‘Kinds of Kindness’ Cannes 2024 Review: New Yorgos Lanthimos Film Leans Into The Horror
Human beings are defined by their need for love. We crave it, even when we won’t admit it. Sometimes, holding love at arm’s length is better than the suffering we endure to keep it. But the myriad of characters that inhabit the strange world of Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest film Kinds of Kindness don’t shy away from the inevitable horrors that come along with the bonds they build. In fact, some strange part of them aches to embrace the downfall that comes along with them—and in that space, the space between apprehensive safety and bloodthirsty chaos, is where this utterly batshit and bizarrely beautiful film resides.
Lanthimos’ set of perverse fables has a mouthful of sharp teeth in comparison to his most recent film Poor Things, serving up his most biting and harsh film since 2009’s Dogtooth. The filmmaker has always dabbled in the dark arts, so to speak. But the horror elements really stand out in this three-story project, potentially even more than even The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Combining diabolical psychological terrors with a solid helping of grueling body horror that will most definitely make you grimace, Kinds of Kindness shows us the full scope of human cruelty in a way that even some of the best horror films shy away from.
Also Read: Step Into The Wild Mind of Yorgos Lanthimos With New ‘Poor Things’ Experience
For us freaks who love Lanthimos at his most sinister, it’s a certain kind of sick joy to see the director collaborate once again with co-writer Efthimis Filippou. The writing duo (who are collectively responsible for most of Lanthimos’ cinematic works) are known, at this point, for their ability to cut to the feeling when it comes to the unpleasant truths of being alive and how the consequences they birth rear their ugly heads. Because of this innate understanding of human suffering they have as a unit, this film is potentially their best collaboration yet.
Their sparse yet punchy script distills their smart worldbuilding and storytelling prowess into three bite-sized pieces that still feel like whole meals. There’s so much to lap up with these interconnecting stories, so many puzzle pieces to put together, and so many anticipatory moments that click within seconds of the hammer slamming down for the blow. One section of the film shares similarities with the 2022 psychological horror film Resurrection, an intriguing link that should give you a window into the kind of twisted world this film builds for its audience. As a whole, the film is altogether exhilarating and horrifying—a totally Lanthimos experience.
Also Read: ‘Cuckoo’ Review: Weird, Fantastical Horror You’ll Go Cuckoo For
That twisted world hinges, of course, on its inhabitants—and the performances of the ensemble cast of Kinds of Kindness definitely understand Lanthimos’ cinematic language. Jesse Plemons is the film’s central figure, and he seamlessly molds himself into memorably damaged characters. He’s always been a powerhouse actor, and his work in this triptych (particularly the first two parts) is no exception. His ability to channel panicked desperation is nearly unmatched. Until one of Emma Stone’s three characters gives him a run for his money. Stone is once again throwing herself into the highest heights and lowest lows of a Lanthimos project, and continues to prove that their director-actor connection is a goldmine for unhinged and fearless work. She is perhaps the most outstanding of the bunch, though one could certainly argue that she and Margaret Qualley are neck and neck when it comes to presence, personality, and commitment to weirdness.
Qualley has fashioned an interesting career for herself in gunning for the most unconventional projects, and Kinds of Kindness is right in line with her tastes. So it should come as no surprise that she knocks these stories out of the park with her assured brand of off-kilter confidence. Lanthimos sets her free with her penchant for the unusual and she runs off into the sunset with it. It’s exciting to watch her work her magic. Willem Dafoe is also right at home in the peculiar and uncanny world the filmmaker builds here, relying on his sharp tongue and nearly mystifying presence to give a performance that feels entirely fresh from him despite his own wacky filmography.
Also Read: The Best Horror Movies Now Streaming On Max
The film grapples with the notion of how love and power clash, building that theme with an unflinching sense of dread throughout the nearly three-hour runtime. Lanthimos’ directorial eye has a radar for that kind of thing, and he not only bolsters that feeling through the script but through the way he frames his characters. In different moments across the parables, one character sits opposite another standing character, with their heads mostly cut off from the frame to focus on the body language. Each time, their closeness looks and feels repugnant, an obvious product of the depraved power struggles between these people at different key moments.
Alongside the crazy plots and the healthy helpings of gore, Lanthimos’ directorial instincts as a man capable of showing us the true warped nature of the world makes Kinds of Kindness successful at instilling us with a sense of grave danger around any and every corner.
Let this be a siren song for all the sickos out there, the horror and drama fans alike. Lanthimos is on fire with this new film, and it’s one that our complicated and brutal world deserves. He’s so good at uncovering the core of our deviancy and he’s only getting better. Kinds of Kindness is his best film since Sacred Deer, point blank, and we can only hope he’ll forever play in the sandbox of good, evil, and the morally gray. Let’s not mince words here: Lanthimos is back where he belongs, in the great and terrible land of his own design.
Summary
Combining diabolical psychological terrors with a solid helping of grueling body horror that will most definitely make you grimace, Kinds of Kindness shows us the full scope of human cruelty in a way that even some of the best horror films shy away from.
