Emma Stone’s Bugonia Is Officially the Most Disturbing Film Since Midsommar

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Forget Midsommar – Yorgos Lanthimos’s new film, Bugonia, is now the most unsettling and disturbing movie you can watch. Six years ago, Ari Aster’s Midsommar gained a lot of attention for its unique story, Florence Pugh’s powerful performance, and its graphic violence. The film, set in Sweden, centers on Dani and a group of outsiders who visit the Hårga, a seemingly welcoming ancestral community. But as they spend more time with the Hårga, it becomes clear their customs are far from normal.

Despite its intense and graphic violence, especially towards the end, Midsommar was a hit with both critics and audiences. Before the film came out, there was debate about whether it would receive an NC-17 or R rating, with the filmmakers hoping for the more lenient R rating to ensure wider viewership. For over five years, Midsommar‘s shocking imagery and extreme scenes have been a benchmark in horror. Now, with the release of Bugonia, director Yorgos Lanthimos seems poised to once again unsettle and disturb audiences, as he’s known for doing.

Bugonia Exemplifies How Absurdity Leads to Comedy

Although Bugonia is labeled a black comedy, it doesn’t aim to be laugh-out-loud funny. Right from the start, it’s obvious that Michelle’s kidnapping is a deeply serious event, and not something to be taken lightly.

Michelle is being held hostage by Teddy and his cousin, Don (Aidan Delbis). Don, who seems to think and behave differently, loyally does whatever Teddy tells him. However, Teddy is the truly dangerous one. He firmly believes Michelle isn’t human, but a key figure from the Andromeda galaxy, and insists she confess this within four days – a confession Michelle understandably refuses to make.

Things quickly escalate, and the story shifts from normal to completely bizarre. While Michelle’s shaved head is surprising at first, Teddy’s erratic behavior and increasingly strange beliefs push the boundaries of what feels real. For example, when Teddy tries to get Michelle to confess, he claims her ability to withstand pain proves she’s an empress from the Andromeda galaxy. By the time Michelle finally gives Teddy the confession he wants – admitting she’s an alien – it feels forced and over-the-top. The story she tells him about the Andromedans only adds to the unbelievable nature of it all, though Teddy readily accepts it.

Yorgos Lanthimos often explores strange and unsettling themes, so the oddness of Bugonia won’t be shocking to his fans. It’s not a traditionally funny movie; the relationship between Michelle and Teddy, particularly with Don involved, is serious and the tension is consistently high. However, if you simply accept the story as it is, the film’s humor comes from how utterly bizarre everything is. Teddy’s conspiracy theory, while seemingly logical within the movie’s world, is ultimately far-fetched. Both Teddy and Don are driven by their pasts, and the attempt to understand their actions in a reasonable way is actually quite ironic.

The Ending of Bugonia Is Unforgettably Uncomfortable

Despite being rescued from her kidnapping, Michelle’s situation doesn’t have a happy ending. She reveals she’s an Andromedan and arranges a meeting between Teddy and the aliens at a place called Auxolith. At Auxolith, she tells Teddy he can reach the Andromedans by going through her office closet. Before this, the idea that Teddy’s elaborate conspiracy theory could be real seemed impossible. Given Michelle’s surprising claim and the people Teddy has killed to support his beliefs, everything in the story suggests Michelle will be saved, while Teddy will likely be arrested.

Teddy’s arrival at Michelle’s closet doesn’t unfold as expected. Instead, a powerful force – described as a sudden impact followed by repeated jabs – overwhelms him. He’s killed when a bomb he’s wearing detonates, and Michelle is also hurt. She wakes up in an ambulance, but it quickly becomes clear she isn’t a victim needing rescue. Teddy’s seemingly outlandish conspiracy theory turns out to be true: Michelle uses her closet to travel to an Andromedan mothership, proving everything she told him was genuine. Declaring the experiment unsuccessful, Michelle then takes a single action that instantly wipes out the entire human race on Earth.

The endings of both Bugonia and [another work] are surprisingly difficult to watch. Viewers are invested in the main characters, Michelle and Dani, and want to see them succeed, but the choices they face – clinging to the past or embracing a new future – lead to deeply unsettling results that leave a lasting impact. Michelle’s swift decision to end humanity feels incredibly heavy, and she clearly struggles with the consequences. The final images of widespread death in Bugonia powerfully emphasize the immense weight of her actions.

The same holds true for Dani and her drastic actions – choosing to live with the Hårga commune and, tragically, sacrificing her boyfriend, Christian. While the film portrays Dani’s choices, her emotions, and the commune’s response as joyful, the audience is left feeling disturbed and unsettled.

Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone Make Movie Magic

Hollywood is full of actor-director pairings, but Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone have truly become a standout duo with their new film, Poor Things. This movie marks their sixth collaboration as a team, including four feature films. While it’s still early to say how Poor Things stacks up against their previous work, it’s already evident that their creative talents complement each other beautifully.

Though seemingly very different, particularly in age, Stone and Lanthimos share a remarkable dedication to original and unconventional filmmaking. Their willingness to take risks and forge their own path is increasingly rare in Hollywood.

Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone are celebrated for their work together, and their latest film, Poor Things, is no exception. Based on a 1992 novel by Alasdair Gray, the darkly comedic story centers on Bella Baxter (Stone), a woman who is revived after a suicide attempt. The film follows Bella as she navigates the world and begins to understand its challenges.

Bella experiences a significant shift in her perspective. Though the movie’s storyline is ridiculous and exaggerated, similar to Bugonia, Emma Stone’s acting is what truly makes it work. She deserved recognition for her performance.

If you enjoyed Bugonia and Poor Things, you’ll likely appreciate The Favourite, another darkly comedic and unusual film from the same director and starring Emma Stone. Stone plays Abigail Hill in this story, which also features Olivia Colman as Queen Anne and Rachel Weisz as the Duchess of Marlborough. The Favourite is loosely based on real historical figures and was nominated for ten Academy Awards.

How Do Bugonia and Save the Green Planet! Compare?

While Bugonia is a great film, it’s not entirely original. It’s actually an English-language remake of the 2003 South Korean movie Save the Green Planet! directed by Jang Joon-hwan. The two films share a very similar plot: in Save the Green Planet!, a man named Lee Byeong-gu kidnaps a businessman, much like the character Michelle is kidnapped in Bugonia. Just as Michelle in Bugonia suffered because of Kang Man-shik, Byeong-gu’s mother was harmed by Man-shik, which drives Byeong-gu to believe Man-shik is an alien and demand a confession.

Okay, so if you’ve seen Save the Green Planet!, the ending of Bugonia won’t completely throw you. They definitely travel down a similar road, though with a few twists. Like in Save the Green Planet!, the main character, Man-shik, turns out to be an alien, and Byeong-gu’s crazy theory? It was right all along! Sadly, just like Terry in the other film, Byeong-gu doesn’t get to stick around and enjoy being proven right. It’s a bit of a downer, but honestly, as a fan of these kinds of films, I was kind of expecting it.

To streamline the plot while sticking to his distinctive style,

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2025-11-01 23:09