Bones and All

 

Based on the novel by Camille DeAngelis, Bones and All is the story of two young lovers who embark on a road trip while dealing with the fact that they’re both cannibals. Directed by Luca Guadagnino and screenplay by David Kajganich, the film is a road film that follows two young people who deal with their cannibalistic urges while meeting other cannibals during their trip through the U.S. Starring Timothee Chalamet, Taylor Russell, Michael Stuhlbarg, Andre Holland, Chloe Sevigny, David Gordon Green, Jake Horowitz, Jessica Harper, and Mark Rylance. Bones and All is an intoxicating and harrowing film from Luca Guadagnino.

Set in the 1980s, the film revolves around a young woman who has cannibalistic urges as she travels from Maryland to Minnesota to find out about her mother where she meets a young man who is also revealed to be a cannibal as they go on the road to be away from their urges. It is a film that play into these two young people who both have this hunger to eat people but ponder if they’re the only ones while meeting others along the way as they realize they’re not alone but also live very complicated lives. David Kajganich’s screenplay largely follows Maren Yearly (Taylor Russell) who lives with her father Frank (Andre Holland) as he would lock her in her room until she sneaked out to attend a sleepover with some school friends where something bad happened as she and Frank flee their home in Virginia and relocate to Maryland where Frank has abandoned her though he left her some money, her birth certificate, and a tape recording explaining why he left and aspects about who she is. Upon seeing her birth certificate and the identity of her mother, she decides to travel to Minnesota to find her.

The first act is about Maren’s life and the constant need to relocate as she decides to go to Minnesota despite the little money she has as she would make a stop at Columbus, Ohio where she meets an old man named Sully (Mark Rylance) who is revealed to be a cannibal with some eccentric views as well as what he does to those he eats. It is a key moment in the first act that play into Maren identifying other cannibals through her smell as it is how she meets Lee (Timothee Chalamet) as they both go on the road after Lee kills a man for verbally abusing a woman at a market. The second act is about the two going on the road where they meet a couple of cannibals in Jake (Michael Stuhlbarg) and Brad (David Gordon Green) as the latter was not born a cannibal but chose to become one while the former has a unique view on cannibalism as well as what he likes to do that makes both Maren and Lee uncomfortable. Even as it play into the former searching for her mother and weather she’s alive or not as it leads to all sorts of questions for herself but also for Lee who would briefly return home as the third act is about them dealing with their hunger as well as the people they kill.

Luca Guadagnino’s direction is mesmerizing for not just capturing Middle America in its most rural and open spaces but also in blending many genres in a film that is romantic but also scary in its approach to horror. Shot on various locations in Ohio, Nebraska, Kentucky, and Michigan, Guadagnino creates a film that does feel like a road movie since it starts off at a small town in Virginia where Maren is playing piano at a school where she meets with a classmate in Sherry (Kendle Coffey) who asks her to be at her sleepover. Guadagnino’s usage of the wide shots add a lot of depth of field into the locations including the scenes in Nebraska during the third act as it play into this crossroads that both Lee and Maren are dealing with. Still, Guadagnino does maintain some intimacy in the way he has characters interact with one another with some unique close-ups including a major moment in the film’s second act where Maren meets an old woman in Barbara Kerns (Jessica Harper) who would provide Maren some answers but with great reluctance.

Guadagnino’s presentation to the idea of cannibalism is terrifying such as the moment in the sleepover as it is shocking but the image of Maren and Sully eating an old woman who just died as blood is all over both of them is really terrifying though it’s the aftermath that makes it more discomforting. Notably when Lee and Maren meet Jake and Brad at a park near a watering hole as they all drink beer is when things are scary. It is a moment in the second that sets the tone for the struggles that Lee and Maren have as well as going into extremes as a cannibal where Lee would do something involving a carnival worker named Lance (Jake Horowitz) where it would raise questions into who they are and what are they doing. The film’s third isn’t just about Maren’s encounter with someone at a mental hospital who doesn’t just provide answers about who Maren is but also why her father never told her about her mother. It also leads to a second encounter with Sully that is way more discomforting as it play into the dangers of cannibalism that has Maren wanting to lead a normal life with Lee in the hopes that they won’t hurt anyone ever again. Overall, Guadagnino crafts a haunting yet evocative about cannibal lovers going on the road through America while trying to get of their hunger for human flesh.

