list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/Kiss_Kiss_Bang_Bang/243926/default.aspx Title: Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
Year: 2005
Director: Shane Black
Plot: A thesp-turned-crook gets a chance at career in movies as well as crime scene investigation in this offbeat action comedy with nods to Raymond Chandler. Harry Lockhart (Robert Downey Jr.) is a struggling New York actor who high-tails it to Los Angeles. Once there, Lockhart winds up at the posh home of the aptly-named homosexual private eye Gay Perry (Val Kilmer) amid a lavish Hollywood party, hoping to score a life-changing role in a Hollywood feature. Harry becomes reacquainted with Harmony (Michelle Monaghan), a girl he had a major crush on in his small-town Indiana high school, who may be a bit more interested in him now than she was years ago. He takes both her and her girlfriend home with him, but - in a moment of drunken stupor - accidentally sleeps with the wrong woman. Meanwhile, when a series of female bodies turns up across L.A., Harry slowly breaks into detective work, mentored by Perry. The biggest twist? Black riffs Adaptation and other films by having Harry (via satirical narration) write the movie while he is living it. Harry assures the audience that unlike Lord of the Rings, this one won't have seventeen endings. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang marks the first directorial credit for Shane Black, who created the Lethal Weapon franchise. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 44
Number of Lists: 45
Number of blog posts: 6
Number of discussion threads: 3
SpoutRating: 3
]]>Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:02:36 GMTKiss Kiss, Bang Bang2005Shane BlackA thesp-turned-crook gets a chance at career in movies as well as crime scene investigation in this offbeat action comedy with nods to <a href="/players/P____84666/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Raymond Chandler</a>. Harry Lockhart (Robert Downey Jr.) is a struggling New York actor who high-tails it to Los Angeles. Once there, Lockhart winds up at the posh home of the aptly-named homosexual private eye Gay Perry (<a href="/players/P____38142/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Val Kilmer</a>) amid a lavish Hollywood party, hoping to score a life-changing role in a Hollywood feature. Harry becomes reacquainted with Harmony (<a href="/players/P___359743/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Michelle Monaghan</a>), a girl he had a major crush on in his small-town Indiana high school, who may be a bit more interested in him now than she was years ago. He takes both her and her girlfriend home with him, but - in a moment of drunken stupor - accidentally sleeps with the wrong woman. Meanwhile, when a series of female bodies turns up across L.A., Harry slowly breaks into detective work, mentored by Perry. The biggest twist? Black riffs <a href=/films/205733/default.aspx style='text-decoration:underline'>Adaptation</a> and other films by having Harry (via satirical narration) write the movie while he is living it. Harry assures the audience that unlike <a href=/films/20854/default.aspx style='text-decoration:underline'>Lord of the Rings</a>, this one won't have seventeen endings. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang marks the first directorial credit for Shane Black, who created the <a href=/films/20195/default.aspx style='text-decoration:underline'>Lethal Weapon</a> franchise. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide44Tag Target (>10)45633http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/u44381dx6x0.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/Kiss_Kiss_Bang_Bang/243926/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/groups/Weekly_Theme/Re_Weekly_Theme_for_September_22_Breaking_the_Fou/625/35607/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: SkyPilot
Post To: Weekly Theme
Post Date: 9/26/2008 2:34:33 PM
Body: [quote user="mercurial"] Probably one of my favorite and least annoying uses of breaking the fourth wall is Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer were hilarious and the entire movie is Robert Downey Jr.'s characters talking to the audience and disrupting the film. [/quote] I love that movie. I'm going to make everyone on the Spout Team watch it. What are some annoying uses, merc?
