Collage of Joey King as Tally in the Morpho screen and Chase Stokes as Peris after becoming a Special in Uglies
Netflix's Uglies has viewers wondering more about the Transformation, a mandatory and extreme cosmetic surgery that dominates the dystopian story's world. Based on the best-selling young adult book by Scott Westerfeld, Uglies features a cast of characters led by Tally Youngblood , a teenager on the cusp of receiving her long-awaited surgery.
Tally's best friend, Peris , is set to receive his surgery a few months before Tally, which means they'll be living in separate worlds until Tally's birthday. However, things don't go so smoothly for Tally. Missing Peris, Tally decides to sneak into the Pretties' beautiful city across the river. Although she manages to see Peris, Tally isn't happy with what she discovers. In addition to being a Pretty on the outside, Peris doesn't seem to value their long-standing friendship anymore. When Tally flees the Pretty compound, she runs into a fellow member of the Uglies, Shay , who tells Tally that the stories of a rebel named David living in a place called The Smoke, well outside Pretty society, are true. To Tally's surprise, Shay isn't interested in the Pretty surgery. Why Everyone Gets Their Pretty Surgery At Age 16 In Uglies The Teenagers In Uglies Undergo A Major Transformation In Order To Become Adults Netflix's Uglies adaptation opens with Tally explaining how society became what it is, and by extension, why the government mandates cosmetic surgery when its denizens turn 16 years old. According to Tally, many years earlier, the world's over-reliance on oil led to resource wars and societal collapse. Although the survivors tried to live peacefully — and even invented a sustainable and endless source of renewable energy — human nature got in the way. Despite their commonalities, humans couldn't resist forming nations, factions, and communities predicated on their differences. To combat this, the Transformation was developed. Much like the source material, the Uglies movie doesn't give a clear-cut reason as to why people undergo their surgery at the age of 16, specifically. It seems like an arbitrary number, with the important factor being that the surgery occurs before the city's residents become full-fledged adults. In many ways, the surgeries are treated as coming-of-age moments that usher the city's youngest members into adulthood. On the surface, the government, helmed by Dr. Cable , wants everyone to get their surgeries so that there's a sameness to them. Allegedly, conformity breeds happiness and peace. How Uglies' Transformation Works Tally Creates Morphos To Fantasize About Her Post-Surgery Look The Uglies movie doesn't delve too deeply into the ins-and-outs of the Transformation, but it does portray just how much Uglies fixate on becoming Pretties. Tally frequently uses a program to make Morphos, a rendering of what she plans to look like post-surgery. In the book, the program doubles one half of the user's face, creating a perfectly symmetrical visage. While the book's version of the surgery suggests an absolute uniformity, the movie indicates that soon-to-be-Pretties have some control over their features. For example, Tally wants to select her hair and eye color. What The Brain Lesions Do To People In Uglies' Surgery The Lesions Dull Pretties, Making Them Easier To Control Midway through the film, Tally learns more about the Uglies' surgery and the fact that it causes dangerous brain lesions in its subjects. After Shay runs away to join David and The Smoke, Cable tasks Tally with finding her friend, dangling Tally's long-awaited surgery like a carrot. Although Tally doesn't want to betray Shay, Peris and Cable convince Tally that she's saving Shay and that David's rebel group is constructing a weapon that will destroy the city and its way of life. Tally agrees to infiltrate David's group, but what she discovers is much different from what Cable suggested. Not only does The Smoke have a peaceful way of life, but its members reveal that the energy-harvesting orchid fields that power the city are actually leaching toxins into the earth and slowly killing the surrounding plant life. Tally is also shocked to learn that David was raised by his parents, Maddy and Az , who were both state-employed