Review of 'Kimi'

Just saw Steven Soderbergh's Kimi on HBO Max starring Zoë Kravitz, not in the title role, but as Angela, the highly intelligent, resourceful, ethical worker for Amygdala, the company that sells and runs Kimi, an updated Alexa, which serves its customers better by recording all their interactions and making them available to human listeners if there's a problem. Angela's job is to listen to recordings in which there may indeed have been some kind of problem. The problem that sets her in motion is a rape murder.

As such, Kimi is a current hi-tech viscerally violent update of Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 Rear Window, considered by some to be his best movie, and an undeniable masterpiece. I don't know if Kimi is Soderbergh's best, but it's a top-notch combination of surprises, setbacks, narrow escapes, topped off with some breathtaking action.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

Other than Angela. my favorite character -- and unlikely hero -- is Kevin. We see him looking at Angela through a window across the way, a surely malapted guy who's going to be trouble for Angela. Instead, he proves to be her savior. An excellent, unexpected development in the story.

Likewise, Terry's trajectory as Angela's boyfriend develops in an unexpected way. Angela has problems with people. She sleeps with Terry, ignores him and practically glares him out of her apartment afterward, only to invite him back the next day. But we and Angela expect Terry not Kevin to come to Angela's rescue. Instead, he shows up at the end to celebrate after Kevin has made it possible for Angela to kill three of her would-be assassins with a staple gun. Yep, she's one resourceful woman, especially when she's fighting for her life.

The bad guys, corporate and hitmen, are the most obvious. But that's ok. All in all, we get a fast-paced, digitally accurate movie, with a happy ending that's good to see in these troubled times. Kudos not only to Soderbergh, but David Koepp for the writing.