It is a moving movie; it has a very good plot and quality performances; it is too undervalued; I highly recommend it.
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DogePelis201530 May 2021
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therealjaysmoke21 August 2020Brilliant story, brilliant acting, brilliant directing. I don't understand why this movie has a low rating. From the very beginning, it captures you, quite sad at some point but it just kept getting better. A well deserving ending I must say.
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sjanders-8643020 October 2020Lone Sherfig directs this wonderful story that is not far fetched. The mom and two boys run from violent dad, a cop. They meet Tahar Rahim who is managing a Russian restaurant. The lawyer friend of Tahar's takes Zoe's case and wins. Her husband goes to jail. Bravo. I could watch Zoe Kazan read the phone book. Now I discover Tahar Rahim is also a great actor. Enjoyed this film. Even minor characters are interesting like the nurse and the lawyer. Bill Nighy is great to see also.
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Red-12523 August 2022The Kindness of Strangers (2019) was written and directed by Lone Scherfig. Scherfig is a Danish filmmaker who specializes in romantic comedies. This movie is not a romantic comedy.
Zoe Kazan portrays Clara, who is from Buffalo, NY. Clara has escaped from her abusive husband and traveled to New York City with her two sons. It's there, as she struggles to survive, that she encounters many people. Some are dismissive or cruel. Some are kind and welcoming.
Clara's husband is depicted in the film. I give Scherfig high marks for making him a handsome, charming person. He has Antisocial Personality Disorder, but you would never know it. (When you think about it, most bad guys in movies look like bad guys. Not here.)
Acting honors go to Zoe Kazan. (Yes--she's the granddaughter of director Elia Kazan.) Kazan makes her character come alive. There are many wonderful actors in this film, especially the two that play Clara's children, but Kazan is the star, and when she is onscreen you can't take your eyes off her.
The Kindness of Strangers has a weak IMDb rating of 6.4. What movie did those raters see? (Other IMDb reviewers asked the same question.) I thought that it was an outstanding movie, and rated it 9. -
jknousak1 January 2021A thoughtful movie. Pretty much any movie w/ Bill Nighy (as actor and producer no less) is worth a consideration at the least and a viewing as well. And so it is w/ this gem.
I especially like an international cast --- British, Arab-French, Indian, American, Danish, Canadian -- that's always a surprise that a cast can be cobbled together from 'afar' to create and participate in an 'international' story -- displaced/journeyed people in unfamiliar settings/surroundings, hopeful for a better future. Ahh, the immigrant story, eh? -
The core story is about a young mother of two boys, married to an abusive policeman. They live outside the city and as the movie starts Zoe Kazan as Clara is driving into the city with the boys, her explanation is they are taking a short vacation.
In reality she is getting away from her abusive husband, desperate for a way out and to a better life for her and the boys. In the process things happen and her survival depends on the kindness of strangers. A nurse who leads a self-help group, workers at a soup kitchen, a manager of a Russian restaurant, and assorted others.
The success of the movie depends on how Zoe Kazan carries her part and she carries it well. Good movie for anyone who has an interest in human relations.
We watched it on Amazon movies via ROKU streaming. -
nicholasabadzis14 March 2020The understated quality of this movie might be why it hasn't received better reviews. I don't think it means to be a treatise on homelessness or a precise rendition of the conditions thereof (an assumption I've seen some high profile critics make). That's a fate that befalls one of the characters and her two children, part of an ensemble whose interlinked stories together make a case for empathy and impulsive altruism being among the most admirable aspects of human nature.
Homelessness is one thematic layer to a story that investigates kindness as the social glue that matters most and is possibly also the most underrated of dispositions or inclinations, often being seen as weak or oversensitive. Personally, I found it a lovely film, quite moving in places with its acknowledgment that, without kindness and the generosity of strangers, society would fall apart. -
srgymrat337 July 2021The production value isn't great - but honestly it's feel good , the characters are endearing and real and it's worth your time .
The protagonists didn't meet in some magical way , instead it really is through genuine kindness in real life situations which leaves the movie feeling genuine .
