Bones And All Review: A Bloody and Brilliant Story of a Young Love on the Run [Venice]

Guadagnino's latest film serves as a fascinating counterpoint to his previous collaboration with Chalamet, 2017's "Call Me By Your Name." populated by at least theoretically tolerant intellectuals, "Bones and All" explores the unexpected longing of the shadow of the Reaganite wreckage in Central America. After a titillated Maren devours a friend's finger at a sleepover, her single father (Andre Holland) forces her to uproot her life and hit the road. It's amidst the detritus of America's forgotten spaces that she begins to meet others who share her bloodlust.

18-year-old Maren's senses are still untrained, but she quickly discovers how other cannibals can simply sniff each other out. The radar tinkles first for Sully (Mark Rylance), a cunning cannibal who has learned to spot easy marks among the old and infirm. But her heart beats above all for Lee, a nimble young man who trades his tricks to make meals of his brands. Lee serves as a siren call for insecure people, especially men, who just need the slightest nudge to sate their basest instincts of anger or lust.

As Maren becomes just the last person entangled in Lee's alluring solicitude, she manages to slowly break down her protective defenses to see inside. The two kindred spirits hit the road together through a ramshackle landscape in search of their next meaty feast. These two outlaws with near-dysfunctioning sexual tension may recall "Bonnie & Clyde," but don't expect the thrill of crime and flesh to go together.

The couple inevitably returns to the comfort of their family. The bonding force between Maren and Lee isn't just love or lust; it is their search for validation and acceptance by their own blood relatives. The allure of the freewheeling road pales in comparison to their need for a home with another person who can see them for who and what they are – and accept them anyway. It's a struggle that should resonate with viewers of all food preferences.