It's too long, of course, and all of Guadagnino's worst impulses are indulged, but it's hard not to fall for something so stunningly beautiful, so exquisitely arch and so revoltingly gruesome.

Although the opening lacks any kind of punch (and I could have done without some of the subplot that contributes to the wildly unnecessary runtime), the final act is pure horror heaven: simultaneously deeply, viscerally disturbing and magnificently camp.