Introduction:
”Kinds of Kindness” is a black comedy anthology film which was directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, famous for his exaggerated and highly charged narratives. This story with beautiful movie stars such as Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, and Willem Dafoe, and narrates touching and funny entwined stories that can be classified under control and manipulation and the surreal side of human bonds. The movie has its premiere in theatres set on June 21, 2024, and with an avant-garde approach to the execution of the plot and its provocative themes.
Release Date:
It was during the 77th Cannes Film Festival that ‘Kinds of Kindness’ was launched on May 17, 2024, and the movie premiered commercially in the United States on June 21, 2024. The book will be published in the United States of America and Canada by July 10, 2022, and in the United Kingdom and Ireland by June 28, 2024. The language of the film is mainly English and there will be additional options for the subtitles in several languages amongst which are: Spanish, French, and German.
Crew:
| Role | Name(s) |
|---|---|
| Director | Yorgos Lanthimos |
| Producers | Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Yorgos Lanthimos, Kasia Malipan |
| Story Writers | Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou |
| Screenplay | Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou |
| Editor | Yorgos Mavropsaridis |
Cast:
| Actor/Actress | Character Name |
|---|---|
| Emma Stone | Emily, Liz |
| Margaret Qualley | Ruth, Vivian, Martha |
| Jesse Plemons | Robert, Andrew |
| Hunter Schafer | Anna |
| Joe Alwyn | Collectibles Appraiser, Joseph |
| Willem Dafoe | George, Raymond |
| Hong Chau | Sharon |
| Mamoudou Athie | Will, Morgue Nurse |
| Yorgos Stefanakos | R. M. F. |
| Krystal Alayne Chambers | Susan |
| Susan Elle | Young Woman Driver |
| Jess Weiss | Liz Double |
| Jeffrey Riseden | Mr. Weber |
| Ja’Quan Monroe-Henderson | Jonathan |
Story:
- The Death of R. M. F.: This story is a narrative of Robert – a male individual who is dominated by his superior, Raymond. Yes, servility is that fatal and when one is a slave as Robert is, then this is what happens when his secrets emerge.
- RMF is Flying: In this segment, the policeman named Daniel shows frustration in dealing with his wife, Liz, who leaves home only to come back to a different person making the relationship quite complicated.
- RMF Eats a Sandwich: The last story recounts the typical brothel keeper’s experience with the Andrew and Emily cultists who go searching for a woman who has some magical powers illustrating the pathological relationships within the cult.
Each story of the author is followed by the black and surrealistic mood typical for Lanthimos which provides the audience with the freedom to interpret the topic in any way they want.
Review:
Starring Jezebel, “Kinds of Kindness” is an absurdist anthology film, with three segments directed by Yorgos Lanthimos. The storytelling method of the movie revolves around principles such as choice, identity and being human.
The first one is about a man who is unable to escape from the terms that bound him before birth; the second story is about a policeman and his wife who disappeared only to be found by the man in question wandering in the sea; the third story revolves around a woman in search of someone who is to become the next spiritual leader of her people through having what the writer describes as ‘gifts’.
As expected from Lanthimos’s films, the critics have noted bitter irony and black comedy in the movie. There have also been positive reception regarding the performances especially that of Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons as they display how the character copes with sensitive feelings.
Even though some viewers may be irritated by the unconventional narrative of the film, it opens up an interesting thought process that makes people think of kindness and connection between people. In general, “Kinds of Kindness” has been quite well received mainly due to it being different and thought-provoking making it of significant importance to the modern generation cinema.
Positives:
- Strong Performances: The cast is phenomenal with many people highlighting the performances of Jesse Plemons and Willem Dafoe for one simple reason; the cast reuses the same actors to depict various characters in the different stories.
- Unique Narrative Style: It is also important because an anthology format enables various, and at the same time, enthralling narratives to be told, and thus considers Lanthimos’s talents.
- Cinematography: The movie is visually powerful, which complements the film’s surrealism; on the one hand, the pictures look realistic, but the plots are rather bizarre.
Negatives:
- Pacing Issues: However, the feature that may be considered disadvantageous is that the film is more than 3 hours long; and this may make some parts of the film amount to boring and as a result, lose people’s interest in the film.
- Character Depth: The series has a great cast at its centre and manages to deliver great performances but some characters don’t go through the emotional arc as required so do the audiences feel they need growth, their motives seem underdeveloped too.
- Ambiguity: The ideas that the movie carries and the stories that it tells can be rather vague at times, this can be a problem as it may push audiences who dislike complex plots away.
Technical Aspects:
- Direction: Yorgos Lanthimos’s direction is very daring and innovative – the movie embeds both the elements of black humour and surreality, and the diegesis diverges from the regular narrative pattern.
- Production Design: This live-action film can be considered to be haunting because of the elements of interior design, especially set decorations and costumes.
- Score: The soundtrack has elements of choral with the trend associated with the horror film, which fits in the film’s theme.
Performances:
- Jesse Plemons: One also notices that the power struggle between control and submission is also involved in the kind of performance that Eric gives to the character of Robert.
- Willem Dafoe: Dafoe can also be remarkable in its ability to produce variety in portraying several roles that add value to the movie’s theme of ethical conundrums.
- Emma Stone: But looking at her performances comparatively with that of other actresses it can be said that even now she can at least give the extra oomph to a character.
Moviepoptime Review:
I got so uncomfortable watching this film that I could not wait for it to end. I am somewhat familiar with the directing of Yorgos Lanthimos and his approach and to storytelling and creating films. Before proceeding any further, let me give a brief background on the director I have watched Dogtooth, The Favorite, The Lobster and Poor Things by Yargos Lanthimos.
I liked all of them except for the Dogtooth but I think that the concept of Dogtooth is quite appealing. While Kinds of Kindness more or less respected many of these ideas and norms I found myself thinking are sacred or taboo and should not be depicted on a TV drama, Kinds of Kindness went over the top with it. Specifically also — but if there had been some grand communication proclaiming high ideals, then perhaps, I might have waited for better messages from the film. As far as I could see — the rape, suicide, self-mutilation, and violence in it — all those things were done only for the sake of idiotic absurdity and black comedy but had no deeper meaning.
However, one has to commend the movie for having some humour and tasteless jokes as well as an absurdity that I found amusing. Unfortunately, the audience was left with the impression that everything in the production looked and felt arrogant and self-rewarded. Also, a serious trigger warning is necessary for anyone who has experienced sexual assault: this is well depicted in the course as it paints a very realistic picture of the occurrence.
Conclusion:
I consider the movie “Kinds of Kindness” as a rather engaging but highly debated film which is typical for Yorgos Lanthimos. Like any set of thematically provocative short films, it has some strengths and weaknesses providing wonderful performances while still following up with interesting narratives that, however, might be criticized for lack of certain pacing, characterization depth or thematic cohesiveness. It makes the film a multicultural enlightening hypothesis of control over human relations and, as such, an original work within the context of contemporary world cinema.
It is something to look out for those who are fans of filmmaker Lanthimos since this is pretty much what he is all about; on the other hand, for people who do not know what to expect when watching a Lanthimos movie, this is likely to be quite confusing. Combined, “Kinds of Kindness” is a daring movie that will make the viewers ponder over its themes for a while after the movie is over.
Also Read: It Ends With Us Movie Review