If you have opened Netflix within the past week, you may have noticed a new film within the “trending” category. Directed by Joseph McGinty Nichol, also known as McG, and adapted from the novel written by Scott Westerfeld, “Uglies” follows a teenage girl named Tally (Joey King) navigating life in a dystopian society where everyone is considered an “Ugly” until they turn sixteen-years old, where they must undergo cosmetic surgery to be a “Pretty.”
Her forced procedure is delayed as Tally must search for her new friend, Shay (Brianne Tju), who runs away to an old civilization before their shared sixteenth birthday. The film utilizes simple cinematography and many cases of CGI to transform the book into a moving picture.
Throughout the movie, common shots such as close-ups, wide angles and long shots are successfully used to emphasize emotions and communicate plot lines. In the beginning, Tally is speaking to her childhood friend Peris (Chase Stokes) through a two-shot, where they share screen time equally. When the main character visits Peris after his surgery, however, the shift in their dynamic and his new, superficial personality is displayed through a series of over-the-shoulder shots rather than having them in the same frame.
In one instance, the director chose to implement a handheld camera to further express the tension between Tally and Shay when the latter chose to leave before her surgery. The acting throughout this movie was convincing and the cast did well portraying these troubled, fictional characters. Shay and Tally’s initial departure before the supporting character “ran away” felt sincere and conveyed convincing emotion.
One aspect, however, distracted the viewers from this fact on occasion: the editing or computer-generated imagery. The use of CGI throughout this movie is notable, for although they achieved the dystopian effect and successfully visualized fire as well as the characters flying, it felt underwhelming and lackluster at times. With the technology we have today, the editing is reminiscent of films from the early 2010s. More time could have been spent trying to perfect the CGI aspects of the movie, such as the hoverboarding scenes where the character’s movements momentarily appeared unnatural.
Otherwise, simple editing that proves effective is the color contrast implemented between the vibrant city where the Pretties live and the dull, uninteresting community the Uglies reside in. This contrast helped highlight the adolescents’ desires to move across the water, even if their current appearance and personality are at stake.
The prominent message throughout this narrative and motion picture revolves around beauty standards and society’s pressures to be “perfect.” Once you become “perfect” or “Pretty,” however, you may only be pleasant visually, while emotionally or mentally the opposite. These superficial Pretties forget their origin and sacrifice their true personality after getting major surgery and moving into a lively city.
When Peris turned sixteen, his looks changed greatly and Tally almost could not recognize him. Shay, who presents as masculine, eventually receives the surgery and alters her wardrobe and appearance drastically, wearing a silver party dress with heels and suddenly having long hair. This component could accentuate the stereotypes between men and women, and those present within society during this time.
While this structure and theme are overdone, the film ends with the opposite of breaking these unspoken rules: Tally has the surgery and is now a Pretty. It is clear they set this movie up for a sequel — which gives the producers, crew and editors time for potential improvement.
The 2024 film “Uglies” stresses internal beauty and standards within society — dystopian or not — throughout an action-packed adventure. Whether you are a fan of the novels or casually scrolling through Netflix out of boredom, this motion picture could be a solid choice for comedy or entertainment.
3/5 stars
rross1@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of @fuckcinephiles, X
