"Bones and All" review: Surprisingly tender

 

“Bones and All,” 2022, directed by Luca Guadagnino

★★★★½

Director Luca Guadagnino is no stranger to the nauseating and obscene; his 2018 remake of the classic horror film “Suspiria” prompted mass walkouts at its initial screening at the Venice Film Festival, and even his famous coming of age romance “Call Me by Your Name” has its fair share of indelicacies. His latest, the equally tender and horrifying “Bones and All” is, like his others, a slow, uncomfortable burn, but is well-worth the patience necessary to endure it. Reserved performances, a resonant, lyrical score, and some excellent 35mm cinematography help “Bones and All” burgeon into an emotional and indelible piece of art.

The plot of the film revolves around two teenagers in the 1980s: Maren (Taylor Russell) and Lee (Timothée Chalamet), both supernaturally cursed with an unexplainable need to consume human flesh. On the run from police, other “eaters”, and their pasts, the story sees the romantic pair explore all parts of the American midwest on their quest for answers and survival. 

The unsettling subject matter is offset by the softness of the film's environments and sensitive film stock, emphasizing warm tones, high contrast, and low light in a way that resembles the comfort of a childhood bedroom or a campfire surrounded by friends. The lens often takes on an intentionally handheld and homemade appearance: the camera operator bounces behind the protagonists’ car on dirt roads as they travel, Guadagnino opts for inconsistent and fluctuating focus and longer takes over swift, more precise edits. The drab consumerism of flyover country serves as an unlikely but fitting backdrop that almost echoes more conventional coming-of-age period pieces. While the audience endures Maren and Lee’s violent affliction along with them, the visual style of the movie is there to comfort them, and cinematographer Arseni Khachaturan successfully envelopes the viewer into a world where cannibalism seems like a strangely erotic and woefully necessary reality. 

The resonance of “Bones” is of course also underpinned by its two leads, Russell and Chalamet, who, where the script lacks in depth, make up ground with enamored eye contact and stirring line deliveries. Likely the strongest performance, though, is Mark Rylance as the hauntingly creepy Sully, the recurring antagonist that serves as a material metaphor for the characters’ ugly histories. While understated, Rylance carries an aura of mystery with him that is easily one of the most memorably terrifying parts of the entire film. 

It would be heedless to review “Bones” without mentioning some of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ best film scoring to date, returning to their more minimalist acoustic roots to write sorrowful ballads that fit in with the post-punk songs by Joy Division and New Order that also appear on the soundtrack. The music truly soars at the film’s emotional climaxes, and it’s difficult to imagine the story being told without it.

“Bones and All” is certainly an acquired taste. It’s graphic and stomach-churning, but it bravely and successfully overcomes its vulgarity over the course of its runtime with a delicateness that even more ordinary films rarely achieve. Almost every piece of it is both ugly and engrossing, and any accolade it receives will likely be deserved.