KIMI - A Unique Thriller Drama with Slow Start but Strong Ending

Yesterday I found out about this movie which was just released on HBO Go that intrigued me. It did not play in the cinemas but seemed to have interesting premise. All right, I'll get right to it then.

Brief Synopsis

Angela Childs (Zoë Kravitz - Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, The Divergent Series: Allegiant etc) was a tech worker working for a company that developed virtual assistant application called Kimi. Being an agoraphobic (see Notes below), Angela was not able to leave her apartment.

While doing her work, Angela somehow discovered evidence of a crime. Due to the seriousness of the crime, she had no choice but to face her greatest fear by going outside to properly report it to the authorities.

So what would happen to Angela? Find them all in this thriller movie.

End of Brief Synopsis

When I started watching this movie, I had a feeling that it would be a bit slow. It was a good thing that I was prepared with it, otherwise I might lose my patience and probably stopped watching as it took > 1/2 hour to get to the interesting part. But once we get to this part, it was pretty suspenseful and I was able to enjoy it better with the faster pace and better than expected final third.

Aside from Zoë Kravitz, there were few support characters as well whose names were familiar to me, such as Robin Givens (Riverdale TV series etc) as Angela's mother and Rita Wilson (Jingle All the Way etc) as Angela's indirect superior Natalie Chowdhury. In addition there was also Byron Bowers as Angela's neighbor and few other cast. But obviously the star of this movie was Zoë Kravitz who also received praise for her performance.

This movie was directed by Steven Soderbergh (critically acclaimed director of movies like Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Che: Part one & two, No Sudden Move, Logan Lucky and few others). Personally for me though, I would have preferred it if the pace was consistent from the early part. I mean I can understand the importance of context but I did not think it require almost half of the movie to get to the good part. It has a duration of only 89 minutes including closing credits without and mid or post end credit scene.

As a fan of thriller movie, this one was quite OK. Despite the slow start, the end was quite satisfying. I also like the topic and the realistic condition in the US with people wearing masks outside due to the pandemic. It did not have a complicated plot and was easy enough to digest. Be warned that there was a brief nude scene, which would explain the maturity rating of 18+. Those who are fans of such thriller crime drama where the focus was on one person's struggle to face her phobia, can certainly enjoy this film which surprisingly did not feel like a TV movie. 

Mike's movie moments rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Notes (taken from Wikipedia):

Agoraphobia is a mental and behavioral disorder, specifically an anxiety disorder characterized by symptoms of anxiety in situations where the person perceives their environment to be unsafe with no easy way to escape. These situations can include open spaces, public transit, shopping centers, or simply being outside their home. Being in these situations may result in a panic attack. Those affected will go to great lengths to avoid these situations. In severe cases people may become completely unable to leave their homes.