]]>Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:34:33 GMTSkyPilotWeekly Theme9/26/2008 2:34:33 PM[quote user="mercurial"] Probably one of my favorite and least annoying uses of breaking the fourth wall is Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer were hilarious and the entire movie is Robert Downey Jr.'s characters talking to the audience and disrupting the film. [/quote] I love that movie. I'm going to make everyone on the Spout Team watch it. What are some annoying uses, merc? http://www.spout.com/groups/Weekly_Theme/Re_Weekly_Theme_for_September_22_Breaking_the_Fou/625/35459/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: mercurial
Post To: Weekly Theme
Post Date: 9/23/2008 5:49:19 PM
Body: Probably one of my favorite and least annoying uses of breaking the fourth wall is Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer were hilarious and the entire movie is Robert Downey Jr.'s characters talking to the audience and disrupting the film. In terms of comedies, there is of course Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Wayne's World, The Mask and I'm pretty sure all of the Austin Powers films too. Along the lines of A Clockwork Orange and that creepy omniscient look directly into the camera, there is the end of Psycho where I always felt like Norman Bates was looking right at me; the end of Magnolia where Melora Walters character is being confronted by John C. Reilly's character and finally looks straight into the camera and smiles; and the end of The Devil's Advocate when Al Pacino as the Devil says that line about pride being his favorite sin and winks at the camera.
]]>Tue, 23 Sep 2008 21:49:19 GMTmercurialWeekly Theme9/23/2008 5:49:19 PMProbably one of my favorite and least annoying uses of breaking the fourth wall is Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer were hilarious and the entire movie is Robert Downey Jr.'s characters talking to the audience and disrupting the film. In terms of comedies, there is of course Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Wayne's World, The Mask and I'm pretty sure all of the Austin Powers films too. Along the lines of A Clockwork Orange and that creepy omniscient look directly into the camera, there is the end of Psycho where I always felt like Norman Bates was looking right at me; the end of Magnolia where Melora Walters character is being confronted by John C. Reilly's character and finally looks straight into the camera and smiles; and the end of The Devil's Advocate when Al Pacino as the Devil says that line about pride being his favorite sin and winks at the camera. http://www.spout.com/groups/Coming_Soon/New_Movies_Week_of_9_26_Shia_LaBeouf_censorship/216/35395/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: SkyPilot
Post To: Coming Soon
Post Date: 9/22/2008 4:40:11 PM
Body: New Movies Week of 9/26 Eagle Eye Spout's giving away five Eagle Eye swag packages this week. Each package includes an Eagle Eye zip-up hoodie, t-shirt, and flash drive pen (which is total spy gear: a pen and a flash drive). Find out how to win. Eagle Eye makes the second Hitchcock-inspired flick from Shia LaBeouf and director D.J. Caruso. Eagle Eye sounds a lot like The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Disturbia (was this good?) is a teen update of Rear Window. Would you like to see LaBeouf in another Hitchcock update? Would he make a good Norman Bates? I'll say this for the young man--he's starting to pull off being a sex sybol, with or without a crushed hand. (Sorry to hear about that Shia; it'll just make you more impressive, though.) Did anyone out there think he was the best part of Indiana Jones 4? "What is that? Oh, that's just a thing." Michelle Monaghan was good in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang but the chemistry between Robert Downey, Jr. and Val Kilmer stole that show. Miracle at St. Anna It's a shame that Spike Lee's new movie isn't impressing anyone, because I think it looks really interesting. It made me realize I've never seen a WWII movie