More than 20 years into his filmmaking career, we know what to expect from a Yorgos Lanthimos movie. There will probably be a cultish organization, with strange practices and unclear motives. The dialogue will sound simplistic on the surface, but conceal deeper meaning. The sex will be weird. There will be mutilation, often self-inflicted. Someone will get licked. Emma Stone will do a little dance.
And yet, Lanthimos’ films are always surprising. Even if you’ve seen everything he’s done, from his 2001 Greek debut My Best Friend to his 2009 breakthrough Dogtooth to last year’s masterpiece Poor Things, you’ll probably have no idea what will happen next when you watch Kinds of Kindness.
Lanthimos’ latest reunites key members of the Poor Things cast: Emma Stone, who won a Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Bella Baxter, the dead woman brought back to life after having the brain of her unborn child implanted in her skull, and Willem Dafoe, the mad scientist who did the deed. Joining them is Jesse Plemons, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, and Mamoudou Athie. Kinds of Kindness is divided into three parts: Each segment is its own isolated story, with the actors playing completely different characters. In “The Death of R.M.F.,” Plemons plays Robert, a corporate executive whose boss Raymond (Dafoe) issues daily memos which control every aspect of his life. When Robert is ordered to deliberately crash his car, he balks, and Raymond cuts him off. Unsure of what to do with his sudden freedom, Robert flails wildly.
In “R.M.F. Is Flying,” Plemons plays Daniel, a police officer whose wife Liz (Stone) is missing at sea. His partner Neil (Athie) tries to keep Daniel on track, but when Liz is rescued, his insanity only deepens.
In “R.M.F. Eats a Sandwich,” Stone and Plemons play Emily
and Andrew, a pair of cultists whose leaders Omi (Dafoe) and Aka (Chau) have issued a prophecy about a woman with the ability to bring people back from the dead. It’s Emily and Andrew’s job to find her.
Kinds of Kindness’ three segments may not have common characters, but they do have common themes. In each story, someone is rejected, either from a group or by an individual, and takes drastic action to try to get back into the fold. An obsession with control — who wields it, who is subject to it, who needs it — winds its way through the three stories. Stone, who has emerged as one of the best actresses of her generation, remains Lanthimos’ muse. Her three characters couldn’t be more different, and she is brilliant in all three roles. In the third segment, she even tries her hand at stunt driving.
Plemons’ talent shines throughout the film. In the first segment, his disorientation at having to make his own decisions after a decade of Dafoe dictating his every move is at first hilarious, then poignant, then horrifying. In “R.M.F. Eats a Sandwich,” his vulnerability as a grieving husband gives way to a steely, destructive determination.
Dafoe, the consummate pro, works wonders with Lanthimos and co-writer Efthimis Filippou’s often difficult material. In the hands of lesser actors, these stories might come off as silly. Filippou also co-wrote The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer, which means Kinds of Kindness is a different flavor from the visual extravagance of Poor Things. Instead of the fantastical steampunk cities of an alternate Europe, Kinds of Kindness was filmed on location in New Orleans. Cinematographer Robbie Ryan brings out the Crescent City’s threatening, surreal side.
As with all of Lanthimos’ films, this isn’t for everyone. But if you’re already on board with his unique, often disturbing world view, you will find Kinds of Kindness ranks with the director’s best work.
Kinds of Kindness is now playing at Studio on the Square and Collierville Cinema Grill & MXT.
