Yorgos Lanthimos has a reputation. He’s a filmmaker with a distinct style, dialect, and direction of projects. Bugonia is part of the rule and not the exception.
However, the film manages to still surprise. Surprise was the dominant emotion as I watched an early screening at the 61 Chicago International Film Festival.
It’s a bit more modern and grounded in reality than other Lanthimos movies. This may make it one of his more frightening projects.
Sometimes movies are supposed to take you far away from reality. Therefore, a film so realistic and compelling can become haunting.
Bugonia doesn’t go that far but it makes you ponder on the state of humanity and this world.
The film follows Teddy and Michelle. Teddy kidnaps Michelle because he believes that she is an alien. He wants her to take him to his planet.
Michelle denies these claims.
Teddy represents conspiracy theories who become radicalized and dangerous. Michelle represents these corporations and their leaders who exploit people for profit.
However, Bugonia tells a much more complex story than a bad CEO and a broken man. Teddy and Michelle are both protagonists and antagonists.
They create havoc and destruction but all for their own sense of right and wrong. As viewers, we watch them do inexplicable things and see the horror in both of their actions.
Michelle and Teddy feel justified in all their behaviors and beliefs. They’re terrifying.
We may not know real life Teddy and Michelle type characters, but we know they exist. This turns Bugonia into more of a horror movie than a comedy.
But, Lanthimos manages to find lots of humor in these characters and situations. If you see them as what they represent, it may make the film a harder pill to swallow.
If you embrace the absurdity of the situation, you can laugh and see it simply as entertaining. Seeing the depth and destruction in these characters — especially as they relate to real world people — adds so many layers to the film.
Bugonia presents commentary on society, the state of the world, humanity as a whole, and our innate desire to save and be saved.
It also offers a cynical view on this quest.
Bugonia is a movie that makes you laugh as you weep for a broken world that may be doomed. Mourn the reality of people like Michelle and Teddy, but also just enjoy a really fun film.
Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons are two of the greatest actors of their generation. They do not disappoint yet again.
Plemons stands out as this despicable man who you also sometimes sympathize with and may even root for at times. Teddy can be repulsive but he also feels very human.
Stone and Lanthimos have worked together on many projects together. She has played a variety of characters, but Michelle is one of her most tame in a Lanthimos film.
However, that doesn’t mean that Michelle isn’t a fascinating, complicated, and an enthralling character.
The 2026 award season already has some strong contenders. Therefore, it’s hard to say whether Bugonia will make an impact, but Plemons and Stone need to at least be a consideration for their performances.
Overall, Bugonia is one of Lanthimos’s easily digestible movies and his best. It’s thought provoking, fun, heartbreaking, and memorable. Additionally, Stone and Plemon’s performances leave an impact.
Bugonia is playing in theaters nationwide and available to rent or purchase on VOD.
