Bugonia Shoots for the Stars but Lands Somewhere in Orbit—A Movie Review
Bugonia knocked it into orbit, but fell back down to Earth in the end.
Bugonia was directed by Yorgos Lathimos, marking his fourth collaboration with Emma Stone. It stars Jesse Plemmons as a potentially paranoid schizophrenic who kidnaps Emma Stone, a successful CEO. This is in an attempt to get her to let him board her mothership and negotiate with the aliens he believes are ruining earth. Plemmons is convinced that Stone’s character is somehow involved.
The film is a remake of the 2003 South Korean film, Save the Green Planet!, though that piece contained much more horror.
The film does not feature many characters, with only Plemmons, Stone, and Aidan Deblis. Deblis plays Plemmon’s mentally challenged cousin, having no more than three scenes in the film, but each of these characters knock it out of the park. Stone switches back and forth from controlling CEO a helpless victim and Plemmons from a loving cousin to a violently unwell man and a diplomat for humans.
The film’s score is consistently peaceful and calm as we see Plemmons ride from his house to his job, but the music always abruptly ends when he gets home. Near the end of the film, we can feel each character’s fear and hope as the score swells. This was orchestrated by Jerskin Fendrix, which marks his third straight collaboration with Lathimos.
The film is beautifully shot, and the editing is superb as well. On a technical level, this film is nearly as good as it can get.
My main issue with this film is its ending. Without spoiling the film, I think that the ending somewhat invalidates the rest of the story. While it fits fine with the overall theme of the film, it makes rewatching it a lot worse. It doesn’t ruin it, but it will keep me from rewatching it.
Despite that, I still recommend this film for anyone looking for a black comedy thriller. I can see Plemmons and Stone receiving nominations for their performances.
