Bones and All (2022) Review

Time: 131 minutes
Age Rating: Bloody violence & content that may disturb
Cast:
Taylor Russell as Maren Yearly
Timothée Chalamet as Lee
Michael Stuhlbarg as Jake
André Holland as Frank Yearly
Chloë Sevigny as Janelle Kerns
David Gordon Green as Brad
Jessica Harper as Barbara Kerns
Jake Horowitz as Lance
Mark Rylance as Sully
Director: Luca Guadagnino

Love blossoms between a young woman on the margins of society and a disenfranchised drifter as they embark on a 3,000-mile odyssey through the backroads of America. However, despite their best efforts, all roads lead back to their terrifying pasts and a final stand that will determine whether their love can survive their differences.

I’ve seen a few of Luca Guadagnino’s movies and I generally like them, mainly Suspiria and A Bigger Splash. I heard that his next movie would be a cannibal love story and star Timothee Chalamet, Taylor Russell, and Mark Rylance. I had a good feeling going in, skipping the trailers and just hearing vague things about it. Having seen it, I think Bones and All is one of my favourite movies of 2022.

Bones and All is a multigenre movie; it’s a romance, horror, roadtrip and coming of age story. At its core though, it is a love story, a unique one at that. There is a balance between all the elements, it’s deranged and disturbing as you’d expect with the film being about cannibals, yet its sincere and genuine. There is so much beauty in the movie considering its topic, and it manages to be tender and affecting. You get emotionally invested in these troubled characters (really the lead characters). I like the atmosphere and tone and very relaxed approach to the story. It is aimless, but that comes with it being a road trip movie. It is paced well over its 2 hours and 10 minutes runtime, and I never felt bored. If anything, there were characters and elements I wished we got to spend more time with.

The performances are really great. Taylor Russell and Timothee Chalamet are outstanding in the lead roles. Russell is the standout, she’s in almost every scene and the film is really her story as she is learning about herself. The two share such believable chemistry and deliver an endearing portrayal of young people in love (who happen to be cannibals). They convey their feelings about their lives, and they complement each other wonderfully. The relationship is complex and sweet, it really is the heart and soul of the movie. Mark Rylance is a scene stealer as a cannibal who has limited screentime, but has a notable role and is a memorable presence. He’s eerie yet fascinating to watch. In some ways I wish he was in the movie more but maybe he wouldn’t have been as effective. Still, I wished that he was a constant looming presence throughout. There’s a pretty gap between the first and second times that we see him. There are other actors like David Gordon Green, Michael Stuhlbarg and Chloe Sevigny who play their parts well and leave an impression despite their brief appearances.

The direction from Luca Guadagnino as expected is amazing. He really does well at capturing the 1980s Middle America time period and setting. The cinematography is gorgeous and makes great use of the different locations, especially with the landscapes. The editing is top notch, and the sound design is perfect. There isn’t a massive amount of gore and violence, but when it is there, it is well done. There is probably less of it than you’re expecting given the premise and is somewhat restrained, but it is nonetheless tense and uncomfortable when its present. Finally, the chilling and somber score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is outstanding and added so much.

Bones and All is a fantastic, riveting, brutal, unique, and beautifully made romantic horror film, with amazing performances, especially from Taylor Russell and Timothee Chalamet. Obviously if you’re not into horror at all and feel squeamish about watching a movie focussing on cannibals, it won’t be for you. Otherwise, I highly recommend it, it is one of my favourite movies of 2022.

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The Vast of Night (2020) Review

Time: 89 Minutes
Cast:
Sierra McCormick as Fay Crocker
Jake Horowitz as Everett Sloan
Director: Andrew Patterson

In the 1950s, two children (Sierra McCormick, Jake Horowitz) search for the source of a mysterious frequency that has descended on their town.

I heard a little bit about The Vast of Night from some film people, it’s a smaller indie sci-fi movie that was getting some attention. I checked it out myself and I am glad I saw it, it definitely deserves more attention.

The Vast of Night is a sci-fi movie for sure, but it’s not large scale, instead it is viewing something paranormal through the eyes of high schoolers in an emptied out town. The story was rather predictable (i.e. I knew generally which direction it was going in) and it’s a simple story that we’ve all seen before. However it is aware of its own overall simplicity, and instead of going large and focusing on large special effects, it aims at being smarter instead. It is for sure a slow burn throughout, but I was intrigued throughout. The movie has a snappy script, which has an engrossing story with clever ideas. It’s almost entirely told through dialogue, and it makes sense considering the budget, but also works narratively. There are some long monologues, but I found them quite intriguing. The movie is firmly set in the 50s, and is drenched in genre nostalgia. Although I haven’t watched the Twilight Zone, it is clearly paying homage to that, and you can tell that the filmmaker really has a love and passion for the genre. The Vast of Night is roughly 90 minutes long and that was a reasonably good length for the movie, it doesn’t overstay its welcome.

There’s not a huge cast, but the actors involved in the movie did well. The two leads in Sierra McCormick and Jake Horowitz are quite good in their parts, and they carry this story effectively. Their confident, quickly paced performances are convincing and sell the entire premise of the film. Extra credit for the actors for being to deliver large amounts of dialogue, sometimes in very long takes.

The direction is from Andrew Patterson, and it really was key to the movie’s success. It’s worth noting that the budget for this movie is $700,000, quite small. It’s pretty hard to fully realise your vision – especially with an ambitious sci-fi plot, but Patterson pulls it off. The Vast of Night is a confident debut and suggests that there are greater things to come from him. He really does capture things on a small budget and it really did work to the movie’s advantage. Instead of trying to be grand, the film builds its narrative upon itself impressively. The visual effects that are on screen are pretty good for what they were. The cinematography is great and really stands out quite a lot. I really like the look of the movie, there is added film grain, and a moody colour palette that both sets the mysterious tone as well as invoking the era of the 50s. The use of long takes are particularly impressive, especially when the camera moves from one place to another far away place. Large portions of the story are told through long, static takes where the camera sits and there’s very few cuts while the subject talks. There’s even one scene with Sierra McCormick’s character where she’s operating on a switchboard and transferring calls, and it sticks with that one ongoing shot for a very long time, and it’s riveting. There are aspects with the colour grading and lighting which could be improved, though I have a feeling that it comes as a result of the budget. The nostalgia is on full display here, the movie itself starts with a slow push into a television set, with a theme song reminiscent of the Twilight Zone theme, and pays homage to many of the great paranormal sci-fi films and TV.

The Vast of Night is a really good movie and quite a pleasant surprise. It is simple and doesn’t break new ground but its nonetheless impressive. The acting is good, it’s intriguing throughout and the direction is solid and benefitted from its indie and low budget approach. I’m interested to see what Andrew Patterson does next. Definitely watch it when you get a chance to, it’s worth a look.