Invisibility and Verisimilitude
The movie Kimi explores the concept of Kimi, an Alexa-style device with a primary USP (unique selling proposition) involving human connection. The movie explores how people and machines work together, stressing the invisible elements of the technology. This focus on the devices and the team of operators’ covert operations gives the story a sense of invisibility. In addition, the movie strives for realism by putting itself in a real-world environment with real-world regulations, which makes it approachable and credible despite its thriller components.
Character Arc
The lead character, Angela, goes through character development throughout the movie. She begins as an agoraphobic person who is isolated from the outside world and plagued by her fears. However, her protected and secure environment is upended when she discovers something ominous in a flagged Kimi stream. Due to this tragedy, she is forced to face her worries and leave her comfort zone. As the story goes on, Angela transforms from a helpless and lonely character to a resolute and assertive protagonist, reclaiming her agency and taking part in an exciting climax.
Audio-Visual Story
The audio-visual components of the movie Kimi strengthen the narrative. Despite having a direct-to-streaming release, Steven Soderbergh’s picture has a cinematic feel because of his sharp and fashionable cinematography. Cliff Martinez’s magnificent, classic soundtrack helps the film’s use of cinematography contribute to the tension and atmosphere. Additionally, the integration of Kimi, a developing gadget akin to an Amazon Echo, is done skillfully, going beyond simple gimmickry and enhancing the audio-visual experience as a whole.
Genre Conventions in the Film
When discussing the thriller genre’s conventions in the movie Kimi, it’s crucial to remember that the main goal is to make the spectator feel uneasy and confused. To keep audiences guessing, thriller movies rely on intricate and unexpected story twists. Like every thriller, Kimi features a complicated mystery, and the plot develops as the secret is solved. This implies that the movie might have shocks and unexpected plot turns, which would add to the overall unease and dread. Characters are frequently placed in uneasy and anxious circumstances in thrillers. The protagonist of Kimi, Angela, has agoraphobia and would rather keep to herself than interact with the outside world.
Thrillers frequently feature high-stakes, risky scenarios that endanger the characters’ lives. Due to Angela’s discovery of something terrible in Kimi’s stream, Kimi is put in danger. As Angela attempts to negotiate and survive the threats she encounters, the movie has stressful sequences and times of increased tension. The presence of enigmatic, morally gray, or mysterious characters in thriller movies heightens the tense atmosphere. Such a person is the major antagonist in this story, and their job is to stop Angela from uncovering the mystery.
Surprise and Suspense
The “surprise” tactic is employed when the protagonist Angela comes across proof of a horrifying crime captured on camera by Kimi, a smart speaker. Angela’s surprise launches the story at this finding. As Angela and the audience follow the events as they develop and the effects of this finding, the evidence’s unexpected discovery produces a sense of astonishment for all parties.
Suspenseful times in the plot, darker visuals, distressing music during specific periods, and unexpected turns all contribute to the suspense in the movie. As an illustration, the scene in which Angela engages in a cat-and-mouse pursuit through Seattle’s streets suggests suspense in the movie. The suspense grows as Angela digs further into her quest for the truth, as she anticipates potential perils and the unknowable consequences of her decisions.
Cliff Martinez’s score and the use of fun and fright in the chase scenes heighten the tension in the movie even more. There is a chance that Angela may be involved in the crime or targeted due to her discoveries based on her predicament and her participation in the crime’s evidence. Angela would match the “wrong person” archetype if she were wrongly accused or singled out by people who were part of the scheme.
Corruption of the Protagonist and Noir Elements
The movie Kimi explores the subject of surviving in the face of illogical and reasonable anxieties brought on by both pandemics and everyday life. It focuses on the personality of Angela Childs, a technical analyst who is afraid to leave her house and may even have OCD. The movie references Angela’s repetitive behaviors, like precisely making her bed and aggressively scrubbing her body and teeth. These sequences highlight Angela’s need for self-control and her efforts to defend herself against fictitious dangers.
The sequence where Angela interrupts her usual duties as a technical analyst to listen to a tape of a horrific incident is also noteworthy. With Angela determined to uncover the truth and unravel the mystery, this scene is a turning point in the story. Her quest for the truth exemplifies her tenacity and readiness to face her anxieties to safeguard others and herself.
This reaffirms the survivalist motif and the notion that tenacious individuals may overcome obstacles to change the world. Although the movie is based on classic noir, emphasizing the paranoid notion that follows the heroine throughout the movie, it is challenging to classify the movie as belonging to the noir genre. This is due to the movie’s visual style, which mostly does not have a noir structure and favors bright sequences over gloomy ones.
The Film as a “Quality Thriller”
A unique subgenre of thrillers that recently appeared and won praise for its artistic and narrative merits is referred to as the “quality thriller” in Spanish film. These movies frequently use the thriller subgenre to examine and reexamine contentious political, social, or historical issues from Spain’s past. The complex and turbulent history of Spain, which includes the Francoist tyranny, the Spanish Civil War, and the transition to democracy, might be considered as the inspiration for the “quality thriller” subgenre in Spanish film.
These movies explore Spain’s dark past and deal with problems including political corruption, human rights abuses, and unresolved historical traumas (Camporesi and Fernández Meneses, 18). The “quality thriller” is distinguished by its focus on fine craftsmanship, superior production qualities, and subtle storytelling. These movies are frequently distinguished by atmospheric photography, intriguing characters, and sophisticated plotlines that hold viewers’ attention while delving into more serious issues.
The information provided broadens the idea of the thriller genre by emphasizing the “quality thriller” as a subgenre that defies conventional genre norms. It highlights how thrillers may explore intricate social, political, and historical subjects in addition to being suspenseful and entertaining movies. Historically, thrillers have been linked to frantic action, gripping stories, and exhilarating turns (Camporesi and Fernández Meneses, 16).
However, the idea of the “quality thriller” in Spanish film adds a fresh perspective to the genre by highlighting the creative and narrative strengths of these movies. It implies that thrillers can be thought-provoking, intellectually stimulating, and socially meaningful. The “quality thriller” in Spanish cinema offers a platform for revisiting and reworking the contentious past using the thriller subgenre as a framework (Camporesi and Fernández Meneses, 5). Moreover, the “quality thriller” subgenre raises the genre above simple pleasure thanks to its focus on craftsmanship, excellent production qualities, and nuanced storytelling.
Work Cited
Camporesi, Valeria, and Jara Fernández Meneses. “Making Sense of Genre: The ‘Quality Thriller’ as a Vehicle to Revise a Controversial Past in Recent Spanish Cinema.” Studies in European cinema 15.2-3 (2018): 198–214. Web.