Review: Bug (2006)

Bug is one of those films that is just going to split the audiences. Some people will find it to be an utter drool fest, a worthless exercise in paranoia that amounts to nothing worthwhile in the end. Others will be scared out of their minds and blown away by an ambiguous investigation into possible mental deterioration. I fall in the latter camp.

Bug is based on Tracey Letts' very successful off-Broadway play of the same name. It tells the story of Agnes White, a drug abusing bartender with a history of abuse and sorrow. One night, her friend R.C. introduces her to a strange young man named Peter Evans. Peter moves in with Agnes at the same time her ex-lover Jerry Gross gets released from prison and tries to rekindle their relationship. And then there were bugs. To reveal anymore of the plot would ruin the film, as it hinges on the unclear revelations and confusions it meticulously presents throughout the one hundred and two minute run time.

William Friedkin effortless presents his greatest film since The Exorcist. The use of light and composition is simply breathtaking. Because of the limits of a play-to-film adaptation, sets tend to feel stage like. Friedkin avoids this by filming most of the picture in a single apartment, but using every inch of the property to feel organic versus theatrical. The editing is top notch, dragging the film out to a crawl at some points, speeding it up to a sprint at other points.

What truly pulls the film together are the excellent performances. Ashley Judd is almost unrecognizable as Agnes White, instilling every frame of the film with a full portrayal of a desperate woman seeking out something better in life. Michael Shannon, reprising his stage role, proves his merit as a film actor with his portrayal of the truly bizarre Peter Evans. There is not one moment in the film where you don't believe that Peter Evans really believes everything he says. In smaller roles, Lynn Collins as R.C., Harry Connick Jr. as Jerry Gross, and Brian F. O'Byrne as Dr. Sweet provide a welcome sense of realism and sanity to the film.

Tracey Letts' bizarre writing plays surprisingly well on the big screen. The conceit of the audience not being able to see the bugs in Peter and Agnes' lives transitions well enough to the screen, to the point that any viewer who becomes invested in Agnes' story will not be distracted by no clear shot of the creatures. The dialogue is still wry and disturbing, and the settings still feel appropriate to the film.

Bug is one of those films that you need to see to begin to understand. And that's what makes it so great.