Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageKiss Me Deadly (1955)
Director: Robert Aldrich
Movie review
From Time Out London
Condemned on its release as harmful to minors, Robert Aldrich’s late contribution to the B-noir tradition, by way of Mickey Spillane, couldn’t quite find its audience in 1955. But it now stands as a crucial influence on what would become the French new wave, an irresistibly seedy trip through the Los Angeles underworld, and a valuable artifact of Cold War anxiety. After a mysterious woman (debutante actress Cloris Leachman) flags down Mike Hammer (Ralph Meeker) on a highway and is subsequently murdered, the downmarket private dick reads this chance encounter as his ticket to the big time, and he sniffs out a trail of intrigue through many a gutter and back alley to an unbelievable secret. Cold, calculating, even downright nasty, the antihero Hammer would be focus-grouped right out of existence if he were screenwritten today. And with its delectable period detail and the magnificent compositions and rich depth of field achieved by Aldrich and his cinematographer, Ernest Laszlo, ‘Kiss Me Deadly’ demands to be seen on the big screen. Go now.Author: Jessica Winter
Time Out London Issue 1869: June 14-21 2006
User reviews of this film
-
- peter said...
- Posted on Dec 02 2009 10:39 Saw movie at Randwick cinema Sydney in 1960. Dis oriented at times, and difficult to follow, the film is a however a watershed in Hollywood film makers, and the cinematograhy is first class. Some acting is poor thoigh fortuantely Ralph Meeker is excellent. Highly recommended.
- Report as inappropriate
Cast & crew
Director: Robert Aldrich
Producer: Robert Aldrich
Cast: Ralph Meeker, Albert Dekker, Maxine Cooper, Paul Stewart, Gaby Rodgers, Cloris Leachman, Jack Lambert, Wesley Addy, Nick Dennis, Marian Carr, Jack Elam full cast
Genre(s): Film Noir
Rated: 12A
Duration: 106 mins
UK Release: Jun 16 2006
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Time Out's 50 greatest monster movies
As Joe Johnston’s long-awaited reinvention of Universal’s howl-at-the-moon classic ‘The Wolfman’ hits cinemas, Time Out lists our 50 favourite cinematic stalkers, growlers, slashers and biters.
Mark Kermode: A life in film
Dave Calhoun chats to Britain's most outspoken film critic and pundit ahead of the release of his memoirs
Has Ricky Gervais gone all serious?
The trailer to 'Cemetery Junction' suggests that its writer-director is suppressing his funny bone.
The genius of Roman Polanski
Ahead of his new film, 'The Ghost', we must forget the media circus and remember the artist pleads Wally Hammond
Oscars 2010: The nominees
Tom Huddleston offers his acute analysis on the list of nominees for the 2010 Academy Awards
Rotterdam 2010: Geoff Andrew's report
Geoff Andrew finds rich leftfield pickings at the 2010 Rotterdam Film Festival
Can Tom Ford cut it as a director?
After ten years as creative head of Gucci, Tom Ford has directed his first movie. Nina Caplan meets him
Time Out's 101 Films of the Decade
So here it is… Ten years, thousands of movies and millions of dollars in international box office, and it all boils down to this.
2009: The year in film
We look back at the best movies of 2009 and pick out some of our favourite lists, features and interviews.
What do you think?
Post your review now