As you will know if you follow my reviews, I normally do short video reviews of movies, but in this case, I’m going to be sharing my views about Bones and Allin written form.
I have to preface my thoughts by saying that I walked out of the theatre about 30 minutes into the flick, which is something I haven’t done in years. Not having seen the entire movie, it is therefore somewhat unfair of me to judge it, but hey, I’m going to anyway.
The movie is billed as a ‘coming-of-age romantic cannibal road film.’ That description should basically give you all you need to know about this film. I didn’t watch it long enough to see the ‘romance,’ but I did watch it long enough to be bored, and also annoyed. The story begins with a young woman called Maren (Taylor Russell), trying to fit in with fellow teens, but then commits an unexpectedly violent act on one of her friends. Abandoned by her solo father, she meets up with a very creepy old cannibal, and pretty soon, we see him eating a recently deceased elderly woman. It was at that moment I left the cinema.
Now I’ve seen a lot of horror films, including the incredibly well made Silence of the Lambs, and while they aren’t my favourite genre, usually the ‘gore’ doesn’t disgust me because it’s surrounded by a clever script and/or good acting. Sometimes, as in the recent Halloween Ends, the violence is so over the top it’s amusing but not frightening. But what I saw of Bones and All seemed both too ridiculous, badly written, and frankly rather creepy. It was also rather dull. It lacked the tension and cleverness of movies such as the Black Phonewhich concentrated on the psychological aspects of murder. The gratuitous display of cannibalism was cheap.
I realise that walking out of a movie means I am in some ways doing it a disservice, but I wasnt enjoying it, and figured I really didnt want to watch another hour or so of people eating other people. To be fair, the film has received an award at the Venice International Film Festival this year, and it’s been lauded by many critics saying things such as: “a triumph,” “mesmerising,” “dark and dreamy,” and “romantic”.
You can call me old-fashioned, but I don’t find cannibalism at all romantic!
