Killer's Kiss (1955) User Reviews

The first-class suspense film that foreshadowed conscious and technique...

[Nazi_Fighter_David · 8/10 · 5 May 2005]

In 1955 a young man, who had produced a couple of 35mm. shorts and a feature which were so little known that they were never even shown in England, made a suspense thriller… From the fact that he co-produced it, wrote it, directed it and did the photography and editing himself you may deduce that he had more talent than backing… The movie was called "Killer's Kiss," and the multi-talented man who made it was the young Stanley Kubrick…

"Killer's Kiss" is a fascinating movie to look back as it is a notable thriller in its own right… It is a film about lonely people; alone people, which is not quite the same thing; their roots almost severed from a past which was once good and is now lost; solitary in the impartial big city at the end of the line…

It starts with a confident, quiet slowness that few directors would dare in the frenetic Seventies… It takes its time to develop, and for nearly half the film you can't guess what the plot is going to be… But this carefully measured film gives you a deep feeling for the characters and their context that leaves you, even after all the suspense, with an overwhelming feeling of the humanity of the movie…

The narrator, Davy Gordon (Jamie Smith) is a young and fading boxer, past it, but not defeated in his heart… The girl Gloria Price (Irene Kane), who lives in the same apartment block, has, like him, no family nor friends… She's come down to working as a dance partner in a shabby hall run by a baddie called Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera).

Kubrick slowly, and movingly, shows the two principals taking the downgrade: Davy fighting a losing bout in the ring while Gloria is trying to push off some heavy passes from Rapallo…

Even he, Rapallo, is made human, understandable… When he stands in his shadowed office, making up his mind to some malice, his eyes fall on cozy family photographs in nice domestic frames that he takes the trouble to keep there; and, when his mind is made up, he gestures irritably, guiltily, as if knowing he's letting them down and trying weakly to dismiss summarily aside their silent reproaches…

The whole story is condensed into three days… Yet it seems to have the natural, inevitable pace of real life; and the moments briefly taken out for little touches of New York street scenes add to the reality and place it in a context of truth…

Very little violence is actually shown except in Davy's boxing match which, in just a few minutes, gives a better feeling than most movies of what it's like to lose a fight in the ring… But, in spite of all, you're on the edge of your seat and you're glad to be there…

There is a classic chase over the rooftops, but even here there are human touches that kill cliché… These villains are not supermen, any more than Davy is: they can stumble on a fire escape, and not for laughs; one of them can fall as you or I would fall and drop out with a twisted ankle…

The suspense is not lessened by these touches: it is increased, because it is more real, seems less contrived…

"Killer's Kiss" was a first-class suspense film that foreshadowed conscious and technique that Kubrick was to take to the limit in later years… And, after all, the ending was fair enough for the Fifties… In the Seventies, Gloria would probably have got raped by the railway porter, and there'd have been a lot of unlovely detail and no suspense at all

Kubrik's kiss to New York

[jotix100 · 8/10 · 4 January 2005]

This film, directed by Stanley Kubrik, is not seen often these days. It was a surprise that it was shown recently on cable as it gave all of Mr. Kubrik's fans the opportunity to watch one of his early works.

The copy that was shown is amazing in that it has been kept, or probably restored, with great care. Stanley Kubrik was a genius; he probably knew more about movies than many other of his contemporaries. Yet, his legacy is somehow meager, only sixteen full length features in almost fifty years as a director.

Killer's Kiss shows the Manhattan of 1955 like it has never been seen in other movies made in the city. Mr. Kubrik's attention to detail and style overshadows the story. The main problem is his screen play, it never involves the viewer in what he is seeing. This is exacerbated by the voice over one hears over the action. We never know what makes these people tick, much less what's going on in their heads at any given moment.

The story is told in a flashback. We see Davy waiting at the old Pennsylvania Station for the train that is to take him to Seattle. He had planned to leave with Gloria, but she seems never to appear; for all we know, he might be waiting in vain.

The streets of Manhattan come alive in the brilliant black and white cinematography by Mr. Kubrik, himself. That old New York that is no longer around, is captured by Mr. Kubrik in such brilliant detail that we mourn the fact those buildings and institutions are not around any more. The night scenes around Times Square, especially the stairway leading to the dance hall have a style that brings some of Edward Hooper's work to mind. Mr. Kubrik deserves credit for filming on location and never making it feel as though those scenes have been fixed to give that effect. In fact, that's where Kubrik's genius comes into play, we realize he had an eye for making things real.