Cinematographer Arseni Khachaturan does incredible work with the film’s cinematography as it play into the naturalistic exteriors as well as the scenes at night with its emphasis on low-key lighting as it is a highlight of the film. Editor Marco Costa does excellent work with the editing as it has a few jump-cuts and some stylish cuts to play into the drama and suspense. Production designer Elliott Hostetter, along with art director Victoria Resendez plus set decorators Merissa Lombardo and Rebecca Steele, does brilliant work with the look of the house Sully stayed in as well as some of the places Lee and Maren go to including the home of a man Lee killed that is filled with a lot of records. Costume designer Giulia Piersanti does fantastic work with the costumes as it plays into a more casual look including the torn-up jeans that Lee wears along with some of the weirder clothes that Sully wears.

Makeup designer Mark Garbarino and hair designer Massimo Gattabrusi do terrific work with the look of the characters from the colorful look of Lee as well as the look of Sully with his long hair and collection of hair that he has. Visual effects supervisors Virginia Cefaly, Alessio Bertotti, and Filippo Robino do nice work with some of the film’s minimal visual effects that include one major scene involving a character. The sound work of Michele Gualdrini, Geoff Maxwell, and Jim Morgan is superb for its sound in capturing the atmosphere of the locations as well as the sound of bones crunching to add to the element of horror. The film’s music by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is phenomenal with its mixture of folk-based instrumentation with guitars by George Doering as it also has elements of ambient and classical bits as the score is among the highlights of the film while music supervisor Robin Urdang assembles a soundtrack that features an original song by Reznor and Ross with Mariqueen Maandig Reznor as well as contributions from Duran Duran, Joy Division, New Order, George Strait, Kiss, and other music ranging from country and pop from the 1980s.

The casting by Francine Maisler is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles from Kendle Coffey as a schoolmate of Maren in Sherry, Sean Bridgers as a man harassing a mother and her kids at a grocery store, Burgess Byrd as a nurse at a mental hospital, Max Solis as a mechanic late in the film in Nebraska, Anna Cobb as Lee’s younger sister Kayla who doesn’t know about Lee’s condition as she is a reason for why Lee is protective of her, Jake Horowitz as a carnival worker that Lee meets as a target where things go wrong, and Jessica Harper in a terrific one-scene performance as an old woman who gives Maren some answers about her mother. Chloe Sevigny is fantastic in her one-scene role as a woman Maren meets at a mental hospital who had eaten her own hands as she would provide Maren some answers through a letter. Andre Holland is excellent as Maren’s father Frank as a man who often worries about his daughter’s condition and the danger she brings where he would leave only to leave her a recorded tape message that allows her to figure things out for herself.

David Gordon Green is superb in his small role as Brad as a friend of Jake who had discovered the world of cannibalism and has embraced the lifestyle while Michael Stuhlbarg is amazing as Jake who is a born cannibal that has some very intriguing views as well as what he does with those he eats as it is a chilling performance. Mark Rylance is incredible as Sully as this old man who has a strong sense of smell as he teaches Maren about how to track other cannibals while is also someone who is extremely creepy in his methods and how he tracks other cannibals. Timothee Chalamet is phenomenal as Lee as a young cannibal who is often on the road as he accompanies Maren in her journey while he kills those who feel are terrible though he would eventually question his own methods while also reveal more about himself. Finally, there’s Taylor Russell in a tremendous performance as Maren Yearly as an 18-year old woman who is just trying to understand more about herself as she goes on the road while dealing with her hunger and such as Russell showcases a lot of angst, confusion, and depth into her performance as it is a true breakout performance for the young actress.