about an all-black "Buffalo Soldier" unit. Maybe that's because America prefers to think of themselves as the unambiguous good guys during WWII? Thoughts on this?Also, I haven't seen many Spike Lee movies but I really liked Inside Man. Nights in Rodanthe Diane Lane and Richard Gere in an adaptation from a Nicholas Sparks (Message in a Bottle, The Notebook). I like Diane Lane, she was great in that TV miniseries Lonesome Dove. It also stars Tommy Lee Jones and Robert Duvall, and the moral universe of it feels kind of like No Country for Old Men. Richard Gere on the other hand--sure he's good-looking, but otherwise I can't figure out the appeal. The only thing I've liked him in is the Bob Dylan biopic I'm Not There. Towelhead is in wide release now. Anyone seen this yet? I'm pretty interested. LIMITED RELEASE Blindness Wow, this sounds interesting to me: when a sudden plague of blindness strikes a city, the afflicted must band together to survive the cruel conditions of their quarantine. Starring Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Danny Glover, and Gael Garcia Bernal. This reminds me of that Stephen King TV miniseries The Stand, which I'm hoping and praying will come to DVD. Anyone remember it? I loved the crap out of it when I was 13, haven't seen it since. Choke I like Sam Rockwell, who stars in this adaptation of a Chuck Palahniuk novel. (Palahniuk also wrote Fight Club, which led to the rare case of a movie that surpasses the book.) Rockwell's charcter cruises at sex addict meetings and asks for handouts after pretending to choke in restaurants. Kevin Buist from FilmCouch saw this flick at Toronto and he didn't like it very much. He and Paul will discuss it in FilmCouch #89 (which comes out 9/26.) Forever Strong When professional rugby player Rick Penning (Sean Faris, who's also in the Fight Club-in-high-school Never Back Down) is put behind bars, the warden (Sean Astin) gives Rick a choice: stay behind bars, or play for his long-time rival, Highland Rugby. Rick chooses the latter, and bonds with his new teammates. When Rick's released from prison and returns to his old team, he's given a difficult choice to make when his team faces Highland in the National Championship. Okay, it sounds kind of formulaic but I would totally see that. Fireproof Kirk Cameron plays a firefighter who can risk his life on the job, but can't save his marriage. This one's receiving heavy promotion from Christian radio station KLOV. Question for you guys: any good movies about people trying to salvage their marriage, and the marriage works out? The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela The tag line "Not your everyday fairy tale" seems pretty accurate: Queen Raquela is a Filipina transsexual prostitute searching for her prince on the internet. Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story Atwater was many things, and different things depending on who you talk to: rogue, political assassin, godfather of American politics (he mentored Karl Rove and George W. Bush). This documentary from Stefan Forbes tries to look at all the angles of a complicated, influential guy. Lucky Ones Three troubled Iraqi veterans take a road trip across the US. The vets are Tim Robbins, Rachel McAdams (I love you, dream woman!) and Michael Pena. Whaledreamers Julian Lennon produced this documentary on the relationship between whales and a tribe of aborigines. Both the whales and people group are slowly disappearing. Lennon, Pierce Brosnan and Geoffrey Rush make appearances. Obscene Documentary on Barney Rosset, the influential publisher who battled censorship (he successfully published Henry Miller's Tropic of Cancer after a long legal battle) and introduced American readers to the literature of Samuel Beckett, Tom Stoppard, Harold Pinter, and Eugene Ionesco, among others. He also owned a porno theater. Humboldt County An uptight med student bonds with his pot-loving new girlfriend. Interesting cast (including Fairuza Balk and Peter Bogdanovich), so it might be more interesting than it sounds.