The acting is not the main focus of this film. Frank Silvera makes a menacing Vincent, the mobster and dance hall owner. Jamie Smith and Irene Kane, go through the paces, but they don't convey to the viewer the passion that is supposed to be going on between them.

This movie should be seen by the serious moviegoer as it shows Mr. Kubrik's tremendous talent. It might be a minor film, in comparison to his best work, but being one of his first movies, one can clearly see what will come later.

Claustrophobic & Visually Impressive

[seymourblack-1 · 7/10 · 23 September 2009]

Stanley Kubrick was the director, cinematographer, editor, co-producer and co-writer of his second movie and commendably, despite his lack of experience and an obviously low budget, "Killer's Kiss" proved to be an extremely enjoyable and visually impressive film noir drama.

Davey Gordon (Jamie Smith) is a washed up boxer who meets and falls in love with a dance-hall hostess called Gloria Price (Irene Kane) and together they plan to relocate to Seattle. Unfortunately, Gloria's violent employer Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera) has designs on her and dispatches two of his henchmen to deal with Davey. However, due to a couple of unexpected coincidences, the plan goes wrong, the two men kill Davey's manager and the police suspect that Davey is the murderer. In order to prove his innocence, Davey pursues Rapallo and this eventually leads to a final confrontation between the two men when they engage in a spectacular and well choreographed fight for supremacy.

Throughout the story the action takes place in locations which seem claustrophobic and often the framing of the shots emphasises this impression. Davey and Gloria's living areas and Rapallo's office are all small. Camera positions which look down on the characters when they're on the stairs in the couple's tenement building and in the dance-hall entrance area also appear to significantly constrict the space they occupy. During a boxing match in which the two boxers are already confined within the ring, when Davey's opponent stands up to start the bout, he is seen from a low viewpoint behind the still seated Davey, with the result that the space which he visually inhabits is made even smaller as he is then seen framed by Davey's right leg. Even the outdoor sequences in the latter part of the film convey the same impression as narrow streets and alleyways surrounded by very high buildings seem to close in on everyone who enters those areas.

Some good ideas are also used to make the film visually interesting. Davey's face is seen peering through the water in a fishbowl and the viewpoint is the position of the wall behind the bowl.. Similarly, when Rapallo throws a tumbler at a picture on the wall of his office, the glass is seen shattering from the viewpoint of the picture. A dream sequence is photographed in negative and the final confrontation between Davey and Rapallo is staged in a warehouse full of mannequins in a sequence which is rather reminiscent of the "hall of mirrors sequence" in "The Lady From Shanghai". There is also a brilliantly composed shot of the streets down which Davey is being pursued by Rapallo and his men where the lit area of the street and buildings is reduced to a limited area on the bottom left hand side of the frame with everywhere else being bathed in black shadow. Rapallo's thugs are also shown in silhouette when they attack Davey's manager and their elongated shadows on the walls of the alley seem to exaggerate the sense of danger involved.

The night time street scenes shot in Times Square are particularly good and the other New York locations are also portrayed in a manner which powerfully conveys their squalor and potentially threatening atmosphere.

"Killer's Kiss" is rather short and contains some dead pan performances but its real strength lies in its incredible visual impact and its ability to evoke threatening and oppressive atmospheres so successfully.

Urban Dour

[dougdoepke · 6 November 2014]

Few have captured the glitter and grub of a cityscape better than this 70-minutes of neon and alleyways. The plot's all over the place, along with choppy editing and so-so acting. Thus, the storyline leaves a lot to be desired. Nonetheless, the visuals are consistently striking, from crowded dancehall to jagged rooftop. Clearly, Kubrick's sense of compositional artistry has already kicked in. And judging from the slick flashback of The Killing (1956), a lot was learned from this project. Sure the movie's done on the cheap and Kubrick has to do everything but cater the food. Still, the imagination is rich and pervasive at a time when Hollywood was arguably most straitjacketed. Despite the many flaws (god-awful musical scoring), this slender film put Kubrick on the movie-making map. Not surprisingly, his next film The Killing would provide a lot more to work with. All in all, the production remains a treat for the eye, if not for the ear; that is, if you believe urban dour can be made compelling.

Interesting early Kubrick

[The_Void · 6/10 · 26 July 2004]

Stanley Kubrick's career really took off in 1956, upon the release of his first masterpiece; "The Killing", after which he would go on to make many much loved cinema classics such as "Dr Strangelove", "The Shining" and "A Clockwork Orange", to name a few. This movie is, however, no masterpiece; but that's not to say it's without it's plus points.

