Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

Year: 2005

Grade: C+

Country: USA

Director: Black

Review

i used to think it would be really cool if studios went back to making noir films, i don’t so much anymore. the movie’s only a so-so nod to chandler and the rest of the noir makers of the 40s. each chapter in the film is named after a chandler book – lady in the lake, simple art of murder, little sister, etc. the characters are fine enough, but the writing isn’t up to snuff. needed to be slicker and more snappy. the plot is pure noir and fine enough. visually it left plenty to be desired. the post-modern narrator with his penchant for making self-referential comments (e.g., “don’t you hate it when movies end like this…”) detracted from the film, rather than giving it a modern twist on an old genre. i’m surprised how much hype this got from cineastes. it’s not that it was particularly bad, it’s just that it could have been plenty better.