]]>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 20:40:11 GMTSkyPilotComing Soon9/22/2008 4:40:11 PMNew Movies Week of 9/26 Eagle Eye Spout's giving away five Eagle Eye swag packages this week. Each package includes an Eagle Eye zip-up hoodie, t-shirt, and flash drive pen (which is total spy gear: a pen and a flash drive). Find out how to win. Eagle Eye makes the second Hitchcock-inspired flick from Shia LaBeouf and director D.J. Caruso. Eagle Eye sounds a lot like The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Disturbia (was this good?) is a teen update of Rear Window. Would you like to see LaBeouf in another Hitchcock update? Would he make a good Norman Bates? I'll say this for the young man--he's starting to pull off being a sex sybol, with or without a crushed hand. (Sorry to hear about that Shia; it'll just make you more impressive, though.) Did anyone out there think he was the best part of Indiana Jones 4? "What is that? Oh, that's just a thing." Michelle Monaghan was good in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang but the chemistry between Robert Downey, Jr. and Val Kilmer stole that show. Miracle at St. Anna It's a shame that Spike Lee's new movie isn't impressing anyone, because I think it looks really interesting. It made me realize I've never seen a WWII movie about an all-black "Buffalo Soldier" unit. Maybe that's because America prefers to think of themselves as the unambiguous good guys during WWII? Thoughts on this?Also, I haven't seen many Spike Lee movies but I really liked Inside Man. Nights in Rodanthe Diane Lane and Richard Gere in an adaptation from a Nicholas Sparks (Message in a Bottle, The Notebook). I like Diane Lane, she was great in that TV miniseries Lonesome Dove. It also stars Tommy Lee Jones and Robert Duvall, and the moral universe of it feels kind of like No Country for Old Men. Richard Gere on the other hand--sure he's good-looking, but otherwise I can't figure out the appeal. The only thing I've liked him in is the Bob Dylan biopic I'm Not There. Towelhead is in wide release now. Anyone seen this yet? I'm pretty interested. LIMITED RELEASE Blindness Wow, this sounds interesting to me: when a sudden plague of blindness strikes a city, the afflicted must band together to survive the cruel conditions of their quarantine. Starring Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Danny Glover, and Gael Garcia Bernal. This reminds me of that Stephen King TV miniseries The Stand, which I'm hoping and praying will come to DVD. Anyone remember it? I loved the crap out of it when I was 13, haven't seen it since. Choke I like Sam Rockwell, who stars in this adaptation of a Chuck Palahniuk novel. (Palahniuk also wrote Fight Club, which led to the rare case of a movie that surpasses the book.) Rockwell's charcter cruises at sex addict meetings and asks for handouts after pretending to choke in restaurants. Kevin Buist from FilmCouch saw this flick at Toronto and he didn't like it very much. He and Paul will discuss it in FilmCouch #89 (which comes out 9/26.) Forever Strong When professional rugby player Rick Penning (Sean Faris, who's also in the Fight Club-in-high-school Never Back Down) is put behind bars, the warden (Sean Astin) gives Rick a choice: stay behind bars, or play for his long-time rival, Highland Rugby. Rick chooses the latter, and bonds with his new teammates. When Rick's released from prison and returns to his old team, he's given a difficult choice to make when his team faces Highland in the National Championship. Okay, it sounds kind of formulaic but I would totally see that. Fireproof Kirk Cameron plays a firefighter who can risk his life on the job, but can't save his marriage. This one's receiving heavy promotion from Christian radio station KLOV. Question for you guys: any good movies about people trying to salvage their marriage, and the marriage works out? The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela The tag line "Not your everyday fairy tale" seems pretty accurate: Queen Raquela is a Filipina transsexual prostitute searching for her prince on the internet. Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story Atwater was many things, and different things depending on who you talk to: rogue, political assassin, godfather of American politics (he mentored Karl Rove and George W. Bush). This documentary from Stefan Forbes tries to look at all the angles of a complicated, influential guy. Lucky Ones Three troubled Iraqi veterans take a road trip across the US. The vets are Tim Robbins, Rachel McAdams (I love you, dream woman!) and Michael Pena. Whaledreamers Julian Lennon produced this documentary on the relationship between whales and a tribe of aborigines. Both the whales and people group are slowly disappearing. Lennon, Pierce Brosnan and Geoffrey Rush make appearances. Obscene Documentary on Barney Rosset, the influential publisher who battled censorship (he successfully published Henry Miller's Tropic of Cancer after a long legal battle) and introduced American readers to the literature of Samuel Beckett, Tom Stoppard, Harold Pinter, and Eugene Ionesco, among others. He also owned a porno theater. Humboldt County An uptight med student bonds with his pot-loving new girlfriend. Interesting cast (including Fairuza Balk and Peter Bogdanovich), so it might be more interesting than it sounds. http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/8/27/34465.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 8/27/2008 4:01:05 PM