First and foremost, this movie is admirable for it's directing, which is excellent. Of course Stanley Kubrick would go on to show himself as a genius behind the camera, and this movie is an early taste of that genius in the directorial department. Secondly, despite the B-grade cast, the acting is not bad at all. It's not marvelous, but considering the cast's accomplishments, previously and after this movie was made, it's better than one would expect.

One of the movie's major flaws, however, is its lack of ideas. There are some nice ideas in the film, such as the part where Gloria tells her story to a backdrop of her sister doing ballet, and the Rear Window style way that the Gloria and Davy meet, but as the film is only 67 minutes long, it felt at times that Kubrick was spending too long on certain sequences, which is a problem if the movie is as short as this one is as it looked as though Kubrick was just dragging things out in order to meet an acceptable running time. That might be so bad in a longer film, but here it's not good.

This movie is a nice, taut little thriller and is definitely recommended to people that want to see some early Kubrick and thereby see how he developed as a filmmaker, but it's not a great film and I don't recommend going into this movie expecting it to be one.

An Early Kubrick Movie That is Also An Interesting Film Noir.

[JohnWelles · 7/10 · 15 June 2010]

"Killer's Kiss" (1955), acclaimed director Stanley Kubrick's second feature film, starred Jamie Smith, Irene Kane and Frank Silvera.

The story looks like it was partly inspired by Robert Siodmak's The Killers (1946): A boxer called on the slide Davey Gordon (Jamie Smith), is awakened from a dream (a stunning piece of surrealism, it's only fault being that it is too short) by the screams of Gloria Price (Irene Kane), who lives on the other side of his apartment block, as her lecherous boss Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera) forces himself on her. Gordon goes to her help, but Rapallo escapes. He falls in love with Gloria, a "dancer" at a nightclub run by Rapallo, but in doing so, he faces Rapallo's wrath and his deadly vengeance.

While the plot may be slightly run-on-the-mill stuff, the movie as a whole is certainly not. Shot on the streets of New York by Kubrick himself, the picture benefits enormously by this "breathing" quality, making the story more believable as it's set and shot in a real place, a rare practice at the time (one wonders if Kubrick did this for purely aesthetic reasons: the budget of the movie was only $40,000 or so, extremely cheap even then for a movie). The camera-work is very high contrast black and white, all the automobiles surfaces gleaming and enabling the tower blocks Gordon rushes past during the final look dark and foreboding. He also inserts a few stylistic shots like Gordon looking through a fish-bowl; but Kubrick uses these sparingly so they always look unexpected. Along with the beautiful cinematography, the action is the highlight of this motion picture: a violent and ruthless boxing match early on, shot with a hand-held camera is exciting and brutal; capturing what the sport is really like. Another set piece is justifiably famous: a climatic fight between Gordon and Rapallo in a mannequin store house with fire-axes.

But there are flaws, flaws than cannot be overlooked even if one is kind to the young Stanley Kubrick and very lenient. First and foremost is the acting: Irene Kane as the woman who sparks off all the trouble is desperately weak and is hard to see why a Rapallo lust after her and Gordon falls in love with her so quickly. Silvera is excellent as our villain and Smith, while nothing special, is good enough for his part, but because Kubrick opted to film the movie "silent" and then put in the sounds in post-production, not only do you have errors like cars driving in the background but no noise issuing forth from them, but the performances are made rather stilted and the dialogue spoken doesn't always match up to their lips. The motion picture is in (a needless) flashback, so we are given a redundant voice-over and the ending in the train-station is overly-sentimental and it is not only alien to the world of noir, but alien also to Kubrick. Despites these flaws, the movie reminds an enjoyable, at times very exciting, film noir that isn't just for Kubrick buffs.

Acting is terrible but filmmaking is great

[smitheeallen · 6/10 · 2 October 2003]

I saw this film quite a few years ago in a film appreciation class I

took. I am a Kubrick fan so I was interested in seeing it. The

acting is pretty bad in this film, but Kubrick was pretty much

producing this independently (in the mid-50's when that was not

done too often) and probably could not get very good actors. The

filmmaking was great. There were great tracking shots, wonderful

use of mise on scen, great long shots and close ups. In fact a lot

of sequences were similar to sequences in many of Kubrick's

famous films. Kubrick fans should see this movie at least once.

