The latest Yorgos Lanthimos film KINDS OF KINDNESS was released to US audiences on June 21st, 2024. The anthology film stars Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, who won the Best Actor award at Cannes, and Willem Dafoe. The film also features performances from Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, Joe Alwyn, Mamoudou Athie, and Hunter Schafer. The film will be released worldwide on June 28th, 2024.
KINDS OF KINDNESS is a triptych fable, tying together three loosely connected narratives into 2 hours and 45 minutes. The narratives are “The Death of R.M.F,” “R.M.F is Flying,” and “R.M.F Eats a Sandwich” with each narrative getting more absurd as the film goes on.
“The Death of R.M.F” is the foundation of the film. Robert (Plemons) is plagued with indecision. His boss, Raymond (Dafoe), controls every aspect of his life. One day, Raymond leaves Robert with a series of instructions that include engaging in a car accident that will kill the other driver. After not wanting to go through with the plan, Raymond fires Robert. Robert begins to lose his sense of purpose and stops at nothing to try and get Raymond back.
“R.M.F is Flying” follows Daniel (Plemons). He is a cop alongside his best friend Neil (Athie). Daniel’s wife Liz (Stone) is lost at sea so Neil and his wife try to cheer him up. One random day, Liz is found. After a series of off-putting interactions with his wife, Daniel becomes paranoid that the woman who has returned is an imposter.
“R.M.F is Flying” is the most absurd of the three narratives. Emily (Stone) and Andrew (Plemons) are searching for someone to resurrect the dead. The pair are also in a cult that worships the allusive Aka (Chau) and Omi (Dafoe). After being deemed “contaminated” by the cult, Emily makes it her mission to fulfill her search no matter what it takes.
Each of the three segments complements one another and explores domination and obsession, especially within relationships. KINDS OF KINDNESS shows that love, domination, and obsession are all intertwined. The film perfectly illustrates how these aspects could lead to our success or our very demise.