Body: Twitter, the popular micro-blogging service, has turned into a powerful tool in the hands of not only consumers but marketers of all stripes as well. Comcast, Paramount Pictures and a handful of others have all latched on to it as a way to communicate with customers, acting not only as a distribution platform but a conversation hub and customer service hub as well. Some of the biggest names in the social media marketing world are spending serious time brainstorming how to use Twitter for marketing, debating its usefulness and otherwise hashing out a series of best practices for utilizing the service. Media outlets have also turned to Twitter for many of the same reasons. TV Guide, Fox News and even Spout have a presence there to, again, promote their content and, in some cases, even engage in a back-and-forth with readers. But did you know that Darth Vader is twittering? How about Cobra Commander? In one of the most widely-discussed instances of fictional characters with Twitter accounts, the staff of Sterling Cooper - the ad agency in the hit AMC series Mad Men - have all been posting 140 charcter status updates. Initially thought to be an official effort by the cable channel, it was later found that no, these were fan efforts that almost fell victim from what was later construed as “miscommunication“, but which at first apparently looked like a take-down notice filed under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. With all these movie and TV characters expressing themselves, we thought it would be fun to see who our followers on Twitter thought should make their thoughts known in 140-characters or less. Here’s what we got back. Characters played by Val Kilmer appeared twice in the feedback. @treobenny put in his vote for Doc Holiday from Tombstone and Ryan Budke nominated Gay Perry from Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. @sabine24 put forth a bunch of names, including Frank N. Furter, Stanley Kowalski and Jack Sparrow. The Big Lebowski’s The Dude got the nod from @povertyjetset and @champura went deep into the well to bring out Daniel Plainview from There Will Be Blood. @tigershungry went even further for Pistachio Disguisey, Dana Carvey’s character from 2002’s Master of Disguise. Finally, @ryananderson will be taken out back and horse-whipped for suggesting Jar Jar Binks. In addition to this worthy list of nominations, here’s who we’d like to see on Twitter: The Guru Pitka (The Love Guru): Yes, the movie might have bombed and forced Mike Myers back into re-evaluating Austin Powers 4, but the pithy Pitka’s bumper-sticker life lessons are made for the format. Carl Dehham (King Kong): “Rough day. Locals speak of something we think translates to ‘big angry monkey.’ But filming continues. Ann seems wary, tho.” Capt. Jeffrey T. Spaulding (Animal Crackers): Come on. I’m a little ashamed of everyone - and myself - that a Groucho Marx character wasn’t among the first ones I thought of. I’m going with Spaulding simply because I think he gets off some better one-liners than my other choice, Duck Soup’s Rufus T. Firefly. Wolverine (X-Men): “Stabbed guy with claws. Had beer.” (repeat time and time again.) Gypsy (Mystery Science Theater 3000): The robot in charge of the Satellite of Love’s operations would be the ideal candidate to report on how Joel, Crow and Servo are holding up, as well as throw the occassional “@drforrester: You suck.” Master Control Program (Tron): Every post would conclude with “end of line.” Plus, he could brag about how easy it is to crack into Windows servers. Isaac Davis (Manhattan): Imagine the possibilities of Woody Allen’s character obsessing over the minutia of his relationships as well as sending missive after missive about his love of New York City and Ingmar Bergman film to all his followers. (Side note: Mariel Hemingway’s character Tracy would, on the other hand, have a Tumblr blog.) Peter Gibbons (Office Space): Maybe it’s a cop-out to think of Gibbons venting on his frustrations with his boss on Twitter (likely under a pseudonym to protect his shaky job) but it would still be pretty funny. Matt Hooper (Jaws): “Got call from some hick sheriff with what’s probably just an over-active imagination. At least he’s paying for the trip.” Chris Kelvin (Solaris): Just because every other post would be “Did I just see my dead wife? WTF!!!”" So who do you think would make a good presence on Twitter? Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:01:05 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com8/27/2008 4:01:05 PMTwitter, the popular micro-blogging service, has turned into a powerful tool in the hands of not only consumers but marketers of all stripes as well. Comcast, Paramount Pictures and a handful of others have all latched on to it as a way to communicate with customers, acting not only as a distribution platform but a conversation hub and customer service hub as well. Some of the biggest names in the social media marketing world are spending serious time brainstorming how to use Twitter for marketing, debating its usefulness and otherwise hashing out a series of best practices for utilizing the service. Media outlets have also turned to Twitter for many of the same reasons. TV Guide, Fox News and even Spout have a presence there to, again, promote their content and, in some cases, even engage in a back-and-forth with readers. But did you know that Darth Vader is twittering? How about Cobra Commander? In one of the most widely-discussed instances of fictional characters with Twitter accounts, the staff of Sterling Cooper - the ad agency in the hit AMC series Mad Men - have all been posting 140 charcter status updates. Initially thought to be an official effort by the cable channel, it was later found that no, these were fan efforts that almost fell victim from what was later construed as “miscommunication“, but which at first apparently looked like a take-down notice filed under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. With all these movie and TV characters expressing themselves, we thought it would be fun to see who our followers on Twitter thought should make their thoughts known in 140-characters or less. Here’s what we got back. Characters played by Val Kilmer appeared twice in the feedback. @treobenny put in his vote for Doc Holiday from Tombstone and Ryan Budke nominated Gay Perry from Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. @sabine24 put forth a bunch of names, including Frank N. Furter, Stanley Kowalski and Jack Sparrow. The Big Lebowski’s The Dude got the nod from @povertyjetset and @champura went deep into the well to bring out Daniel Plainview from There Will Be Blood. @tigershungry went even further for Pistachio Disguisey, Dana Carvey’s character from 2002’s Master of Disguise. Finally, @ryananderson will be taken out back and horse-whipped for suggesting Jar Jar Binks. In addition to this worthy list of nominations, here’s who we’d like to see on Twitter: The Guru Pitka (The Love Guru): Yes, the movie might have bombed and forced Mike Myers back into re-evaluating Austin Powers 4, but the pithy Pitka’s bumper-sticker life lessons are made for the format. Carl Dehham (King Kong): “Rough day. Locals speak of something we think translates to ‘big angry monkey.’ But filming continues. Ann seems wary, tho.” Capt. Jeffrey T. Spaulding (Animal Crackers): Come on. I’m a little ashamed of everyone - and myself - that a Groucho Marx character wasn’t among the first ones I thought of. I’m going with Spaulding simply because I think he gets off some better one-liners than my other choice, Duck Soup’s Rufus T. Firefly. Wolverine (X-Men): “Stabbed guy with claws. Had beer.” (repeat time and time again.) Gypsy (Mystery Science Theater 3000): The robot in charge of the Satellite of Love’s operations would be the ideal candidate to report on how Joel, Crow and Servo are holding up, as well as throw the occassional “@drforrester: You suck.” Master Control Program (Tron): Every post would conclude with “end of line.” Plus, he could brag about how easy it is to crack into Windows servers. Isaac Davis (Manhattan): Imagine the possibilities of Woody Allen’s character obsessing over the minutia of his relationships as well as sending missive after missive about his love of New York City and Ingmar Bergman film to all his followers. (Side note: Mariel Hemingway’s character Tracy would, on the other hand, have a Tumblr blog.) Peter Gibbons (Office Space): Maybe it’s a cop-out to think of Gibbons venting on his frustrations with his boss on Twitter (likely under a pseudonym to protect his shaky job) but it would still be pretty funny. Matt Hooper (Jaws): “Got call from some hick sheriff with what’s probably just an over-active imagination. At least he’s paying for the trip.” Chris Kelvin (Solaris): Just because every other post would be “Did I just see my dead wife? WTF!!!”" So who do you think would make a good presence on Twitter? Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/blogs/mercurial/archive/2008/2/29/25694.aspx Post By: mercurial
Post To: a filmblog
Post Date: 2/29/2008 5:52:56 AM
Body: An all around stupidly entertaining little film from the kind people of Canada, Weirdsville is an amalgam of the dark, witty dialogue and pacing of Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and the not-so-original plotline of "drugs + desperation = bad things" from countless movies (the most recent seen by myself being Smiley Face). Direction and farcically desperate, yet surprisingly effective characters keep this movie from being just another forgettable weekend rental.