An Early Showcase For Kubrick's Talent With Light.

[GeorgeRoots · 6/10 · 14 March 2015]

The techniques of "Killers Kiss", shows a lot more familiarity when it comes to your expectations of a Kubrick picture. A young boxer towards the end of his career, eventually begins to grow closer to a woman who lives in the apartment blocks next to his. A relationship then begins as the two grow closer, as they also plan to collect money from her violent employer. Does things ever go smoothly in these scenarios?

I found myself enjoying this work much more than Kubrick's earlier effort "Fear And Desire" (1953), which Kubrick himself tried to remove from circulation. Shot when he was 26 years old, it shows a fantastic use of light when it came to emphasis and also a lot more confidence in narrative and framing. There is a long dance sequence where the Ballerina is played by Kubrick's second wife (Ruth Sobotka), and the sound was post dubbed as the microphone would interfere with the lighting system.

Final Verdict: Unfortunately I can't say much about it compared to his previous and later works, as well as only talk mindless movie trivia. But it is worth your time if you can find it, it is usually boxed as an extra in the Home release of Kubrick's next picture "The Killing" (1960). 6/10.

Every Shot Is Remarkable

[evanston_dad · 8/10 · 2 August 2021]

In introducing "Killer's Kiss" on TCM, host Eddie Muller apologized all over himself for what a ragged, experimental film it was from newbie director Stanley Kubrick. But the thing is, as Muller himself pointed out, inexperienced Kubrick is still better than the best film of any number of other directors, so this one's a treat.

It's ragged to be sure, and it's clear that Kubrick had the outlines of a film that he then padded out to feature length proportions, but there's hardly a shot in the the thing that isn't remarkable in some way. It's my favorite kind of noir -- dripping in atmosphere, plot incidental (though there are some clever developments in the story), tough guy meter set to 11. There's a somewhat famous climactic fight scene set in a mannequin factory that's clearly used for its weirdness only, and the whole film is like that.

Many shots from this movie are used in TCM's intro montage to their late-night programming.

Grade: A-

The damsel in distress and her hero, a washed up professional boxer

[Ed-Shullivan · 7/10 · 13 March 2021]

Well this black and white 1955 film may have been one of Stanley Kubrick's first attempts but I would not have thought that had I not been forewarned. Although the three main actors have lived mostly in obscurity before and after the release of a Killer's Kiss I thought the film has held up quite well some sixty-five (65) years later.

Actor Jamie Smith plays a washed up professional boxer named Davey Gordon who is in New York City to fight an up and coming boxer. After the fight is over one fighter will come out of it a glorious champ and the losing fighter will lose any credibility left in the ring. Davey lives across the street from an attractive lady named Gloria Price (Irene Kane) and they can see each other from their respective apartment windows.

Gloria is a dance hall girl and her boss Vinnie Rapallo (Frank Silvera) wants more than a dance from her when he makes a social visit to her apartment. the same night Davey is healing his wounds after his boxing match when Gloria's frightful screams brings her hero Davey to her rescue.

This is a battle of two (2) strong willed man wooing the attractive dance hall girl Gloria Price. It is the classic good versus evil drama with a touch of romance sprinkled in for good measure. I rated it a bit higher at 7 out of 10 IMDB rating as Kubrick's picture was significant enough a picture that helped launch his directorial career.

A Sneak Peek At Things To Come

[ccthemovieman-1 · 5/10 · 12 June 2006]

A young Stanley Kubrick's bare-budget film - perhaps his first "mainline" movie - shows him still in the minor leagues but very close to making it to the Major Leagues. In fact, he did so the following year with "The Killing," a film noir that still ranks among the best. At any rate, this is an opportunity to see Kubrick at work right before he "makes it" in the business.

With an almost-nothing budget you aren't going to draw too many professional actors, and that certainly was the case here, but still is worth watching. It's definitely a "B" noir that is more melodrama than crime until the ending when it gets very, very suspenseful featuring a chase over New York City rooftops and then into abandoned warehouses.

Jamie Smith and Irene Kane are the stars and if you've never heard of them, it's probably because they weren't exactly Humphey Bogart and Bette Davis, acting-wise. The other star, Frank Silvera, at least is a name I recognized.

Overall, the best feature may be the camera-work. It gives us a preview of the visual talents that Kubrick would bring to the big screen in following decade. On its own merits, if you are a film noir fan, you'll want this in your collection.

