Kinds of Kindness

Kinds of Kindness is a difficult film to review.

A review should always act as that balance between positing the viewer's opinion whilst, also, acting as a sort-of recommendation service for those reading.

Is Kinds of Kindness a film to recommend?

To most, absolutely not.

Is it a beautifully shot, wonderfully original and impeccably performed film that, at its core, has a lot to recommend it?

Yes. That sort of contradictory statement is exactly what Yorgos Lanthimos is all about, following up the incredible Poor Things at supersonic speed.

Unlike that steampunk Frankenstein tale, Kinds of Kindness is an anthology film, of sorts, telling three almost-linked Black Mirror-on-acid tales of surreality, cults, cannibalism and resurrection.

It’s absolutely bonkers despite its stately, dramatic nature and it is quite difficult to really fathom what quite the point of it all is, especially as none of the stories really coalesce as you would want.

There’s the germ of some really good ideas here.

The stories could conceivably link together, despite the cast members playing different roles in each, and, fundamentally, they are all interesting vignettes, especially the middle chapter where a husband believes his recently-returned-from-being-shipwrecked wife may be a doppelganger.

The absurdity and randomness is just a little too extreme, sadly, and will absolutely deter the casual viewer, especially over a two-and-a-half-hour runtime.

No amount of exquisite cinematography, or Emma Stone drifting a muscle car around a car park, can save Kinds of Kindness from being a film you need to debate the meaning of at credit’s end.

This sort of thing will be absolute catnip for those who will relish the tone and the fact that such a bizarre film has been wrapped in such a gorgeous, seemingly mainstream package.

It’s got the potential to be a cult favourite but it’s just too hard going for its own good, unfortunately.

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