The name of Timothée Chalamet will obviously be one of the reasons that this new film of Luca Guadagnino will find a receptive audience of young females. A brooding, young Lothario of today’s Hollywood, he’s taken to offbeat and non-conventional roles in much the same manner as we saw in the early-career choices of such stars as Johnny Depp and Brad Pitt. And that Bones And All garnered a Best Direction prize for Guadagino in this year's Cannes Festival adds artistic gravitas to the film - Guadagnino also directed Chalamet in Call Me By Your Name.

Set in the US Midwest in the era of Reganomics, the film tackles disaffected youth, finding one’s identity, teenage angst, and that feeling of being different, through two individuals who have a taste for flesh… literally. The Canadian actress Taylor Russell as Maren, and Chalamet as Lee are our star-crossed protagonists/lovers. And if Twilight took on the same themes with the twist in the narrative being that our heroic pair were vampires; this time out, the twist is that the two are cannibals.

For much of the film, it’s actually Maren driving the narrative, abandoned by her father, she searches for her mother, and encounters like-minded individuals such as her, when it comes to appetite and cravings, on her quest. One memorable individual would be Sully (Mark Rylance), easily the creepiest and most reprehensible element of the film - kudos to Rylance for taking on this role and making it his own, in much the same way that Anthony Hopkins will forever be our Hannibal Lecter.

As for grisly, visceral scenes of cannibalism, one could easily form the opinion that if not for using names such as Guadagnino and Chalamet attached to the project, would we even be watching this film of B-horror movie, exploitation elements? To his credit, Guadagnino does elevate this road movie into something that aspires for more, and generally succeeds.

His Maren and Lee are sympathetic characters despite their affinity for flesh. This echoes what Terence Malick achieved in Badlands, or Arthur Penn in Bonnie & Clyde - making your duo of anti-heroes become characters that resonate, and we can follow with interest. Maren perpetually questions the morality of her actions and their ‘hunger’; while Lee is more defensive and surrenders to it. The title refers to a rite of passage that their kind has to undergo, to consume a victim, bones and all.

In a twisted parody of Romeo and Juliet, there’s a conclusion to the film that may make many openly weep or tear. And no spoilers here, but it’s this ending that also redeems much of what has transpired in the film, and made critics and audience consider the film something of a work of cinematic art. I’ll leave that to you to decide. It’s definitely not for the weak of heart or stomach, but there is a ‘something’ to how it’s been played out in the hands of a Director who has made depictions of unconventional love a specialty.