cosmetic surgeons. While Maddy sat on the Morphological Standards Committee, Az dedicated his time to making the surgeries safer. In a twist, Az reveals that the surgery causes a pattern of brain lesions to form. 7:00 Related Uglies Interview: Laverne Cox Embraces Her Villainous & "Ethically Questionable" Side In New Netflix Movie Laverne Cox details her inspiration for creating the villainous Dr. Cable in Neflix's Uglies before revealing what she hopes viewers take away. Maddy and Az go on to describe the lesions, noting that they form on the brain's frontal cortex. Essentially, the brain lesions make those who have undergone the Transformation unable to care or think. Instead, they're"sedated into a false sense of happiness." In other words, by dulling the Pretties, and erasing their individuality, Dr. Cable hopes to control them. The Side Effects & Changes From The Uglies Transformation Explained Cable's Desire To Control The Masses Is Why The Operations Really Happen Given how she was raised, Tally is astonished to learn that the Transformation comes with incredibly damaging side effects and changes. In its earliest iterations, the operation resulted in several deaths a year. However, seizures and brain damage were not out of the question either. It seems like Cable's current surgeries are somewhat less fatal; if people vanished, even Pretties might notice. Still, the brain lesions, which are the most disturbing fallout of all, aren't even side effects. Since the lesions erase individuality and agency, and control is the true purpose of the surgery, the lesions are the whole point. Uglies' "Cure" Explained: How David's Parents Plan To Heal The Transformation The Serum Is The Best Weapon Against Dr. Cable's Schemes Close As seen in the Uglies' ending, not all hope is lost when it comes to curing the Transformation. Maddy and Az, who previously underwent the cosmetic surgery themselves, were actually purposefully given cures so that they could become thinkers again. This would allow them to perform surgery, and make them safer, instead of becoming Cable's mindless soldiers. When they finally realized the dangers of Cable's large-scale plan, Maddy and Az fled the city, establishing the community in The Smoke. An antithesis to Dr. Cable's city, The Smoke is built on the principles of free thought and self-acceptance. The cure heals the brain lesions, restoring victims' sense of self, agency, and ability to think and feel. Since receiving the cure themselves, Maddy and Az have spent 20 years trying to replicate the formula. In essence, the cure heals the brain lesions, restoring victims' sense of self, agency, and ability to think and feel. Unfortunately, the cure isn't complete. Az fears that testing it on humans could lead to seizures, permanent brain damage, and death. Maddy explains that they have the base serum but require a synthetic component, and that said nanosynth is readily available in the city. While that makes completing the cure challenging, the serum is the only weapon against Cable's schemes in Uglies. Uglies 2 Your Rating5 stars4.5 stars4 stars3.5 stars3 star2.5 stars2 stars1.5 stars1 stars0.5 star Rate Now Submit Rate Now Edit Leave a ReviewPG-13Sci-FiThriller In a futuristic society where everyone undergoes compulsory cosmetic surgery at 16 to become "pretty," Tally eagerly awaits her transformation. However, when her friend goes missing, she embarks on a journey that challenges her beliefs about beauty, conformity, and rebellion, ultimately questioning the foundations of their world. Director McG Release Date September 13, 2024 Writers Scott Westerfield , Whit Anderson , Vanessa Taylor , Jacob Forman , Krista Vernoff Cast Joey King , Brianne Tju , laverne cox , Chase Stokes , Kevin Miles , Kelly Gale , Keith Powers , Will Poston , Jillian Murray , Jan Luis Castellanos , Zamani Wilder , Charmin Lee , Lindsay Rootare , Moose Ali Khan , Robert Palmer Watkins , Jordan Sherley , Alex D. Jennings , Gabriella Garcia , Dutch Johnson , Jessica Craig , Jason Parks , Quintin Mims , Jay DeVon Johnson , Sarah Vattano , Joe Sterrey , Brett Hoyle , Tess Anderson , Yao Mizuno , Jocelyn Chew , Katie McSweeney , Ash Maeda , Jessica Galinas , Ashton Essex Bright Main Genre Sci-Fi Expand
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