]]>Fri, 29 Feb 2008 10:52:56 GMTmercuriala filmblog2/29/2008 5:52:56 AMAn all around stupidly entertaining little film from the kind people of Canada, Weirdsville is an amalgam of the dark, witty dialogue and pacing of Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and the not-so-original plotline of &quot;drugs + desperation = bad things&quot; from countless movies (the most recent seen by myself being Smiley Face). Direction and farcically desperate, yet surprisingly effective characters keep this movie from being just another forgettable weekend rental. http://www.spout.com/blogs/radiogerbil/archive/2007/5/26/9398.aspx Post By: radiogerbil
Post To: radiogerbil Blog
Post Date: 5/26/2007 2:35:23 AM
Body: Neo-Noir is an odd beast. It encompasses everything from “L.A. Confidential” to “The Usual Suspects” to “Pulp Fiction.” One of the latest additions to this genre is the satirical “Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.”Whereas most neo-noir films take themselves and their content seriously, KKBB makes fun of the genre while also remaining true to its finer points. Like other neo-noir films, nothing is as it seems and plot twists fly around as fast and plentiful as bullets. This film's difference is that the lead character knows he’s in a movie and pokes fun at the narrator device as well as miraculous survivals and how-did-I-not-think-of-that plot twists.The story begins with our lead man running away from cops after trying to boost some toys. In his haste, he accidentally runs into a movie audition and manages to land the part. He’s then flown out to Hollywood where a private detective starts giving him lessons on how to be a convincing detective on screen. On his first night of training, they accidentally witness a murder that embroils both of them in a convoluted murder mystery/thriller. Throughout it all, our unassuming lead man hooks up with his high school crush (who is, of course, somehow embroiled in it as well) and wittily slices up L.A. life in a sharp script that would make Joss Whedon proud. The film’s greatest assets are its sharp, sarcastic dialogue and bizarre plot twists. Despite its rambling, obtuse ending, the film is very enjoyable and highly recommended.
]]>Sat, 26 May 2007 06:35:23 GMTradiogerbilradiogerbil Blog5/26/2007 2:35:23 AMNeo-Noir is an odd beast. It encompasses everything from &ldquo;L.A. Confidential&rdquo; to &ldquo;The Usual Suspects&rdquo; to &ldquo;Pulp Fiction.&rdquo; One of the latest additions to this genre is the satirical &ldquo;Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.&rdquo;Whereas most neo-noir films take themselves and their content seriously, KKBB makes fun of the genre while also remaining true to its finer points. Like other neo-noir films, nothing is as it seems and plot twists fly around as fast and plentiful as bullets. This film&#39;s difference is that the lead character knows he&rsquo;s in a movie and pokes fun at the narrator device as well as miraculous survivals and how-did-I-not-think-of-that plot twists.The story begins with our lead man running away from cops after trying to boost some toys. In his haste, he accidentally runs into a movie audition and manages to land the part. He&rsquo;s then flown out to Hollywood where a private detective starts giving him lessons on how to be a convincing detective on screen. On his first night of training, they accidentally witness a murder that embroils both of them in a convoluted murder mystery/thriller. Throughout it all, our unassuming lead man hooks up with his high school crush (who is, of course, somehow embroiled in it as well) and wittily slices up L.A. life in a sharp script that would make Joss Whedon proud. The film&rsquo;s greatest assets are its sharp, sarcastic dialogue and bizarre plot twists. Despite its rambling, obtuse ending, the film is very enjoyable and highly recommended. http://www.spout.com/blogs/jimbell/archive/2007/3/7/6125.aspx Post By: JimBell
Post To: JimBell Blog
Post Date: 3/7/2007 2:29:00 AM
