Bugonia
Bugonia
Starring Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Aidan Delbis, Stavros Halkias
Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
Michelle Fuller (Emma Stone) is the CEO of the pharmaceutical megacorporation Auxolith, and is polished, reserved, and highly articulate in public. She spends every day working out, taking vitamins, and coming off as a nice person while also maintaining a business facade (oftentimes talking about letting employees go home early if they want to, or stay if they have work to do, or if they want to stay, it'd be up to them). She is wealthy, influential, and famous - and also might be an alien, if you listen to crackpot conspiracy theorist cousins Teddy Gatz (Jesse Plemons) and Don (Aidan Delbis). One day, after extensive planning, the duo kidnap Michelle, shave her head, and hold her captive in their basement. They tell her that in three days the lunar eclipse will occur, and at that time the aliens from the Andromeda galaxy will arrive and take her. They want her to negotiate the aliens leaving their world in peace, but Michelle adamantly denies being an alien, even as Teddy's ire grows more explosive. Is Michelle really an alien, or are Teddy and Don's obsession a delusion of two men stuck in their own echo chamber who believe what they want to believe?
I was wondering what the word "Bugonia" meant, because I knew I heard it before, and it refers to an ancient Greek belief that bees were spontaneously generated from the carcass of a cow or bull. "Bugonia" the movie focuses on two beekeepers who believe a corporate CEO is an alien who is killing the honeybees, destroying communities and forcing humans into subservience. Many say that the extinction of the bees could bring about a catastrophic end (personally I don't see it, as I hate bees) and Teddy sees Michelle as the lead ruler of that alien race, so he sets out to serve as a peacemaker to make her and her kind leave humanity at peace. It's a fascinating movie that hits far too close to home for Americans, considering the volatile political climate that has separated people into feuding camps based on their own ideologies.
Lanthimos isn't a conventional director, so the question as to whether or not Michelle is actually an alien is one that could feasibly be asked, and could understandably go either way. With movies like "The Lobster," "Poor Things," and "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" under his belt, Lanthimos is no stranger to offering unique, visually appealing movies that delve into the deeper meanings of the human psyche and opens the world to unconventional patterns. We'd fully believe that Michelle is the leader of some alien race as much as we'd fully believe she's nothing more than a CEO that's being held captive by two crazy people. This makes the movie all the more delicious to see, watching for any clues that would hint at either outcome. We pay attention to each word said, each facial expression made, each mannerism performed with a fine tooth comb, immediately immersed in the film in a way that we wouldn't necessarily be under different direction.
Lanthimos, like many directors, also bring along people he's worked with before and has a good rapport with to make his visionary work come to vivid life. He worked with Jesse Plemons in "Kinds of Kindness" and has a long-standing working relationship with Emma Stone, directing her in "Kinds of Kindness," "The Favourite," and her Oscar-winning turn in "Poor Things," so in casting these two actors he already has created goodwill with he's able to pull out more from them than with newer actors he's never worked with. It doesn't hurt that both Plemons and Stone are accustomed to playing unique, offbeat characters that give their roles a more realistic feel. Jesse or Teddy, you'd believe either one is a manic loser loner who thinks he alone can save humanity. Emma or Michelle, you'd believe either is either an innocent CEO or an alien species.
Speaking of performances, the film is essentially relegated to three actors - Plemons, Stone, and Aidan Delbis, and all three give superior performances. Jesse Plemons balances crazy and sympathetic, as Teddy has gone through the ringer in his life, including an ailing mother, and only wants to save humanity in his own mind, even if his emotions are more volatile than benign. Aidan Delbis plays Teddy's autistic cousin Don, and the actor himself is autistic and proves that he can more than carry his own against the two acclaimed actors. You feel the most for Don, who's only doing this because Teddy is his only family he has, and can't see a world without him in it.
Then there's Emma Stone, who's risen to prominence from her tween comedies "Easy A" and "Superbad" to her acclaimed work in "Poor Things" and "La La Land" to stand on her own as one of this generation's best actresses (the fact that she also has two Oscars doesn't hurt either). She's fearless in her performance, as she allowed herself to have her head shaved on camera for the role (after shaving Lanthimos's head as well), stripping her attractive nature in favor of someone who could look like an alien with her head shaved (Anya Taylor-Joy would also be a suitable visual role, as both have this ethereal otherworldly beauty). She dominates the screen as Michelle, who speaks calmly and intellectually, but also has a feisty side that's undeniable.
Are we alone in the universe, or is there a race of aliens set to destroy humanity? "Bugonia" tries to answer that question with electric performances, fearless directing, and a fascinating character study on society as a whole and what we choose to believe are facts as opposed to the fictions we create in our own minds.
The Score: A+
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