The Genius of a Young Stanley Kubrick

[silverkid · 10/10 · 23 February 2006]

Killer's Kiss is a 1955 movie produced, directed and written by a 27 year old Stanley Kubrick. Coming off the heels of a poorly received first effort, 1953's Fear and Desire, Kubrick stormed back with an interesting little story set in the heart of New York City. The film's protagonist Davy Gordon, is a struggling local boxer who gets involved with a woman, Gloria Price who's ex, Vincent Rapallo hasn't let go of her yet. Kubrick slowly, and movingly, shows the two principals taking the downgrade: Davy fighting a losing bout in the ring while Gloria is trying to push off some heavy passes from Rapallo.

While the pair try to flee the city, Rapallo and his henchmen foil there escape. Price meanwhile, has changed her mind and decides she's better off with a real man, Rapallo. In the thrilling climax, Gordon and Rapallo battle it out in a run-down mannequin factory which foreshadows his technique shown in later masterpieces.

"Killer's Kiss" was a first-class suspense film that foreshadowed conscious and technique that Kubrick was to take to the limit in later years. After all, the ending was fair enough for the Fifties. Out of a possible 5 stars, I give young Stanley Kubrick's "Killer's Kiss" 4 stars.

Kubrick's second feature film

[darioilg · 7/10 · 14 January 2017]

After "Fear and Desire", Kubrick managed to pull off a more professional looking film, although also a less intriguing one. If FaD was poorly written, K'sK stands as a good improvement over it, with leaner lines but still stained by too long expository monologues, especially the less-than-relevant one about Gloria's relatives, which feels more like a showcase of Kubrick's wife as a dancer than a really significant part of the film. While FaD played a lot with the genre it was put in, though, and created an unsettling atmosphere with the doubles of the protagonists, K'sK agrees more to the dictats of the genre, only seldom driving away from it with some romance drama and continuing Kubrick's obsession for the bewilderment of his characters. The cinematography and staging are the true shiners of the film, with amazing shots that are statements for the masterpieces to come: I especially liked the nightmare scene, which clearly relates to the journey through space and time made by Bowman in "2001" (their names, Davey and David, are also very similar...). Acting, like in the previous film, is nothing worth noting, except maybe the fight in the mannequin factory, which was a good showcase of energy and rage by the two mains, especially for a low-budget film. The happy ending got me unprepared for, as I know Kubrick and his love for generating mixed feelings in his viewers, but I later learned that it was imposed by the producers for a lot of money, so I can see now why it is so.

All in all, being this his second film and with a low budget, it's still an interesting piece of history in the greatest director of all time's career.

Kubrick before he figured out how to put it all together

[cherold · 4/10 · 3 August 2006]

Stanley Kubrick's films were notable for, among other things, his control over the medium. Even in bad films like Barry Lyndon or Eyes Wide Shut it was always clear that Kubrick was getting exactly what he wanted.

But when he made Killer's Kiss, he obviously hadn't got it all figured out yet. The movie has some interesting pieces, scenes with striking lighting, original, clever ideas, but it also has drably lit scenes and hackneyed dialog. You can see the future Kubrick in individual shots, but it's all over the place. The movie has the quality of a student film, in which Kubrick is so excited by all his super cool ideas and all the fun stuff he can do with film that he throws it all in willy nilly.

It is difficult to believe any of the people on this site who are declaring this movie a brilliant classic would do so if they'd never heard of the filmmaker. The story is perfunctory, the pacing is sluggish and the acting is abysmal. The movie is really only notable for film history, a way of understanding Kubrick's thought process as he was teaching himself the art of film. But it's a lousy movie.

Lady from Manhattan

[tedg · 29 January 2002]

Spoilers herein.

There's nothing like this stuff. If you ever thought Kubrick was a genius, you should consider that such an eye is not learned, and one would expect to see it in the young man. Here's where he is taking chances.

He produced, wrote, directed, photographed, and edited this effort.

Here you see some real energetic expression of more controlled notions you see later on:

-- time and space symmetries, lots of them

-- lots of narrative in inanimate objects from the environment

-- dancing/boxing: life as a test performance, with the space between being dead time

-- narrative folding

-- a mimimalist, deceptively symbol-laden story that all but ignores the actors

-- a consistent `eye,' often from waist level when the lovers are together

-- stylized voice-over

All this is fascinating enough. But an extra treat is to see this next to Welles' near masterpiece `Lady from Shanghai' of "48. Check out showdown in the manikin warehouse compared the manikin part of `Lady's' funhouse at the identical part of the story, with the same loser-woman dynamic.

