BUGONIA
2025 | Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos | 118 Minutes
"I became a human being that I told myself I would never become."
2025 | Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos | 118 Minutes
"I became a human being that I told myself I would never become."
A desperate man kidnaps a powerful titan of industry, convinced that she is an alien from outer space secretly plotting to destroy the human race.
Adapted from Jang Joon-hwan's 2003 dark comedy Save the Green Planet!, Yorgos Lanthimos' fourth collaboration with star Emma Stone puts conspiracy theorists under a microscope for decidedly more chilling than hilarious effect. As depicted in the film through Lanthimos' signature deadpan style, more terrifying than any space alien is one deeply hurt human being's unflinching vindictive focus on pinning his misfortunes on others by way of spiraling headlong into magical thinking. The fear in Stone's eyes in her portrayal of the abducted CEO Michelle is palpable. Jesse Plemons' Teddy chooses to believe he is on a noble mission to free the world from the control of extraterrestrials by means of kidnapping, torture, murder, and even domestic terrorism, rather than confront and process his own trauma and grief. The narrative's final twist does not diminish the impact of the picture's social commentary through-line. If anything, Teddy's actions leading to the extinction of humankind in order to allow the planet to heal perfectly serves as one final gut-punch.
Lanthimos frames Bugonia in a claustrophobic 3:2 aspect ratio, immediately creating a consistent feeling of unease. The heated exchanges between Teddy and Michelle that make up a significant portion of the feature are all the more intense, as are the punctuating sudden bursts of violence. The high-contract color palette of the picture further heightens the extreme emotions primed to explode at any given moment.
Emma Stone makes for an excellent win-at-all-costs negotiator who never lets slip her true feelings despite dire peril. Jesse Plemons gives a heartbreakingly earnest performance as a man horrifyingly entrenched in rather baffling beliefs. Aidan Delbis also stands out as Teddy's sweet and loyal cousin Don delivering some of the funniest line readings of the picture.
There is a potent contemporary tragedy residing just under the surface of the seemingly quirky premise of Bugonia. The material is arguably a perfect match for dark comedy auteur Yorgos Lanthimos. While it is a rather adaptation of a film released two decades before its own debut, depicting acts of domestic terror committed by the unhinged disenfranchised hits harder now more than ever and, at times, more challenging to digest than ever.
FRAGMENTS
- Showing some real commitment to the role, Emma Stone actually shaved her head to play Michelle
- It almost goes without saying that Jesse Plemons is a natural when it comes to playing awkward and/or creepy white dudes
- Aidan Delbis, not a professionally trained actor, is also a natural
- The finale not only confirms that extraterrestrials from Andromeda are manipulating the human race but also that the Earth is indeed flat
