Shadows on the Wall

Kimi

dir Steven Soderbergh
scr David Koepp
prd Michael Polaire, David Koepp
with Zoe Kravitz, Byron Bowers, Jaime Camil, Rita Wilson, Erika Christensen, Derek DelGaudio, Robin Givens, Charles Halford, Devin Ratray, Jacob Vargas, Alex Dobrenko, Emily Kuroda
release US 11.Feb.22
22/US Warners 1h29

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Set during the pandemic, this thriller instantly connects with an audience familiar with feelings of reticence and isolation even in crowded places. It also has a voyeuristic premise that quickly takes on Hitchcockian vibes. Steven Soderbergh directs the film expertly, playing on the way people watch each other, carefully tightening the screws to create suspense that reverberates through each beautifully orchestrated set-piece. This is breathtakingly lean, tight filmmaking.

In Seattle, home worker Angela (Kravitz) is a tech expert who helps new digital assistant Kimi better understand her users. She's also gripped by agoraphobia, keeping an eye on neighbours through her windows, but afraid to go outside to meet the one she likes, Terry (Bowers). So he comes over. Then in her work, she thinks she hears a woman being attacked. Looking into it, she contacts legal advisor Natalie (Wilson), but their meeting takes a turn. And in the background, Antonio (Camil) is following Angela's progress as he shakes down the company's boss (DelGaudio).

Skilfully establishing the characters and premise, the film draws us into the story long before anything menacing happens, freaking us out with Angela's crippling fear. Sharp jolts are smoothly set up, so they deliver a double whammy of chills. The sound mix is particularly inventive, as are Soderbergh's cinematography and editing, which make inventive use of computer screens and video chats to offer insight into relationships. Angela rolls her eyes at the constant phoned-in advice from her mother (Givens), and later has virtual appointments with her dentist and therapist, neither of which help much.

Performances are natural and understated, getting instantly under the surface as they reveal a range of moods, fears and intentions. Kravitz is terrific at the centre, quietly building sympathy as she pulls us into her perspective. So the nastiness she encounters feels genuinely shocking. This makes each character feel very real in their opaqueness, including side figures like Ratray (as a friend she doesn't know she has). Camil is superb as the shady villain of the piece, and Wilson makes Natalie wonderfully slippery.

Without ever pushing things over the top, Soderbergh gives the film a riveting guerrilla-style vibe and a gritty sense of humour, a combination that adds both urgency and humanity as the action ramps up. There's also a steady stream of unexpected twists in Angela's odyssey, which is visually terrifying as seen through her unnerved eyes. So it's both inspiring and cool to see her working through her personal issues, using her tenacity to turn the tables.

themes, language, violence, sexuality 12.Feb.22

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