Plot recap
Quick recap: What happens across Kinds of Kindness?
Here’s a quick recap of Kinds of Kindness (2024) by Yorgos Lanthimos—three distinct but thematically connected fables exploring control, obsession, and the limits of kindness.
What Happens in Each Story
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“The Death of R.M.F.”
- Robert Fletcher lives under the total control of his boss-and-lover Raymond, who dictates everything from relationships to bodily autonomy. - Raymond orders Robert to kill a mysterious figure named R.M.F. by crashing a car—but Robert resists. - After being fired (“You’re free now”), Robert’s life unravels: he loses Sarah (his wife), discovers betrayal and manipulation, and ultimately takes violent action—running over R.M.F., killing him, and then returning to Raymond, who claims Robert met expectations.
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“R.M.F. Is Flying”
- Daniel, a police officer, is stunned when his wife Liz—missing at sea—is rescued by R.M.F. and returns—but she’s changed in unsettling ways. - Liz behaves strangely: mismatched in interests, relationships behave oddly, something off with her demeanor and even how their pet reacts. Daniel’s paranoia grows. - The tension escalates into demands for Liz to mutilate herself (Daniel orders self-harm and worse), a miscarriage is diagnosed, and Liz ultimately dies. Then—another Liz appears, suggesting recurrence or exchange. Over the credits, dogs behaving like humans appear.
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“R.M.F. Eats a Sandwich”
- Emily and Andrew are in a cult that claims to be seeking a woman with the power to reanimate the dead. - They evaluate candidates. When regular options fail, Emily focuses on Ruth (who has a twin Rebecca, fulfilling a criterion when Rebecca dies). - Ruth is able to resurrect R.M.F.’s body. Terrified with what that power implies or maybe its cost, Emily tries to return to the cult but crashes while speeding to the headquarters—killing Ruth in the process. In a mid-credits scene, R.M.F. simply eats a sandwich.
Common Threads & The Big Picture
- Control and Freedom: In all three, characters are subject to external forces that demand obedience—whether through Raymond’s dominance, Daniel’s inability to accept Liz’s change, or cult rules. Each story tests what happens when someone tries to assert autonomy. - Obsession with Identity and Authenticity: What makes someone “real” or “the same person”? The film probes identity: Liz may not be Liz; candidates of miracles are judged by arbitrary standards. - Faith, Power, and Sacrifice: The supernatural or spiritual element in the third story forces characters to make sacrifices—literal ones—to prove worth or purity. - Circular or Unresolved Endings: None of the stories wrap in a comforting way. Resurrections, replacements, ambiguous returns suggest cycles rather than conclusions—that kindness (and cruelty) are not linear.