If Yorgos Lanthimos couldn’t get weirder, he did in his newest movie creation Kinds of Kindness. The film pushes the envelope with both violence and sex while telling a story in three parts lasting nearly three hours. But, don’t worry about time here, as it works as part of the storyline. Actually by separating the three episodes it gives your brain the chance to accept or reject what you’ve already experienced. That said, if you are not one that soaks in curiosity, the storyteller will certainly wish you had.
Robert (Jesse Plemons) has run into a wall in life and is under the thumb of Raymond (Willem Dafoe) his despicable friend and bisexual devotee. It just so happens that Raymond has a personal problem that he wants Robert to take care of, but Raymond unfortunately bungles it. Now trying to get out of the promise he made to Raymond that included a large sum of money, he seeks help to make the task a reality. Emma Stone plays his wife Rita (and two other women), an openly intense, erotic and enigmatic woman that shows her need for a more tantalizing lifestyle. When she realizes that Robert does not have a handle on his task to relieve himself from the burden Raymond has set upon him, she tries to take control.
The film is powerfully intoxicating and should have you completely immersed in finding out why the plot takes three segments. But it’s not over until it’s over. Much like his previous film Poor Things, director Yorgos Lanthimos does all he can to sway his audience toward believing what they are watching on the big screen. While he accomplished this with “Things” it’s not so much with Kinds of Kindness. Here it’s a bit too zany with only marginal gratification for the weirdness. Not that it’s hard to follow, but name and characters changes with each of the three episodes cause the film to vacillate. However, the production has all the qualities of Poor Things that make it a great entertaining experience. The one thing I found piercing however, is the constant plinking of the piano as part of the musical score. Using it beyond once or twice bothers as it chimes in every time Lanthimos makes clear a specific plot point.
While the acting by Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons and Willem Dafoe is at their usual best, their characterizations of their roles are very disturbing. The sex gets a bit over the top bordering on X and gets perverse at times. I admire them for taking on the challenge of Lanthimos’s script, but it’s not award worthy as I see it.
Kinds of Kindness has been rated R by the MPAA for strong/disturbing violent content, strong sexual content, full nudity and language. My take would have been NC-17 so only above that age limit should be able to attend. The “Pillars of Kindness” are Compassion, Empathy, Sympathy and Forgiveness if this helps. If you liked Poor Things, then this should give you more of Lanthimos’s fine production abilities. For the general audience, beware.
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau,
Directed and co-written by: Yorgos Lanthimos
Genre: Comedy, Drama
MPAA Rating: R for strong/disturbing violent content, strong sexual content, full nudity and language.
Running Time: 2 hrs. 44 min.
Opening Date: June 28, 2024
Distributed by: Searchlight Pictures
Released in: Theaters