Body: Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang (2005) is a post-modern film noir. Consequently, the movie takes every convention of a hard boiled murder mystery and subverts it. Robert Downey Jr., as Harry, narrates, and he stops the film to explain or include certain things. Val Kilmer plays the gay private eye who is supposed to teach the young actor how to be a detective, but he really does not teach him much. Nor is he a believable gay person. The female plays a bad actress who must, then, over-act most of the movie. As a romance develops between her and Downey, everything possible is done to keep it non-romantic and screwed up. There is some action, but the movie never tries to give you enough details to take a good guess at what was going on. Because the plot and theme and characters and cinematic conventions are all undercut, the movie tries to appeal by swearing (this did not work for me) and by being so clever in its destruction of all conventions. But I ask: Why make a movie which shows how clever you are at making an unwatchable movie? Jim Bell
]]>Wed, 07 Mar 2007 07:29:00 GMTJimBellJimBell Blog3/7/2007 2:29:00 AM Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang (2005) is a post-modern film noir. Consequently, the movie takes every convention of a hard boiled murder mystery and subverts it. Robert Downey Jr., as Harry, narrates, and he stops the film to explain or include certain things. Val Kilmer plays the gay private eye who is supposed to teach the young actor how to be a detective, but he really does not teach him much. Nor is he a believable gay person. The female plays a bad actress who must, then, over-act most of the movie. As a romance develops between her and Downey, everything possible is done to keep it non-romantic and screwed up. There is some action, but the movie never tries to give you enough details to take a good guess at what was going on. Because the plot and theme and characters and cinematic conventions are all undercut, the movie tries to appeal by swearing (this did not work for me) and by being so clever in its destruction of all conventions. But I ask: Why make a movie which shows how clever you are at making an unwatchable movie? Jim Bell http://www.spout.com/blogs/kami/archive/2006/7/31/2116.aspx Post By: Kami
Post To: Kami Blog
Post Date: 7/31/2006 9:33:00 AM
Body: I love this movie. It isn't perfect, but it is original, a breath of fresh air amidst all of the mediocre and stale films that have been covering Blockbuster's shelves lately. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang is a great dark comedy/murder mystery. It is fast paced and the dialogue is clever and snappy. The chemistry between Val Kilmer and Robert Downey, Jr. is fantastic, they are great together and really play off of one another. I also enjoy Downey's narration in this film, the way the narration is presented added a nice touch to the already off-beat film. My only complaint is that when it is explained how the two murders are connected, I ended up feeling a little jipped, I think the writers could have come up with a much better twist and a more interesting ending to the film. But that minor dissapointment certainly didn't change my opinion of the film. I thought Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang was entertaining and I enjoyed its unique and the artistic execution.
]]>Mon, 31 Jul 2006 13:33:00 GMTKamiKami Blog7/31/2006 9:33:00 AMI love this movie. It isn't perfect, but it is original, a breath of fresh air amidst all of the mediocre and stale films that have been covering Blockbuster's shelves lately. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang is a great dark comedy/murder mystery. It is fast paced and the dialogue is clever and snappy. The chemistry between Val Kilmer and Robert Downey, Jr. is fantastic, they are great together and really play off of one another. I also enjoy Downey's narration in this film, the way the narration is presented added a nice touch to the already off-beat film. My only complaint is that when it is explained how the two murders are connected, I ended up feeling a little jipped, I think the writers could have come up with a much better twist and a more interesting ending to the film. But that minor dissapointment certainly didn't change my opinion of the film. I thought Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang was entertaining and I enjoyed its unique and the artistic execution. http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/Loved-It/MemberTagFilms.aspxLoved-It
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