Bones and All is a magnificent film from Luca Guadagnino that features great performances from Taylor Russell, Timothee Chalamet, and Mark Rylance. Along with its supporting ensemble cast, blend of genres, gorgeous locations, ravishing visuals, and an intoxicating music score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. It is a film that isn’t afraid to play into the idea of cannibalism but it is also this riveting love story set in 1980s America where two people deal with themselves and their need to not bring havoc around people. In the end, Bones and All is an outstanding film from Luca Guadagnino.

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Luca Guadagnino Films: (The Protagonists) - (Tilda Swinton: The Love Factory) - (Mundo civilzado) - (Cuoco contadino) - (Melissa P.) - (The Love Factory No. 3 Pippo Delbono - Bisogna morire) – I Am Love - (Bertolucci on Bertolucci) – A Bigger Splash - Call Me By Your Name - Suspiria (2018 film) - The Staggering Girl - (Fiori, Fiori, Fiori) – (Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams) – (We Are Who We Are (2020 TV series)) – Challengers (2024 film) - (Queer) - (After the Hunt)

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The Vast of Night

 

Directed and edited by Andrew Patterson and written by Patterson and Craig W. Sanger, The Vast of Night is the story of a radio DJ and a switchboard operator who discover a mysterious audio frequency while working at small town in New Mexico. Based on the real life Kecksburg UFO incident of 1965 and the Foss Lake disappearances around that same time, the film is an exploration of two people working late at night during the late 1950s as they deal with something mysterious that they believe could involve alien lifeform. Starring Sierra McCormick and Jake Horowitz. The Vast of Night is an entrancing and riveting film from Andrew Patterson.

Set entirely in one night at small town in New Mexico in the late 1950s, the film revolves around a young radio dee-jay and a 16-year old switchboard operator who both discover a mysterious noise that keeps cutting off phone calls with some calling about something up in the sky. It is a film that play into an event in which these two young people are working one night with nearly everyone in town attending a high school basketball game with some who are at home watching what is happening while the two who are at work are trying to figure out the source of this strange audio frequency. The film’s screenplay by Andrew Patterson, under his James Montague pseudonym, and Craig W. Sanger is largely straightforward in its narrative as it takes place entirely in one night.

Yet, it is filled with a lot dialogue that play into the relationship between the radio deejay Everett (Jake Horowitz) and the young switchboard operator Fay (Sierra McCormick) as the latter is interested in what Everett does. Still, it would be Fay’s work on the switchboard that would have her discover this strange sound as she asks a few friends including someone who is watching over her baby sister as she turns to Everett who would use his broadcast to ask someone if they knew this noise that is being played. Among them is a man named Billy (voice of Bruce Davis) who raises a lot of questions into what he discovers as does an old lady in Mable Blanche (Gail Cronauer) who would tell them a story about her own encounters in the film’s third act.

Patterson’s direction is stylish as it is shot largely on location in Whitney, Texas as this small town in New Mexico though the film opens in a room with an old TV showcasing the story in bits of black-and-white as if it was set in the 1950s/1960s and eventually shifting into color when the story is presented. Patterson also uses some unique tracking shots and long shots that play into the atmosphere of the film as it has Everett walking into the school gym where a game is set as it goes on for minutes in one entire take as it play into the kind of person Everett as someone who talks a lot and get things done but he’s also full of himself. Even towards Fay who just got a new tape recorder as she is eager to show Everett as they walk outside of the gym as they both walk towards their work stations while the scene of Fay working the switchboard goes on for a few minutes in one take as she deals with what she is hearing as well as those she’s calling as it is presented in a medium shot. There is also some unique wide shots of the location including a tracking-wide shot where Patterson takes the camera from Fay’s switchboard room to Everett’s radio station.

