Johnson Thomas
A beautiful, bizarre take on modern belief systems
Film: Bugonia
Cast: Jesse Plemons, Aidan Delbis, Emma Stone, Alicia Silverstone, Stavros Halkias
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Rating: * * *
Runtime: 118 m
Yorgos Lanthimos latest,“Bugonia”, after the critical success of “Poor Things” and “Kinds of Kindness”, is a black comedy which is far more easily accessible than his earlier films. Even so, it has the typical Yorgos stamp all over it. Produced by Ari Aster, “Bugonia” is a radical, capricious adaptation of Jang Joon-hwan’s Korean film “Save the Green Planet!”
Bugonia is a daring attempt to mesh absurdist satire, sci-fi meanderings with psychological horror, as the film follows two men who kidnap a corporate leader they believe to be an alien. The premise may seem bizarre but in Yorgos-land it’s par for the course. An apiarist, Teddy (Jesse Plemons), and his impressionable cousin Donny (Aidan Delbis), both conspiracy theorists, kidnap Michelle Fuller (Emma Stone) the high-powered CEO of a major company, believing she’s an alien from the Andromeda species intent on destroying humanity. Fed to the brim by conspiracy podcasts and unverified online sources, the pair’s plan is to cleanse themselves of their “psychic compulsions.” Once they abduct her, they shave her head, strip her, cover her in lotion, and chain her to a bed. For the rest of the film we see Teddy interrogating her.
There’s relentless tension as the power dynamics between classes bubble up in the interrogation. The constantly shifting power play between the haves and the have-nots makes it all very unpredictable. The exchanges between the wealthy, well-educated, liberal, Michelle and the poor, paranoid, conspiracy-driven Teddy (and cousin), mirror the polarity we see in society today - between the progressive liberals and the extremist right wing. Like in the real world the extreme views seem to have the upper hand. Teddy’s rants about the corporate class’s domination, current generations techno enslavement and the poisoning of the natural world, hits home hard.
“Bugonia” is a well-structured film that provides enough shocks as it escalates to a unpredictable yet satisfying conclusion. The scripting is incisive. Yorgos envelopes us with a scathing critique of capitalism in which paranoia and falsehoods form familiar bedfellows. The pace picks up speed as perceptions get challenged and the drama intensifies. The dialogue hints at impalpable elements that eventually cause the run-of-play to turnaround on it’s head. The dialogue exchanges have an intensity that builds up tension as the movie reaches for an original and unique ending.
The choice of ending may not appeal to all but it makes ‘Bugonia’ an unique experience. It’s surprising enough to catch you unawares. It’s a bold audacious choice that makes the whole experience memorable. The three lead actors deliver well calibrated performances. They manage to capture feelings vividly enough for the audience to feel its burn. Emma Stone’s performance is nuanced, Jesse Plemons’ intensity makes the paranoia come alive and Aidan Delbis lends strong support to help keep the esoteric vein in check. The soundtrack lends the movie an orchestral crescendo that accentuates the drama in subtle increments. The production design makes the bizarre acceptable. The cinematography by Robbie Ryan is also quite stunning. Shot in 35mm the camerawork contributes majorly to the unease. Every frame is textured with shadow and light and it’s visually beautiful yet unsettling.
Bugonia goes against traditional story telling conventions. Yorgos’ offbeat mix of black humour, drama, horror and sci-fi is quite potent. The script plays-up modern inequalities while exploring current belief patterns in an oddly disturbing, darkly funny vein. The movie’s strangely absurd chaotic world feels familiar enough for the audience to participate in the emotional see-saw it wrings us through. Yorgos’ film might be peculiar but it’s also beguiling, funny and visually enrapturing.
Johnsont307@gmail.com
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