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Yorgos Lanthimos the Greek director who mostly employs surreal and controversial concepts in his films is back with Kinds of Kindness (2024), this movie can be described as a collection of three different but somewhat interconnected stories that reveal various aspects of people’s actions. Lanthimos continues to explore the concepts of control, identity, and social conformity, all of this being still in the vein of absurdist, if not satirical, dark comedy that was so characteristic of his previous work with his writing partner Efthimis Filippou.

All the segments are performed by the cast that includes Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons and Willem Dafoe who appear in several roles throughout the film, this format enables these actors to demonstrate their versatility in portraying the character compatibility of tone in this film that is quite often uncomfortable, why is it that here is when some actors explode and bright. The plot takes place in New Orleans but the setting is rather ordinary and nondescript which contributes to the atmosphere of the movie.

The movie has been met with a mixed reception from the movie’s target market and critics, this is expected based on how extremist on certain topics like violence mix with sexuality the movie can be, and while some people think it is one of the most creative and thought provoking films ever made, others consider some issues in it confusing and too surreal.

- IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt22408160/ - Platform: Select Theaters - Release: June 21, 2024

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Plot Overview

Fist episode title The Death of R. M. F. describes the life of Robert (Jesse Plemons), a plain employee suffering from his boss’s tyranny, Raymond (Willem Dafoe). Raymond has authority over Robert not only professionally but also in personal areas including food choices, dressing code and even love life. This situation escalates to the boiling point when Raymond asks for something that makes Robert act against his will, is this part of the movie that dive into themes of liberty and fighting the oppressors, giving the movie a very gloomy mood.

In the second episode, called R. M. F. is Flying, Plemons turns into Daniel, a police officer whose wife name Liz portrayed by Emma Stone comes back to life after being considered to be dead after at some point he had disappeared at sea, the trailer is somewhat descieving or not really showing what the movie is about, its more theatrical and tries to generate emotions and euphoria instead of giving hints of what the movie is about. The idea that Liz might be an imposter makes Daniel doubt her love and commit one cruel act after another to see if she cares, the storyline of this movie deals with issues of personal identity and trust in the framework of a couple this is the case of Daniel and Liz.

The last part of the movie is called “R. M. F. Eats a Sandwich”, but it moves to Emily (Emma Stone) who is a follower of a cult of the mysterious Omi (Dafoe), with the emotions of dependence and the attempt to find a spiritual and sexual liberation within the cult’s framework show that the story is about these aspects of human life. The cult’s rituals, such as drinking unclean liquids or receiving tantric favors, parody both the fanaticism of the religion and spirituality, hot topic for many who watch the movie, obscene bodies, contamination and Emily’s adventure in her glamorous Dodge Challenger are just for layer of absurdity that the movie will show through this last act.

Themes and Style

Control and Autonomy

Discussing the motifs of the movie we must admit that Lanthimos pays much attention to the notion of control in its different manifestations, “The Death of R. M. F. ,” there is the representation of authoritarian control through Raymond, the character who brings Robert’s life decisions into his own hands to then be discussed in more detail in “R. M. F. is Flying”, where the desire for controlling the appearance of reality is presented in the character of Daniel through his mania, while the last one, “R. M. F. Eats a Sandwich” addresses the issue of mind control in cults and total dependency.

Identity and Perception

Lack of identity and the aspect of perception are the key concerns in “R. M. F. is Flying. ” When faced with the loss of his wife, Liz to a boating accident Daniel starts to perceive things that are not there and the audience might be left to wonder if he is really seeing an imposter, this theme is also evident in the other segments in which characters are torn between their ‘I’ and the environment that surrounds them.

Societal Norms and Rebellion

Many scenes in the movie showcase Lanthimos’ fascination with the society norms and standard, not sure if even an obsession. In “The Death of R. M. F. ,” the rebellion of Robert against his boss can be regarded as the rebelliousness against societies and the desire of an individual to be free, the last scene, “R. M. F. Eats a Sandwich” ironically and humorously presents the modern tendencies towards spirituality and the desire for strict order in society.

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Behind the Scenes

Cast and Performances

The cast of the film is very strong; the main actors are Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, and Willem Dafoe. All the actors are working in the different segments, which proves their ability to perform in various characters and styles followed by Lanthimos, however the cast’s approach to preparing for their characters and scenes was unorthodox, as they relied on the use of gestures and the creation of scenes through the practice rather than extensive discussions and analysis of the script, this approach provided the actors with the opportunity to really get into the skin of their characters and into the world of Lanthimos.

Critical Reception & Audience Reactions

The responses received from viewers have also been as follows; People who have seen Lanthimos’ previous films, namely Dogtooth and The Killing of a Sacred Deer will possibly enjoy the film due to its shift to the more bizarre mode. This reflects societal issues of dominance, mastery and the general conduct of people even if it appeal to any group of individuals who consider themselves fans of deep movies. Emma Stone will be identify as one of the main attractions, while many fans are eager to see Lanthimos continue his work with Stone after The Favourite and Poor Things, this alone will get a good part of the audience hooked.

However, there may be people who can feel the movie content is too shocking or the plot construction is too fragmented been that the actors play so many roles and the movie is split into acts. The movie is 2 hours and 43 minutes long and the major plot is divided into three stories that are related but not entirely, which can throw off viewers who like movies with a single and clear narrative, due to some very savage scenes there are reviews who have described the movie as hateful and nasty but I would say most who say this do not accept the cruel reality of the world today.

Kinds of Kindness (2024) is a movie that is invaded with the director’s sensibility, presenting viewers with humor, total absurd scenes and some weighty philosophical concepts, for sure a movie that it is not a movie people have to watch, many wont like it because of how extremist it can be, it is one that many will not soon forget, given the twisted plots and disturbing themes.

Some of the themes present on the movie are control, identity and society norms; mostly to violate the, serve as an effective starting point for critical reflection for the audience, there are other topics I could think of as sexuality and violence also contribute to the movie’s controversy, it is a movie that will generate controversy so people will talk about mostly trying to figure out whats wrong with the characters.

To make things shorter I would say that regardless of the perspective one takes whether the movie is an examination of the social system or a psychological drama Kinds of Kindness (2024) is one movie that defines its genre. That it is capable of sparking discussion is a part of what makes Lanthimos such a captivating filmmaker and a figure so invested in forging a new path for modern cinema.

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