Kinds of Kindness is three different short films stacked into one. They don’t share a lot of similarities, except that their characters are played by the same actors, all of whom excellently display varying degrees of isolation and desperation. None of these people are likable—in fact, they’re despicable—but damn if they don’t make you stop and think about what you’re watching. There’s a hitman who struggles with his guilty conscience, a plane crash survivor who may or may not have infectious cannibalism, and a cult member obsessed with cementing her status in the group. You’ll need about a day to process this deeply disturbing movie, but you won’t for a second doubt seeing it in all its glorious weirdness.
"Lanthimos follows up Poor Things (2023) with some far darker social experiments in this chilling portmanteau featuring brilliant, shapeshifting performances."
— Ela Bittencourt
"[T}he audacity of the project carries the day, and a cast once again bringing their A-game for a director who knows how to work with ensembles."
— Brian Tallerico
A triptych fable following a man without choice who tries to take control of his own life; a policeman who is alarmed that his wife who was missing-at-sea has returned and seems a different person; and a woman determined to find a specific someone with a special ability, who is destined to become a prodigious spiritual leader.
In this three-part anthology, Lanthimos mainstays (a stacked cast that includes Jesse Plemons, Emma Stone, and Willem Dafoe) act as different people who display varying degrees of desperation.
The structure, which may be hit-or-miss among audiences, but I loved it.
Lanthimos is back in his Dogtooth/The Lobster era, and I’m here for it.