Irene Kane has real presence despite her relatively poor acting. Kubrick married her ballerina `sister.' Wonder what happened to her?

Film noir from Stanley Kubrick.

[michaelRokeefe · 7/10 · 23 November 2012]

With minimal budget and no real big name stars, Stanley Kubrick directs a straight forward simplistic script,with no frills,drama. Davey Gordon(Jamie Smith)is a washed-up boxer with a glass jaw. At this point in his career, he gets the little, last minute fights that pay just as small. Davey gets several glimpses of Gloria(Irene Kane) that lives in the apartment across from his. She is going through hard times too. She is a taxi-dancer that is trying to break away from her job and her boss Vincent Rapollo(Frank Sivera). The fighter goes with the dancer to collect her last paycheck. The jealous and lustful Vincent gets the idea that Davey and Gloria are now an item and he is willing to commit murder to have her for himself. Rounding out the cast: Mike Dana, Jerry Jarrett, Barbara Brand and Falice Orlandi. KILLER'S KISS is what it is and just happens to be a worthwhile film.

Film has problems, but...

[Dire_Straits · 6/10 · 22 June 2005]

This film has a *lot* bad things about it. They are pretty obvious when you see the picture. That's why I only gave it a '6'.

However, instead of focusing on the many bad points, let me point out some very nice things about it: It looks realistic. The streets of New York are alive. The alleys and the interiors are authentic and give you a sense of actually being there. The story (written by Kubrick) is believable.

The last 15 minutes of the film is a real nail-biter. While the final action scenes are certainly choreographed, I never felt as though I was watching Kubrick's second film. Even then, he knew what he was doing, he just made a lot of mistakes (needless to say, he got better).

I was going to avoid negativity but I am compelled to say the sound department for this feature did a horrible, sloppy job; that alone takes 3 stars away from my rating.

But worth watching for the last couple of scenes, which are amongst the best (or at the least, most memorable) film-noir scenes in history, in my book.

Interesting early Kubrick.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 16 August 2014]

Davey Gordon (Jamie Smith) is an over the hill prizefighter who's considering returning to the family farm to help out his uncle. Then fate steps in: one night he witnesses a neighbour, the pretty Gloria Price (Irene Kane) being accosted by her employer Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera), a gangster. Davey is almost instantly taken with her, and after getting to know her a little bit, he decides that he will be her protector. That will prove to be a challenge, as Rapallo sends two of his goons (Mike Dana, Felice Orlandi) after Davey and abducts Gloria to boot.

Short & sweet, this reasonably enjoyable little noir is compelling viewing for both fans of the genre and of filmmaker Stanley Kubrick. It may not be quite as accomplished as his later works (it *was* only his second feature film), but it still has some genuine stylishness going for it. The boxing scenes early on are noteworthy for the camera placement and operation, creating a genuine intensity. Kubrick also edited, shot, and wrote the story (Howard Sackler wrote the screenplay, uncredited), and it's clear that he was a real talent who could go far. There's one mighty fine bit of nightmare imagery, and the story does have a fairly good pace going for it. Unfortunately, the rather loud and jaunty music score tends to work against whatever tension that Kubrick is able to generate. The final battle between Davey and Rapallo is a pretty good one, and the fact that it takes place inside a mannequin factory helps to make it visually interesting. Silvera is fine as the gangster, Smith and Kane (the latter is better known as journalist Chris Chase) less satisfactory in the other principal roles. Ruth Sobotka, who was married to Kubrick at the time (and was also Kanes' sister!), plays the ballerina.

Overall, a solid effort although it was with his next picture, "The Killing", that Kubrick really hit his stride.

Seven out of 10.

Irene Kane & Jamie Smith Made this A Great Kubrick Film!

[whpratt1 · 7/10 · 8 September 2003]

Missed this great film of director Stanley Kubrick in 1955. The black and white effect was perfect for this depressing story. However, it was enjoyable watching these two actors, Jamie Smith (Dave Gordon),"Only Fools & Horses '81 TV Series" and Irene Kane(Gloria Price) "All That Jazz" '79, look at each other through the windows of their one room apartments in the same building, dressing and undressing and looking very depressed and down in the dumps. Jamie was a down and out prizer fighter and Gloria was a dance for hire gal, who was down on her luck working along Broadway, NYC and being taken advantage of by the villian, Frank Silvera (Vincent Rapallo) "Valdez Is Coming" '71". Stanley Kubrick wanted this film to be a very realistic film about two people being drawn together by hard luck, therefore, he had these actors act just the way ordinary people would act in REAL LIFE, it makes it appear that they are both poor actors, which is far from the truth. It was great to see a man and a woman become drawn to each other and be able to try and cope with their horrible situations in life. This a great Classic film by Stanley Kubrick!!

