by Alice-Ginevra Micheli, Contributing Writer
Of all the actor/director partnerships that would have naturally emerged in the last decade, Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos’ is seemingly unexpected and unlikely. However, now, with five projects in their metaphorical quivers, and likely more on the way, it seems that they match each other other’s weird in a way that elevates each other’s craft, allowing them to experiment with form, storytelling techniques, and film presentation in a way that otherwise might not have been possible in a different timeline.
Bugonia is the latest in their partnership, and it feels more like the actual follow up to Poor Things in quality and tone than Kinds of Kindness was, which felt more like a side project on the way to this production.
Stone portrays the most corporate-fluent, LinkedIn present, high-powered CEO exec any person who has ever worked in a large organization might recognise, and shudder on recognition. However, her perfect world is soon turned upside down when she is kidnapped by two conspiracy theorists who are convinced that she is part of a dominating alien race who is planning on destroying Earth, and killing all of humanity.
On paper, this doesn’t seem like too strange of a plot summary. In the hands of any other creative team, this could have resulted in a tension-filled but ultimately ordinary film about corporate greed, and the conspiracy internet pipeline.
Instead, Lanthimos takes his unique brand of direction, and applies it across every facet, resulting in the audience experiencing a constant feeling of unease when it comes to where the film is going, and even in what the final outcome is. In another director’s hands, it would be quite safe to presume that this was going to be more of a psychological thriller, with the idea of aliens not even being a possibility. However, one would be forgiven for thinking otherwise if they are at all familiar with the past work of Stone and Lanthimos together.
In fact, this expectation — or lack thereof — is consistently played with throughout the film. From its very beginning, everything seems unreal, rehearsed, put together in a way that Lanthimos never truly lets one let go, making it an almost unbearable experience, but with the signature amount of outrageous entertainment to keep eyes glued to the screen.
The film is also greatly helped by the excellent performances delivered by Stone, and Jesse Plemons as the main antagonist. Both work well bouncing off each other, circling the threat they present, without ever fully settling in a particular archetype. These are two of our modern powerhouses of acting, so it’s no surprise that their shared scenes are a level of dynamite that threatens to spark a climactic outcome at any point.
Lanthimos also consistently plays with the established archetypes of nuance, and understanding of media literacy that many have pondered in recent years. There is never any clarity as to the direction, the moral, or what the ultimate goal of either side really is. Plemons’ character seems like he’s just a crazy conspiracy theorist, but there’s just enough there presented in his interactions with Stone that doesn’t let one rule him out completely. Then there’s Stone, who is seemingly the obvious victim in this whole scenario, but her corporate dialogue and almost extrinsic nature keep the audience from being able to fully sympathize with her plight, even when tied up, shaved, and covered in antihistamine cream to an almost excessive degree.
It’s a movie of constant checks and almost no balances. For fans of the Lanthimos x Stone era, this is going to be another for the history books. Absolutely insane in its conclusion, and yet as riveting as any of their other projects.
Overall, Bugonia is a wild ride, just like every other Lanthimos film. However, it’s also mesmerizing, magnetic, and a type of strange that any film student would love to sink their teeth into, and write many essays exploring.
Rating: High Side of Liked It
Bugonia is currently playing in theaters
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