NatrlBornThrllr

I think it goes wide on November 10th. See it. No, really...go and see this fucking movie. Seriously.

-JP

wendersfan

Why? I doubt that I'd enjoy it.

Fincher Fan

I'm eagerly awaiting it. Have you seen it, OP?

Josh H

I'll probably catch it. Sounds good from what I've read about it.

NatrlBornThrllr

People like you are the very reason I made my post. I don't doubt that there are a lot of people out there thinking, "bah, just another buddy detective movie starring a couple of washed up actors...I won't like it." Trust me, if you have a sense of humor, any sense of humor at all, you'll like this movie. Everybody I talked to after the screening agreed that it's one of the best films they've seen this year. The whole movie is extremely self-aware, never tries to be more than it is, and ends up being the funniest anti-genre movie I've ever seen, and one of the funniest all-around movies I've seen in a long time. Give it a chance. If I'm wrong, you wasted $7 and a couple of hours of your life...sorry for the bad recommendation. However, I don't see how anybody can not enjoy this movie (extremely religious or content-sensitive people aside, since it earned every bit of it's R-rating).

Yeah, I caught a screening of it at the Austin Film Festival with a Shane Black Q&A afterwards. I saw Shopgirl earlier in the night, and thought it was pretty solid. Talking with people outside the theater between movies, we all agreed that it probably wouldn't live up to Shopgirl. Nobody was expecting much out of it. An older couple that I was talking to even said that they were tired, and that if it was as 'blah' as they expected it to be, that they wouldn't give it more than a half an our of their time. I saw them after the movie, and they were still laughing and quoting lines to one another. Needless to say, we were all wrong in doubting the film.

Again, a message to everyone: give this movie a shot.

-JP

DodgingCars

It looks like it might be good. Terrible title though. Early IMDB reviews give it a 7.5 (562 votes) and it has a 78% at rottentomatoes with 46 reviews. Pretty good.

It's by the guy who wrote the Lethal Weapon series -- 2 of which were really good (I actually liked the other 2 too, but mostly because I liked the characters).

He also wrote Long Kiss Goodnight and Last Boyscout, both of which I enjoyed.

Fincher Fan

All they need to sell it is two words: Shane Black. You'll either want to see it or you won't.

FinkPish

I caught this tonight, and I can honestly say it is one of the funniest movies I seen in a very long time. The dialogue is extremely sharp and quick, and the story plays out like the best 80s action flicks. The audience I was with ate it all up; definitely one to see in a theater with a big crowd. I highly recommend it.

wendersfan

I'm honored and insulted, in equal measure.

It's unlikely I'll see it, simply because I already see a ton of movies and unless it plays someplace in walking distance of my house I probably can't be bothered. It's sad, but true...

SPiRAL

Fink, did you see it at The Grove ?

FinkPish

Yeah, I caught the 10:10PM show. Nice big audience.

RocShemp

I'm really looking forward to this movie. Glad to hear you liked it.

Comfort Eagle

It looks pretty interesting so I will check it out for sure. thanks for the impressions.

NatrlBornThrllr

I actually like the title. Film critic Pauline Kael once said that most American movies are nothing more than "kiss kiss, bang bang." This movie makes fun of this very fact, and given that, I couldn't think of a more appropriately ironic title.

-JP

Anubis2005X

Hmm, knowing nothing about this movie I thought it was some vague reference to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Guess not!

Geofferson

I definitely plan on checking this out.

rexinnih

On the fence about this one. I like most of Black's earlier stuff so will end up seeing it. Depends if on DVD though.....

DodgingCars

Knowing the origin makes the title better. I had never heard that quote.

obscurelabel

The title has been used several times before:
http://www.imdb.com/find?q=kiss%20ki...g%20bang;s=all

At one time it was associated with the James Bond series, I think I read that Bond was called "Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" on posters in China (not really sure about this). Anyway, I have a couple of Bond cash-in LPs from the sixties that have "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" as song titles so the phrase has been used at least since then.

NatrlBornThrllr

Oh, I'm fully aware of that. However, that wasn't what the title for this particular film stemmed from. I asked Shane Black about it after his Q&A at the screening I went to, and he said that it was a riff on a Pauline Kael quote. Here's the full quote, for anybody who is interested...

"The words "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," which I saw on an Italian movie poster, are perhaps the briefest statement imaginable of the basic appeal of movies. This appeal is what attracts us, and ultimately what makes us despair when we begin to understand how seldom movies are more than this."

-JP

Tyler_Durden

I saw the movie at the Helsinki International Film Festival a little over a month ago, and it is indeed very funny. Black's scipt is sure-footed and Kilmer's character especially inspired. The film's extreme self-awareness may become a little grating toward the end (they could easily have gone without the disgustingly smug coda) but the cocktail of sex, violence and comedy keeps the film afloat. It deserves to do well at the box office.

Spring Roll

Happened to catch the advance screening last week.
It was one of the best times in the theatres I had in a long time. Audience was rooting for the hero and there were lots and lots of great zingers and "oooh" "ahhh" moments.
It was strictly Lethal Weapon-inspired with Robert Downing Jr. in Mel Gibson's role (a few scenes, I really felt that he was mimicing Mel) and Val Kilmer (great performance). This is a hard R action-noir flick with lots of violence, gratius nudity and coarse language.
High recommended.

Dan

Saw this at the 30th annual Toronto International Film Festival, and I recommend it as well. Not your average buddy-flick, yet... it is.

scott shelton

Agreed. Black could've lifted all that material right out and the film would play fine.

Otherwise, this a wonderful movie. I've missed Black's screenplays, so to hear his dialog and watch his construction of action sequences was a kick.

And Michelle Monaghan makes a great impression. She's got the acting goods.

filmerp

Nice bonus: naked Shannyn Sossamon!

The word of mouth alone got me psyched for this film. It had to counteract all the terrible tv spots playing. Robert Downey Jr. and Joel Silver brought the film to my class tonight to screen it, and it got the best reaction of any film we've seen this semester. I asked Silver who was in charge of the marketing, since I thought it was actually a disservice so far. He responded that he takes a great deal of involvement over the marketing and didn't seem pleased at my assessment (though John Ottman told me he thought the marketing sucked as well).