Good message , relatable characters and leaves you feeling better about humanity . -
lynansaysingle18 March 2021The movie touches you. Its sad and depressing and it can be lonely. The desperation of a mother who is trying her best to keep her children safe, fed an provide shelter. I don't think its slow. I would have liked to see a bit more character development in the beginning or some background on the main characters. Just to see how bad the situation was that made a mother take her kids away without a plan, financially. I know she talked about the whys and what happened but I think its better seen, more effective in the story. The acting was good, I teared up. Its good to see a happy ending after. All and all it is a heartwarming story.
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gemfesty18 February 2020Old school feel good movie. Came away feeling very pleased. Cast of diverse characters whose fates brought them together in a lovely story. Enough connection between characters so as not to feel you are trying to follow multiple/individual story lines.
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kimmgould2 March 2021The atmospherics and pace of this movie seem a deliberate way to demonstrate what happens when we notice other people, strangers who may be struggling right before our eyes, people who could do with a bit of kidness.
Notice the gradual cycling around of each of the characters, passing in the doorway, wandering into a soup kitchen, parked under an apartment window. The perfection of Zoe Kazan stroking the retro office chair. She had passed that chair on the street and now she and the chair were reunited.
This is a movie I could watch a few times, and I'm sure I would notice fresh nuance each time. -
bagpussjazz8 August 2020I loved this film. It has an unwavering pace and it gently wraps itself around you as you watch it. I felt gently enveloped. I cared about the characters and I realised about half an hour in, that I was hooked. I really do not understand the negative comments about no story, or ending. The story line was deftly projected, the characters being delineated almost like a web being woven in front of you. It's not a thrill film, so if you like things simple and easy to digest, then stick to a diet of fast food; this is a repast of many dishes, all of them fine food.
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maniort16 February 2020There is nothing wrong with a movie that isn't polished like a diamond. No, the writing isn't perfect and the acting is not genius (albeit good), but stories are bigger than their words. The cinematography is very nice, especially if you're a fan of NY.
I look forward to more from the creator. -
JustOneOpinion5 December 2021Often, even with films based on true stories/events, I find the story or characters to be unrealistic; but not in this film. There's still a few moments of course, nothing is perfect after all, but overall it felt like real life being portrayed. I really enjoyed it and would watch it again.
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Well we have been here before. European director makes a film set in the US but it deals with the US as if it were a caring country with social programs instead of a cutthroat capitalist Darwinian xperiment
Hence the negative comments from some who do not recognize the place no guns no car-chases and are totally at sea
This is a lovely sweet if totally unlikely scenario. Everyone is very nice and if not at first they become nice. The one baddie gets his comeuppance because the system gets it right. Everyone cares. So yes a Danish filmmaker's view of a potential Nueva York
You'd almost want to live there. If that was a real place Bush the son would be vindicated. We'd really all want to live there; we'd want those "freedoms"
Absolute must-see if you like humanity and have faith in it; if you think violence brutality money might is right etc are missing here look elsewhere this film is not for you. It makes you feel warm inside. It heals you.
And yes it is slow-er than Speed or Tarantino. It is about life and hope even when things are not rosy ... And Tahar and Zoe are both ORRSOME actors ... -
ulf-635-5233679 February 2022"What about you, Bonnie? Did you get manage to get through the week without hitting your dog?" Lone Scherfig has a unique fingerspitzengefühl and an absolute pitch for the distress of life. She has composed a breathtaking tale about a collection of odd existences colliding in the New York winter. A statement about life's many adversities but where goodness always triumphs in the end. A theme that the film industry is in dire need of.
It's a must see. -
Cten0517 February 2020It appears that most reviewers sought an adrenaline-filled action thriller or jazzy melodrama. This is not one of that too-common coin. Rather, like most films in which the quietly brilliant Bill Nighy appears, this one is delicate, smooth, evocative, relevant to just about every human who is not trying to escape being human (or is working to escape the madness of modern society and return to being just human).
This film honorably expands the canon of interwoven lifelines each of which, like the Borromean rings, supports and enriches other already-solid stories. Like Crash, 360, Magnolia and Hereafter, all of the characters are entirely plausible, especially when they find themselves coping with unfamiliar and threatening circumstances. Most rise to opportunity for self-improvement; a few find a chute to the pit.
