Ape not let ape make one-hit-wonder biopic with CGI chimps shooting heroin

Not that he ever strayed far, but Kinda of Kindness feels like a return to the dark absurdist comedy of the earlier Lanthimos films like Dogtooth and The Lobster. As much as I’ve enjoyed the visual opulence of The Favorite and Poor Things, the more stripped down miss-en-scène of Kinds of Kindness centers YL’s unique characters and scenarios, allowing them to shine in full absurdist glory.

Longlegs cosplays as a serious horror but it’s really just a mood board of ideas from better films made by directors who had an actual vision, connected by the most tenuous “the Devil (actually) made me do it” plot. Another example of nepotism breeding mediocrity.

This one hits all the right notes for me: pulpy, psychedelic sci-fi storyline, dank art direction by Heavy Metal regular Philippe Caza (one of my favorite illustrators), new age electronic score by Gabriel Yared, and directed by Rene Laloux (FANTASTIC PLANET). Ultimately, it never reaches the lysergic highs of FANTASTIC PLANET, but there is still lots to love about this otherworldly fantasy.