Bugonia Movie Review

Bugonia (2025)

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Written by: Will Tracy (screenplay by), Jang Joon-hwan (based on the film 'Save the Green Planet!' written by)
Directed by: Yorgos Lanthimos
Starring: Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Aidan Delbis, Alicia Silverstone
Rated: R
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Plot
Two conspiracy-obsessed men kidnap the high-powered CEO of a major company, convinced that she is an alien intent on destroying planet Earth.

Verdict
This examines delusions and conspiracy theories as a captive tries to survive and find a way out. At first she denies the delusions of which she's accused before agreeing with her tormentors, hoping that cooperation will lead to release. With each scene the movie escalates as we learn the depth and breadth of this conspiracy theory and the victim unwittingly caught in the middle of it. This continually surprises and shocks. The conclusion only adds to this. It's disorienting and surprising, which is fitting, but it also takes this movie to a different level. How does truth, conspiracy, and imagination overlap? Few movies so effectively pull the rug out from under you.
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Review
Yorgos Lanthimos has directed, among other films, Poor Things which also starred Emma Stone, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, and The Lobster.

The title references a folk ritual where a cow is sacrificed, believing that bees would generate from the carcass as a symbol of creation.

Jesse Plemons plays Teddy

This opens with honey bee farmer Teddy (Jesse Plemons) telling his cousin Don (Aidan Delbis) how bees are dying and that he's discovered the cause. It's pharmaceutical companies, and Teddy zeroes in on CEO Michelle (Emma Stone). They're contrasted by showing their differing morning routines. There's an obvious class divide, and you wonder if that is part of Teddy's frustrations.

Teddy is a conspiracy believing crazy. He recruits Don to kidnap Michelle. It's a wild plan that's not going to solve anything. It's not the smoothest kidnapping as they aren't trained for such a thing. This movie is ridiculous to most people and only gives deranged people ideas. The pair shave Michelle's head, believing her hair can be used to communicate with her alien species. Emma Stone really did shave her head for this movie. Then they cover her in antihistamine cream to weaken her due to her alien nervous system.

Emma Stone plays Michelle

When Teddy points out how he knows she's an alien, he sounds bonkers. We see Michelle trying to reconcile what's going on. She's likely better equipped than most to confront intense situations as a CEO. Michelle quickly tries to exert her authority over them. She has a certain level of entitlement, but the situation is insane, though Michelle handles this well. Everything Teddy says makes him seem more delusional. How'd he arrive at these conclusions? She tries to talk her way out of this, but the hole keeps getting deeper. When that doesn't work she becomes defiant. Teddy is resolute in his beliefs and prone to violence.

There are hints in the movie that this isn't Teddy's first time kidnapping someone. I don't know how he hasn't been caught if that's true. He states that everyone denies being an alien at first before they confess. While he could be speaking in generalities, it seems more menacing than that.

Emma Stone plays Michelle

Michelle finally relents and agrees with Teddy in an attempt to get out of the situation. He uses electro-shock and is surprised at how high he turns it up before she reacts. What's scary is that indicates he's electrocuted people before. Surprisingly, Teddy apologizes to Michelle, stating with her level of pain tolerance she's obviously not administration but royalty. This movie continues to surprise. Teddy treats her better due to her rank. She's taken out of the basement and permitted on the main floor of his house as she tries to find common ground with him. I'd guess it's a game to engender trust. All of this results from the drug trial from Michelle's company that left Teddy's mother in a coma.

I never know what to expect. Michelle delivers a monologue that's bewildering. Could she be making it up? If so, how would she even come up with such a story? It very well could be a ploy to escape. She's feeding his delusions to create an opportunity. Where does this go? Michelle has Teddy convinced, and now he's following her lead. She's in control, but is she just buying time hoping the cops will get him? She's tried that once.

This movie is such a trip. I wonder where this is going as it just gets wilder. I never expected this. It's an ending that makes me question everything I've just seen. With many movies the conclusion can make or break it. This ending is such a surprise. It generates plenty of questions, and I don't even know what to think. It's such a fun ride.

I knew Alicia Silverstone appeared in the movie, but I didn't notice her. She was Teddy's mother.

SPOILERS

I never expected Teddy would be right that Michelle is indeed an alien. He seemed like a nut. Then you get these hints he's done this before, kidnapped people. That takes on a menacing tone. When Michelle delivers her monologue, you think she's buying in to escape but at the same time her story makes you wonder. Then again if I think she's an alien, I'm as crazy as Teddy. She leads Teddy back to her office, and I thought she was drawing it out, hoping someone would call the cops. What follows next is just insane. He's got a suicide vest and she claims to have a transporter in her office. Later when she jumps out of the ambulance, I figured she just might be an alien. It makes you wonder about the truth in conspiracy theories. Teddy is a nut, and yet he was right. You can't condone his methods as he murdered people to arrive to that conclusion. It wasn't lost on me that when Michelle ends the Earth experiment, the model is a "flat" Earth.