Yorgos Lanthimos is back to give you more nightmares and make you laugh until it hurts. Just in time for Halloween, Lanthimos’ new film Bugonia is a terrifying, darkly hilarious satire, featuring two powerhouse performances from Emma Stone and Jesse Plemmons. Having worked together before, it’s no surprise these three were able to deliver a biting and wholly enjoyable descent into the deranged. In using material from an early 2000s South Korean dark comedy, Lanthimos has applied his typical warped sense of humor to create a modern parable of paranoia and shocking violence.
Bugonia is a word referring to an ancient Greek belief. One that states that bees could, hypothetically, be generated from a dead cow’s carcass. And that’s all I’ll say about that. The thing about this new film, is the less you know going into it- the better. I knew just about as much as the few trailers and teasers showed me. Even then, I was continuously stumped and shocked along the way. So, if you’re not used to Lanthimos’ style, or if you know nothing about the film, read on with caution.
Stone vs Plemmons
While there are basically four main characters in the film, this is clearly Emma Stone and Jesse Plemmons time to shine. The story is a constant shift in power dynamics, Stone being a powerful CEO kidnapped by the paranoid Teddy, played brilliantly by Plemmons. The two are equally set in their own world views, creating a constant tension throughout the runtime. Chained up in Teddy’s basement, Michelle must try and outwit Teddy, and his hapless accomplice, (his cousin), Don.
While Stone has complete control, mentally, of any scene she’s in, Teddy is a loose cannon. There is no saying what either character will do under pressure, giving the whole affair an increasingly suspenseful tone. There is a bomb under the table, and it could go off at any time.
As time goes by, and Teddy gets closer and closer to his goal, you’re constantly wondering who you can believe. The concept of the film is absurd. But its Plemmons and Stone who are able to make the whole thing so darn believable. Their conviction is thundering, balancing deep emotional beats with short bursts of humor. Neither are easy roles to inhabit, yet both do it as if they’ve been these characters for years.
A kooky plot, borrowed from South Korea
What some people may not know (and what I forgot about) is that Bugonia is a remake of the 2003 South Korean film Save the Green Planet! Both films follow the same plot. A young, troubled man kidnaps a CEO, believing them to be an alien from space sent to destroy the Earth. So, of course Yorgos Lanthimos would be interested in adapting such a gonzo premise- it suits him.
While I have not seen the original, from what I’ve read, Lanthimos has taken the story to make it distinctly his own. I’m sure the original is just as good, and I look forward to seeing it. There are certain story beats that will throw you for a loop however, so I’m glad I wasn’t spoiled one way or the other. No matter which version you watch first, you are sure to be in for a darkly comedic treat.
Darkly, darkly, comedic
The lengths through which Teddy goes to try and prove his theory are equally riotous and appalling. Lanthimos is constantly straddling the line between horror and humor, as he always does so well. There are as many heart-breaking sequences as there are knee-slapping instances. And you’re never sure exactly how you should be reacting. At a certain point the absurdity of it all boils over, as the audience I was with could not contain their laughter in the entire third act of the film. It’s a slow burn of wacky insanity, one that takes you by the throat continually.
Weird stuff, man
Like all of Lanthimos’ films, Bugonia is hard to stomach. From the eerie cinematography, to the creepy setting, its hard to get comfortable watching this one unfold. Neither Teddy nor Michelle are easy to root for, and at a certain point you won’t even be sure who you want to win this fight. The longer we sit with these messed up characters, the more we expect something bad to happen. And oh boy, do bad things start to happen- quickly and with dramatic pizazz.
The lovely thing about chamber pieces is that, usually, there are only so many ways they can go. What’s lovely about Lanthimos is that he tends to take his stories to anything but a logical conclusion.
Rounding out the cast with Aidan Delbis and Stavros Halkias, there is just enough “normal” human interaction the ground the film. Both characters prove to be as sad as our main players however, giving the film a heavy dose of pity. In their scenes in particular, it becomes hard to tell what is darkly funny, and what is just darkly sad. And this is what makes the ending that much more effective.
The end?
Despite the inherent melancholic and disturbing nature of the film, the whole thing is just a blast. We feel as though we may be in on something, one way or the other, as we hunker down with Teddy, Don, and Michelle. We are pulled back and forth in an exciting battle of wits, with an absurd sense of logic that threatens to give out at any moment. What Lanthimos does, at the end of the day, is gain our trust. As we follow him to the bitter end, the finale could be seen as bleak and hopeless. But for some strange reason, the whole process of getting there gave me the weirdest, and I mean weirdest, sense of hope.
Bugonia is now playing in theaters. Watch… if you dare!