There are some close-ups in the film as it play into the scene of Everett talking to Billy as he’s recording their conversation while the scene with Blanche is presented in a simple medium shot where Blanche gives this monologue that goes on for minutes in one entire take. It is a chilling scene mainly because of what Blanche is talking about as Patterson only cuts when he has the camera focus on Everett who is in a medium shot in the foreground with Fay in the background as Patterson, under the pseudonym of Junius Tully, does the editing where he allows his shots to linger on while playing up to the suspense in a monologue or something the characters would encounter. The film’s climax is definitely one of intrigue as it play into not just words that Blanche had been reciting but also what it would attract as its ending is a strange one yet it also adds so much more into what is out there. Overall, Patterson crafts a chilling yet ravishing film about a radio deejay and a switchboard operator trying to discover a mysterious audio frequency at a small town in New Mexico in the late 1950s.

Cinematographer Miguel I. Littin-Menz does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its emphasis on low-key lighting with the exception of the light inside the school gym as much of the lighting emphasis on low colors with some black-and-white for the scenes set in the TV. Production designer Adam Dietrich, with set decorator Tyler Corie and art director Jonathan Rudak, does excellent work with the look of the switchboard room that Fay works in as well as the radio station that Everett works at as it play into a look of the props to play into that period. Costume supervisor Jamie Reed does fantastic work with the costumes as it does play into the period of the times including the long dresses that young women wore at the time.

Visual effects supervisor Rodrigo Tomasso does superb work with the visual effects as it is largely elements of set dressing but also in some of the lighting that play into the suspense. Sound designers Johnny Marshall and David Rosenbald do phenomenal work with the sound in the way the audio frequency is presented and how discomforting is as well as how sound is presented on a location as it is a highlight of the film. The film’s music by Erick Alexander and Jared Bulmer is incredible for its low-key orchestral score that play into some soft moments while eventually becoming intense with its strings along with some eerie textures to add to the suspense while its music soundtrack feature pieces that play into the era of rock n’ roll at that time as it is the music that Everett plays as a lot of it is by Colton Turner.

The casting by Sally Allen and Toni Cobb Brock is great as it feature some notable small roles from Mark Banik and Cheyenne Barton as a couple Fay and Everett meet late in the film as they had witnessed something in the air, Gregory Peyton as a friend of Everett in Benny whom Everett was talking with early in the film, Brianna Beasley as the voice of Fay’s cousin Ethel who is watching over Fay’s baby sister, and Pam Dougherty in a trio of roles as a woman named Mrs. McBroom who goes to Everett early in the film about something in the gym as well as the voices of two characters calling Fay. Bruce Davis is fantastic as the voice of a man named Billy who recognizes the audio frequency as he reveals a lot into what he encountered and what the government is covering up. Gail Cronauer is excellent as Mable Blanche as an old woman who also recognized the audio frequency as she has a story of her own that is just as haunting as Billy’s as it play into what she encountered as a child and later on in life as it related to her own son.

Finally, there’s the duo of Jake Horowitz and Sierra McCormick in incredible performances in their respective roles as Everett and Fay. Horowitz’s performance is one full of wit but is also a skeptic when it comes to the stories he’s listening to while he is also someone that talks a lot and uses a different voice when he’s on the radio. McCormick’s performance is just as charming when she’s talking fast while is also someone who is more convinced about these stories as she is intrigued by what is happening. Horowitz and McCormick have great rapport together in the way they talk with one another with Horowitz being somewhat immature despite he’s older than McCormick’s character though she is someone more grounded in the way she acts towards humanity.

The Vast of Night is a phenomenal film from Andrew Patterson that features great performances from Jake Horowitz and Sierra McCormick. Along with its supporting cast, intoxicating visuals, a chilling music soundtrack, a simple yet compelling premise, and top-notch sound design. It is a film that uses a minimalist premise and setting while doing a lot with creating suspense and terror by doing so little. In the end, The Vast of Night is a sensational film from Andrew Patterson.

© thevoid99 2022