Like most truly mind-expanding (dare one say "spiritual"?) movies, this one faces the conscious viewer with a series of "I've been there too" and "what would I do?" and "who would help me?" moments. And for the generous of heart, two persistent questions: How have I been helped along by people with no reason to get involved but their own generous mindsets; and What opportunities to help others, and thereby myself and my world, are presenting themselves in this moment?
Quiet, compelling, and worth a slot in any ethics or social-psychology class. -
Love the cast, the acting, the writing, the story- all of it was so clever and intertwined. A really beautiful story of how small acts of kindness can mean the world to other people. Bill Nighy and Zoe Kazan are amazing actors and them together is everything I didn't know I needed. Give this movie a shot, it will bless your soul.
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wonderstone_entertainment19 February 2022I don't make this a habit to write a review before the film is over, but I'm just a little over an hour in and breaking. This film is so powerful, insightful, and has shaken me up in ways that very few films have. Nearly every scene of this film reflects how the smallest of gestures can make a world of difference to someone, whether it's for the good or bad, and it makes me rethink my every decision. My choices to be kind to others, whether I feel their situations are genuine or a calculated scam, no longer matter to me. This film, even more so than my faith, has disallowed me to ignore that a single choice in a moment can wreck or rebuild a life.
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dtporter-886-88302021 February 2022Human. What distinguishes human from animal? Animals protect their own. And, human typically, like animal, protects their own tribe, family, clan. But what makes human different, if not beyond, animal is protecting beyond our tribe, family, clan.
"The Kindness of Strangers" is only appreciated when you've been not a member of the tribe, family, clan. Until you've been homeless, your empathy, yes your very core level of appreciation, is moot, mute and mental. Scherfig makes us care, hear, and feel. This is the experience of "The Kindness of Strangers."
To merely think is not human. To ignore the needy is not human. To exclude because "they" are not "us," is the ultimate indictment of our moot, mute, and mental state. It is good to be shaken from that cesspool of self-adulation. Thank you Scherfig for "The Kindness of Strangers." -
jkrempelinsac18 February 2022Definitely named for what the story portrayed. The goodness of people in this story gave me goosebumps and tears. Beautiful acting, great storytelling. Greatest good feel movie in a long time! Love it.
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spencejoshua-227367 October 2020This film is an oddity.......but in a good way. The story is centered around kindness and weaves the lives of common citizens together for an overall "feel good" experience. The interesting aspect is that even though the film is a positive tale, it deals with several negative elements of the real world. Child abuse, homelessness, drug use, loneliness, loss, etc. It intertwines these hopeless tones with a shimer of light at the end of the tunnel. The characters have just enough quirkiness to draw us in and hold our attention until each storyline has arrived at its respected destination.
Beautiful cinematography, great acting and fantastic story. I would watch again. -
jdjj-273-7459828 July 2020And beautifully observed, well acted and atmospheric. It tells a simple story, believably, to a beautiful soundtrack. A thoroughly enjoyable film
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Let me preface this review by saying I haven't seen a movie this wonderful in ages. That said, how could a movie titled "The Kindness of Strangers" not be charming? It stars Zoe Kazan, Tahar Rahim, Bill Nighy and a few other lesser-known actors. It opens with a mom and her two children against the backdrop of a spectacular view of Manhattan. They're there ostensibly on vacation. However, we quickly learn they're escaping an abusive dad, who happens to be a cop. We then encounter several other characters that are dealing with various personal problems of their own. Serendipity is the underlying theme here, as their lives intersect in mutually beneficial ways. I enjoyed everything about this film. It's rare when great writing, natural acting, and remarkable cinematography converge in a movie. I just wish there were more movies like this being made. It almost seems like something from the Golden Age of movies. The films of Frank Capra come to mind. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
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johnfc-18-68485019 July 2021Strange little movie. Not sure the first fifteen minutes or so. But I ended up loving it! Just watch it and count your blessings if you have a good life!