A early start to Kubrick's fantastic career.

[Bowie718 · 9/10 · 12 February 2000]

With 3 short films and a feature (Fear And Desire [1953]) under his belt, none of which had received any notice (in fact, Kubrick bought up all of the existing prints of Fear And Desire, because he thought it was poorly done [not to mention that it was being billed as a sexploitation film]), Kubrick decided to try out something new. He decided to go with Film-Noir.

The film is filled with Kubrick trademarks through and through. He uses boxing (which was the subject of his very first short Day of the Fight [1951]), zooming techniques, flashbacks (also used in his next film The Killing [1956]) and narration. The cinematography is exquisite, as usual, with many shots (particularly in the boxing studio and the train station) being backlit with a soft, grey light to give it a disconnected, almost rear-screen-projection feel. However, it is obvious that this is the early, naive Kubrick at work here. The entire movie, like Fear And Desire, is post-dubbed (much like a Fellini film), with all of the sound effects being done over by a meticulous Kubrick. And, of course, the Film-Noir. Davey Gordon (played to perfection by Jamie Smith) is the almost-stereotypical Noir anti-hero, with Irene Kane (aka journalist Chris Chase) as his anti-heroine. Frank Silvera, who had the lead role in Fear And Desire, is the slimy villain, whom you actually want to die (a good sign [for a villain]).

This Kubrick film can most be compared to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) or Barry Lyndon (1975), in that, once you get past a slow beginning, the end is absolutely riveting. Kubrick knows that he wants to grab his audience, and he does so with perfection. Some of it is padded (the ballet sequence is not particular interest), but the rest it great, from the initial boxing sequence to the chase scene at the end. If you're a fan of Kubrick, see it. If you're a fan of great cinema, see it. If you're a fan of Film-Noir, see it (but take it with a pinch of salt). If you're none of these things, see it, and you will be.

Valuable NYC time capsule

[ChorusGirl · 7/10 · 10 February 2011]

Decent, B-NeoNoir with the expected trimmings--boxer, dame, thugs, dingy walk-up apartments--given some class (to use the noir vernacular) via Kubrick's lush direction, and a wildly unsettling finale amongst disemboweled mannequins. Earns a place on your "must" list for its remarkable on-location NYC photography, some of the best of any noir. Two locales in particular--the cavernous original Penn Station (already on the road to ruin) and 1955 Times Square with its acres of movie palaces and neon marquees--get plenty of footage, serving as an irresistible time capsule. It lends great realism to one of the least glamorous urban films since the Warner pre-Code era.

Great cinematography, but little else

[gbill-74877 · 5/10 · 19 August 2021]

"Like the man said, 'Can happiness buy money?'"

Bad acting, bad storytelling, bad sound/dubbing, bad editing, bad ending ... so many aspects of Kubrick's second film are amateurish to say the least. There are some almost comically bad bits here, one of which was the voiceover over a ballet performance (Kubrick's wife, Ruth Sobotka). However, Kubrick's cinematography made the film worth seeing - the man certainly knew how to frame a shot. The highlights were the images of New York at night, the intimacy of the boxing scene, and the battle amidst mannequins. Mercifully, the film is just 67 minutes long, because aside from occasionally nice visuals, the story was a snooze. It's hard to believe that this was just one year before The Killing (1956) and two before Paths of Glory (1957), both of which were brilliant, but a big part of that undoubtedly was the shoestring budget and technical difficulties he encountered. Watch it to get a glimpse of Kubrick's genius in the larval stage though.

While very far from perfect, it's an amazing example of a very good movie made with practically no budget!

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 24 January 2009]

I am about to say something so radical, that many film lovers will probably automatically dismiss the rest of this review. I much, much prefer director Stanley Kubrick's earlier work. While later in his career he became known for his obsessive-compulsiveness that led to him often filming the same scene a hundred or more times, in his earliest work he was quite the opposite--shooting the scene right the first time because he couldn't afford to use a bazillion feet of extra footage with each film. He was a master of the simplistic and reminded me, a bit, of Sam Fuller--who was also an incredibly talented director when given almost no budget. Both actually were not at their best when the studios gave them more money--at least when you are looking for the percentage return on their investment. Sure, Kubrick also did some great films with a large budget (DR. STRANGELOVE comes immediately to mind), but for tight and exciting films, it's hard to beat KILLER'S KISS or THE KILLING--two exceptional Noir films.

