Bones and All Movie Review

This movie will be remembered by some, possibly hanging around for a while for its a new spin on an old tale. I can’t stress enough that it’s only for some. Based on the novel by Camille DeAngelis, it isn’t a horror movie. It lies somewhere between horror and a heavy drama where it may have trouble finding an audience where the book didn’t.

The story is fascinating, but without Mark Rylance making his few popup appearances as Sully, a friend to Maren and her kind, I’m not sure I would have bought into it quite as much. His Sully is creepy and incredibly intense. He helps sell the story and wrap it up with a bow. Without him, you have a couple of young, crazy adults running around eating people. Oh, yeah. Did I mention this is a movie about cannibalism? We start by getting to know Maren (Taylor Russell).

She lives with her father (André Holland), who loves her and takes good care of her from what we can tell. After he goes to sleep, Maren sneaks out to her friend’s house. All seems fine when, out of nowhere, Maren bites off the finger of said friend. She can’t control herself. She runs to her and dad and tells him what she did. He tells her that when the cops come, they need to be “Good and Gone.” They pack up and leave in great haste, something they’ve gotten down to a science. Whenever Maren’s bloodlust hits, something she’s ashamed of and sick of, they must hit the road before they’re found. 

Soon after the latest bolt out the door, she awakens to a recording made by her father. When she listens, it’s his voice explaining to her and us what’s going on now and what happened in the past. Some descriptions can get a bit gory. He tells her it’s time for her to be on her own. Is she ready?

While walking, she runs into a friendly named Sully smells her from a long way away. He asks when the last time was that she fed. She trusts him enough, (who else does she know?), so she follows him into a nearby house. She’s taught some of the rules of being an “eater.” One is “Don’t eat another eater.” They’re in the house to feed. The makeup job is well done because you might find yourself getting queasy. 

When she moves on from him to Lee, played by a thin and sickly-looking Timothée Chalamet, she realizes she doesn’t want to hurt anyone like these other eaters do. How she manages to fall in love with someone who does then is a puzzle to me. Lee is very feminine, which helps Maren with her mother issues. Looking for her comes into play now, too. Since her father isn’t an eater, guess who she got it from! During certain moments, the story will interest you. However, the movie felt slow even though a lot was going on. Slow enough that I’d suggest saving this for a cable watch. Please pay close attention to the music by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. It’s phenomenal!

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