Bones and All—and grief and solitude. Behind a rugged surface and the metallic stench of blood, lies a complexity of themes so profound and layered as to give the film an almost metaphorical weight. After the screening I heard many sharing the unease of having found the story so vividly resonating despite its inhumanity. It is a very interesting point, although I am not quite sure I felt the same. I wouldn’t know how empathy could ever be disturbing. Its ravenous characters are forced into an even more excruciating kind of isolation by the unspeakable nature of their diversity but, in essence, they are just lonely souls desperate for someone to share the pain and help understand their mystery. Who, really, wouldn’t fit in this description, especially coming from a culture that is drenched with equally disquieting if less literal forms of cannibalism?
Responsible for portraying the American middle-earth in such a magnificent way is Arseni Khachaturan, a relatively emerging cinematographer that Luca Guadagnino had noticed at San Sebastian for his work on Dea Kulumbegashvili’s Beginning. Some of the supporting performances are no less than exhilarating too. I am thinking of the lady at the bus station counter played by Marcia Dangerfield and the creepy-friendly-greasy eater that Maren and Lee camp out with for an awkward night—a hardly recognisable Michael Stuhlbarg.
Some fancy costume choices would have to be considered slightly self-indulgent but who cares, they are great—and for one thing, they heavily contribute rooting the stunning aesthetics of the film. André Holland’s stylish Barbour-like coat on a pair of large denim trousers and beautiful Timberland work boots are a good example. Timothée Chalamet’s country-psychedelic shirts collection, coming from nowhere to somehow over-characterise his brilliant Lee, is of course another. Mark Rylance’s spectacular attire feels ironically quite natural, given the eccentric personality of the character.
As a minor detail, all the same intriguing, to me at least, the film is populated by many books. I could glimpse Joyce’s Dubliners on Maren’s dad’s table, The Lord of the Rings in her hands once or twice. I got to ask Luca Guadagnino about the hidden language behind it. ‘She reads Tolkien. She is like a hobbit on a journey through a fantastic land.’ Fair enough.
So what to say—yes, some left during the screening, but many, like me, gave a heartfelt applause as the end credits started to roll and Luca Guadagnino, in an all-black outfit and Prada high-top sneakers, limping from a sprained ankle, cautiously climbed on the stage to take the deserved praises, and all.