Now I am NOT saying that KILLER'S KISS is a perfect or even near-perfect film--there are some technical problems that make it obvious it isn't great art. But, given that Kubrick was on welfare when he made it, he had almost no money or backers and he had equipment problems that necessitating re-dubbing the film, it's an amazing little film. In particular, the black and white camera work is among the best I've seen of the era for a Film Noir picture---dark and occasionally just a bit grainy and filled with amazing camera angles. I particularly loved the boxing match--bizarre but highly exciting camera shots abounded, you could see and almost feel all the sweat on the boxers (more so than in more polished films like CHAMPION or REQUIEM FOR A HEAVYWEIGHT) and the boxers looked like they were beating the crap out of each other--not pulling their punches or dancing.

As for the story, it ain't deep but it's a textbook example of "simple is best"--and for some films this is definitely true. The only failings are minor and can be forgiven considering the budget and that this is Kubrick's first film. Occasionally poor dubbing, a few irrelevant camera shots and two scenes that summarized what happened instead of actually filming the scenes that just screamed "we ran out of money". The ballerina scene was poorly done--just showing the same dancer for a LONG time while the female star told her life story. It just looked cheap. Also, the final scene where the hero gave a lengthy exposition what happened once the police showed was obviously done because of economy--I really wanted to see instead of hear about this.

Overall, despite some minor problems, this is a great film for young film makers. This is one of the very best independent films you can find--and few films have come close to it for a quality to investment dollars ratio.

For a few other exceptional low-budget films, try CARNIVAL OF SOULS, STEEL HELMET, the original VILLAGE OF THE DAMNED and TWO THOUSAND MANIACS! (this final one is a bit terrible in spots, but is amazingly watchable--and bears repeated viewing). There are many, many more and when I find one of these films, it thrills me.

Solid until the last minute

[Kubris · 7/10 · 7 April 2012]

Wow: right from the start, Killer's Kiss shows a noticeable step up from Fear and Desire- we open in a train station, and will see many people and large sets for the rest of the film.

More than a technical advance, Killer's Kiss is an excellent noir with a tight plot and much larger scale than what actually happens. There's a boxer, a dancer, a gangster and his goons, and one big flashback. From the first scene, and the beginning of an ongoing narration, we see that Gordon is alone, so we can focus on the why- it relates to the message.

There are great scenes in Killer's Kiss. The boxing is raw, much better than fight scenes of the time: it feels like you have front row seats. The ballerina and exposition of Gloria's life, and the climatic chase and mannequin mangling. The acting is fair, but Rappello is a real slimeball.

This is a huge step up from Fear and Desire technically. The shooting is excellent, feeling large and small at the same time. We get treated to some artistic shots as well. The editing is fine, and the lighting is true- noir. The music is fantastic, very upbeat, fast and fitting, adding to the tension where needed. This is visionary directing with funds.

Then there's the ending. No spoilers. This was an 8 the whole way through, I was loving it, but then the last scene shatters the message as well as the score. You'll roll your eyes at Gordon's reaction. If you want to see a much better film, end it with 1 minute left.

But overall the film is excellent and I feel it's better to have too much than too little- you can edit the ending yourself. A solid noir, and even more promise than Fear and Desire, despite the contradictory ending. 6.6/10

Early, low-budget Kubrick...and fascinating for being precisely that

[moonspinner55 · 5/10 · 27 April 2008]

Moody film noir has boxer Frank Silvera becoming involved with his comely neighbor (Irene Kane, later known as film critic Chris Chase); she's being harassed by her gangster boss, whom the boxer eventually crosses paths with. Stanley Kubrick directed (he also wrote the initial treatment, co-produced, edited and photographed the movie!), and he does well with his first full-length feature, although his unerring eye for detail and ambiance outclasses the script and characters. The picture is enjoyable for film-buffs on a minor level (it's a footnote, nothing more), yet the set-ups and camera-work must have seemed high-reaching in 1955. It's a vivid, arresting movie which grabs you by the eyeballs, but the sum total isn't equal to these parts, and half the time there's just not much happening plot-wise. ** from ****