Why So Blu?

Kinds of Kindness (Blu-ray Review)

The general sense of weirdness that persists in Yorgos Lanthimos’ films certainly keeps me going, but it’s understandably not for everyone. Kinds of Kindness may be the “one for me” film the director gets to make on a smaller scale, compared to the just-as-odd but more accessible comic fantasy epic, Poor Things, but it continues to show how much the director has evolved. With this anthology film, Lanthimos is entirely in control of how he can deliver the dark delights presented in this movie. It may not have been much of a breakout arthouse film, but it’s got plenty going for it. Now, the film has an HD home release, which may or may not feel like a dare for some to check out.

Film:

[Note: This review was originally published June, 18, 2024.]

I’m not the first to say this, but there is something humorous about director Yorgos Lanthimos taking a break from his prestige absurdist period comedies (The Favourite, Poor Things) in favor of his penchant for dark (but still absurd) comedy filmmaking. Kinds of Kindness feels more familiar to those who knew Lanthimos from his earlier Greek films Dogtooth and Alps, yet still contains the bizarre theatricality of his first forays into America with The Lobster and Killing of a Sacred Deer. Suffice it to say, there’s a major learning curve for those not quite into Lanthimos and co-writer Efthimis Flippou’s idiosyncrasies, but I was fully on board with a return to his brand of pitch-black humor. And what better way to dive back into that well than with a two-and-a-half-hour+ triptych fable.

The first story focuses on a man (Jesse Plemons) attempting to take charge of his life by breaking away from the routines and orders given to him by his powerful boss (Willem Dafoe). Story two finds another man (Plemons, again) feeling suspicious that his previously lost at sea but now returned wife (Emma Stone) is an imposter. The final story focuses on a cultist’s (Stone, again) efforts to find a special individual while also contending with the separation from her family.

Anthology films don’t all have to abide by the same rules, so one will wonder if there are connections between these segments, if characters repeat, and if these stories are all even set within the same world. Well, Kinds of Kindness has at least one curious, physical connection shared between each tale, but the film is far more thematically tethered than anything else. These stories all focus on how the characters are both controlled and exhibiting free will.

The complexities of human relationships are a big part of these stories as well, along with their varying forms of perversions (be it sexual, violent, or otherwise), take these ideas to the most extreme levels. Generally, this is done for the sake of the darkly funny payoffs to numerous scenes, but Lanthimos is not beyond achieving a higher mean buried within the shock humor he lays out for the audience. The power dynamics and how they can switch off keep the movie grounded to some degree in a relatable place, despite the oddities exhibited by every character, whether it be dialogue, costume design, or general physicality.

With these concepts in mind, it speaks well to the range of performances given by the performers involved, particularly Plemons and Stone, ostensibly the film’s leads. Plemons, in particular, is doing incredible work here, dialing up the deadpan far beyond his fun supporting role in Game Night to show how well he can carry a weird feature like this. In each segment, he becomes less likable (a word almost useless in this realm of Lanthimos) as we watch him go from desperate to please to paranoid to petty.

This previously published review can be found in its entirety Here.

 

Video:

Encoding: MPEG-4 AVC

Resolution: 1080p

Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

Clarity/Detail: Shot on film and feature segments in color and black & white, there’s much to appreciate about this terrific video transfer. Despite the smaller scale of the film, Lanthimos pulled out the stops to deliver a beautiful-looking movie, which is reflected well, given the clarity on display. There’s a lot to admire about seeing the heavy detail in the various locations, let alone the deliberate costume choices. It all makes for a fairly striking experience.

Depth: Depth is solid. The character spacing registers as well as it needs to, which is helpful for a film with many off-kilter directorial choices.

Black Levels: Black levels do enough to add to the atmosphere, with no sign of significant crushing.

Color Reproduction: Colors are often quite strong here, even when the film aims to act more gritty. Yes, that means there are brownish and yellow hues to go along with the more lavish moments of color, but it works all the same.

Flesh Tones: There’s a good level of facial detail to be found as the film focuses more on panicked and concerned faces, along with the occasional unnerving smile.

Noise/Artifacts: Clean.

–

Audio:

Audio Format(s): English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.0 Dolby Digital Description Track, Spanish and French 5.1 Dolby Digital

Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Dynamics:  There’s a solid lossless track presented for this release, providing what’s needed despite some unique choices. Between the interesting score, some aggressive moments, and many quiet ones, this disc is properly equipped to tackle it all.

Low-Frequency Extension: The big dance moment from the trailer gives the sub-woofer all the chance it needs to shine, along with some notably loud car engine moments.

Surround Sound Presentation: A lot is going on to help immerse the viewer into the film, including music and various sound effects. The rear channels come into play well enough to make you feel like there’s always some angle this film has on keeping you involved.

Dialogue Reproduction: Everyone registers as they should.

–

Extras:

I don’t always expect Lanthimos films to have a full set of details concerning the process behind them, but it would have been nice to have more to look at regarding how this project came together beyond a standard EPK. As it stands, there’s only a minimal collection of extras present.

Features Include:

• It Takes All Kinds: The Vision of Kinds of Kindness (HD, 15:14) – A standard EPK featuring interviews with the cast and crew.
• Deleted Scenes (HD, 1:04)
• Digital Copy of the Film

–

Summary:

It goes without saying that Kinds of Kindness is another Lanthimos film that requires a certain kind of attention. That said, even with its strange choices, there’s plenty to admire on a pure filmmaking basis, let alone enough to take from this terrific ensemble cast. The Blu-ray also looks and sounds excellent but lacks the extras department. So there’s enough here for those into getting weird.

–

Order Your Copy Here: