Perhaps the briefest statement imaginable of the basic appeal of movies

Today’s entry into my blog is a review of a great movie that I saw because I had never heard of, but someone told me I would love it. Suffice it to say, they were right. I am realizing more and more that some of the best movies that I’ve seen in recent times are just a modernization of a classic style: the film noir. The who-dunnit kind of movie where someone is trying to figure out how to put the pieces of the puzzle together, and there is always a twist, and more often than not, a beautiful girl. This is one of my favourite modern film noirs, although suffice it to say, I have a lot of favourites. But I can tell you more about those later.

Movie: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

Yes, what an odd title for a film. It shares its name with numerous books and albums, most notably however is Pauline Kael’s second published book of film reviews. Her quote on why she chose the title is the name of this blog entry. Now however, enough about old reviews. On to a new one.

The movie stars Robert Downey Jr, an actor whom many of you may know more about his drug issues than about his acting pursuits. The other lead in this film is Val Kilmer, whom you either know as Jim Morrison, or the first Batman with nipples. Downey Jr plays Harry Lockhart, a man who has failed at almost everything he has attempted, including the robbery he and an accomplice are committing at the beginning of the film. When he and his partner in crime are shot leaving the scene of the crime, Harry has no choice but to make a run for it. To escape from the cops, he runs in to an open door, which happens to be a casting room where auditions are being held for a crime film. After faking his way through, he is snatched up, patched up, and flown out to Hollywood. Here he meets Gay Perry (Kilmer), a private eye whom the film studio wants Harry to shadow to prepare for the part he has landed. Their first day on the job together is regular private eye kind of stuff, just taking pictures of a couple. But that small case gets turned into a murder filled who-dunnit, where nothing goes as planned. Their investigation leads them all over L.A, and they meet some interesting people on the way, such as the gorgeous girl of the story, Harmony Lane (Michelle Monaghan). I can’t say much more about the plot without giving it away, but needless to say, there is no shortage of twists.

One of the things I love the most about this movie is it’s quick witted, sharp writing. It was written and directed by Shane Black, who wrote Lethal Weapon, The Monster Squad, The Long Kiss Goodnight, and many other action movies. It is his first time directing, but he doesn’t trip over his own two feet with this superb movie. He sticks with classic noir style and storytelling, including having the main character narating the movie.

The movie itself is split up into chapters, all of which are named after Raymond Chandler novels, which were some of the best noir style novels written back in the 30s and 40s. The pacing is great, the acting is superb, and the jokes will leave your sides actually hurting from laughing. So if you’re looking for a good film noir, or just wanna see some great acting, this is definitely a movie to check out.