Watch Kimi on HBO Max
Written by: David Koepp
Directed by: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Zoë Kravitz, Byron Bowers, Rita Wilson, Erika Christensen, Devin Ratray
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
An agoraphobic Seattle tech worker uncovers evidence of a crime.
Verdict
This starts out as a technology warning. Being always connected leaves you incredibly vulnerable. A little bit of bad luck could put you in a precarious position. A movie warning us soon becomes an all out thriller. This ending takes some twists. It's a change in tone, but I really like the energy of the conclusion. The message is pertinent and timely. I'm willing to bet this movie is closer to the truth than we'd like to believe.
Watch It.
Review
This feels like a spiritual successor to The Net (1995) starring Sandra Bullock, referencing some of the same themes and vulnerabilities. This does a much better job with it, and at this point anybody is susceptible to what happens in this movie if you stumble across the wrong information about the wrong person.
Kimi is a play on Siri. The CEO employs people to review Kimi voice assistant interactions to make it better and more responsive. He's hoping to take the company public. The movie provides a few questions about the guy that make him less than trustworthy.
 |
| Zoë Kravitz plays Angela |
Angela (Zoë Kravitz) works at Kimi as a programmer that reviews Kimi interactions. She listens to experiences, then adds code to fix issues. Angela experiences anxiety even thinking about leaving her apartment, feelings the pandemic re-triggered. This is the first movie I've seen that directly references the pandemic.
The story kicks off when Angela hears a recording that sounds like an assault. While she brings out audio gear from her closet, I'd think an audio editor on her computer with a filter could isolate the sound better. This confirms to Angela what happened. She informs her bosses, but they don't want to get involved. Listening to people is only their business when it benefits them financially. If it involves liability, the company is not interested, claiming it isn't their business. That's certainly dark humor.
Angela is pulling on a thread the company wishes she'd avoid. She's told by corporate that you can't access user content with just a device number, but that's not true. Not a surprise. With this Kimi company and any real world company, it's not that companies can't access stuff. Most of them state they don't access private information. Don't and can't is an important distinction.
The thread Angela is pulling goes very far. I didn't think Angela would get very far when company money is on the line, but she refuses to let it go. I assumed the movie would play up Angela leaving her apartment with false starts, and a display of anxiety, but Angela goes for it. I like how the movie tries to capture her mental state visually. That works well.
This turns into a full fledged thriller with Angela on the run, though it's also a rebuke of corporate greed and the crimes companies will commit to protect their money. How many companies have implanted listening devices inside our homes with our full consent? It's scary how much control this movie purports that gives them. The more connected we are as a society to the internet, the more vulnerable we become. If we every stumble across something we shouldn't have seen, it's pretty much over. All of these devices make people easy to track and anticipate.
The last third is a wild ride. The conclusion seemed bleak, but this manages to provide some hope for Angela before the situation gets even bleaker. I wondered why, in the situation of being held at gunpoint, why not go crazy and throw a chair through the window or attack the guy. If you're facing death, there's no consequence. That's a question for all movies though.
The script does a nice job of introducing various elements that come back into play later. Nearly everything in this movie has a distinct purpose. The ending is wild, but it really makes the movie. I didn't see it ending like that, but I like the energy. I have to wonder if casting Deven Ratray was a bit of joke with how this ends. If you see this and look at his past movies, you'll understand.
No comments :
Post a Comment