Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
Starring Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan
Written and Directed by Shane Black


I believe a good film is one that makes you believe that you could have wrote and directed it. A film that you are so comfortable with that you truly believe it came out of your very own head. I felt this way with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang -- which means Shane Black did a great job of writing and directing it.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a smart film, it is a funny film, it is a thrilling film -- it is actually a lot of things, which is why it is so good. Shane Black is one of the Godfathers of the screenwriting world and with this film he shows us why. The story he tells is one of a boy named Harry (Robert Downey Jr.) and a girl named Harmony (Michelle Monaghan) who are destined to be together, who both end up in Hollywood, wrapped in a twisty Hollywood tale of sex and death. The film reeks of noir and it knows it. Black uses and acknowledges all the cliches of the genre, giving us a noir for the current times. We have the attractive girl that comes into the man’s dull life suddenly, we have the mysterious murder, the questionable suicide, and now the gay private investigator played by Val Kilmer.

So now that we’ve talked about how great the script is -- let’s not forget that filmmaking is a team game and that without players like Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer -- this film would have actually come off a little cheesy, to tell you the truth. But lucky for us we do have those kinds of players in the play and lucky for us they are at the top of their games here. Downey shows real emotion and character, while Kilmer shows us how funny he really is. Wow, who would have thought that Iceman could be so versatile.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang marks the return of Shane Black after a long hiatus (who wouldn’t take a long hiatus after being held responsible for making The Last Action Hero) and it also marks the return of a great Hollywood screenwriter. Welcome back, Shane, or sorry, Mr. Black, aka Mr. Screenwriting God.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: A great film full of laughs, action, and noir.

The Bad: The film was not promoted enough by Warner Bros..

The Law: Shane Black is back and shows is why he is a screenwriting legend.