Uglies (2024)

September 13, 2024 5:33 PM

In a futuristic dystopia with enforced beauty standards, a teen awaiting mandatory cosmetic surgery embarks on a journey to find her missing friend.

Starring Joey King, Laverne Cox, and Brianne Tju (among others). it's directed by McG and based on the books by Scott Westerfeld.

Streaming on Netflix.

posted by edencosmic (7 comments total)

I was too old for these books but I loved these books. But I think the Uglies trilogy definitely had some '00s vibes.

That doesn't mean they're bad. They were just saying something about the time in which they were written.

It's directed by McG so ... it's what it is. This does have the feel of "we needed to extend our option on this property." The CGI is ... well, I get it, but it's not great.

Joey King deserves better (also, in what world is she not gorgeous?).

I love Laverne Cox but having her play an evil doctor who manipulates teens' bodies just ... feels weird now. I don't blame her for taking this part (she's awesome) but ... uh.

This clearly set up that they'll do the next two parts, but I really don't think that will happen. For me, this was the exact goofy YA movie I expected.
posted by edencosmic at 5:39 PM on September 13 [1 favorite]

Looking forward to watching this. If nothing else, this release brought to my attention that there’s a second uglies trilogy that was released!
posted by WedgedPiano at 5:45 PM on September 13

So I needed something to distract me today (it's been a tough week) and whatever came up on netflix first, I pressed play. This was it.

I found it disappointing. Casting conventionally very attractive actors to play "uglies." The dialogue. The cgi. Really the only moment I thoroughly enjoyed was Laverne Cox scoffing at the reveal of the plan to get the missing element.

Fans of the book will probably enjoy it more but I'm not sure if people who aren't familiar with the source material are going to embrace it.
posted by miss-lapin at 4:39 PM on September 14 [1 favorite]

I enjoyed it for what it was, but I did read the original trilogy way back when it was released.
posted by WedgedPiano at 12:17 PM on September 15 [1 favorite]

Sounds a bit like a the Twilight Zone episode: Number 12 Looks Just Like You.
posted by sammyo at 3:56 PM on September 15 [3 favorites]

I've never read the book, but this was the aggressively dumbest movie I've seen this year, and in a long time. The burning flowers with a flamethrower as the 'ecologically responsible act', tearing up old rails to make into...whatever in their tiny agrarian society. The 'everyone works' and 'everyone eats' well somehow - the future elites have 'destroyed the earth' but the forestland is a brisk walk away. It was all just so...odd.
posted by The_Vegetables at 11:34 AM on September 16 [1 favorite]

I read the original Trilogy and the Adaptation made lots of Specific Choices, and majority of those choices were Stupid and Dumb.

Not just 'The Book Was better' - because this is a story that could be updated with better writing, BUT that the Netflix adaptation made choices that made the book world-building WORSE and far more ILLOGICAL.

Also the people adapting it are cowards because making the Protagonist A Lesbian and/or Bi (she's isn't in the books) would have strengthened the overall story and the stakes, but nooooooooo, can't have that.
posted by Faintdreams at 5:52 AM on September 17 [2 favorites]