the memories that we can only hope our own loved ones will tell of us when we’re gone. Read full review
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