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Kiss Me Deadly

  • 19551955
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 46m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
20K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
Watch {VideoTitle}
Play trailer2:15
2 Videos
99+ Photos
  • Crime
  • Film-Noir
  • Mystery
A doomed female hitchhiker pulls Mike Hammer into a deadly whirlpool of intrigue, revolving around a mysterious "great whatsit".A doomed female hitchhiker pulls Mike Hammer into a deadly whirlpool of intrigue, revolving around a mysterious "great whatsit".A doomed female hitchhiker pulls Mike Hammer into a deadly whirlpool of intrigue, revolving around a mysterious "great whatsit".
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
20K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Robert Aldrich
  • Writers
    • Mickey Spillane(novel "Kiss Me, Deadly")
    • A.I. Bezzerides(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Ralph Meeker
    • Albert Dekker
    • Paul Stewart
Top credits
  • Director
    • Robert Aldrich
  • Writers
    • Mickey Spillane(novel "Kiss Me, Deadly")
    • A.I. Bezzerides(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Ralph Meeker
    • Albert Dekker
    • Paul Stewart
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 211User reviews
    • 127Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 1 nomination

    Videos2

    Trailer
    Trailer 2:15
    Trailer
    Cowboys! Detectives! Giant Bugs! B-Movie History!
    Clip 5:23
    Cowboys! Detectives! Giant Bugs! B-Movie History!

    Photos124

    Ralph Meeker in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Maxine Cooper and Ralph Meeker in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Albert Dekker in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Gaby Rodgers in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Albert Dekker and Gaby Rodgers in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Wesley Addy and Bing Russell in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Wesley Addy and Ralph Meeker in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Leonard Mudie in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Ralph Meeker and Leonard Mudie in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
    Ralph Meeker in Kiss Me Deadly (1955)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Ralph Meeker
    Ralph Meeker
    • Mike Hammeras Mike Hammer
    Albert Dekker
    Albert Dekker
    • Dr. G.E. Soberinas Dr. G.E. Soberin
    Paul Stewart
    Paul Stewart
    • Carl Evelloas Carl Evello
    Juano Hernandez
    Juano Hernandez
    • Eddie Yeageras Eddie Yeager
    Wesley Addy
    Wesley Addy
    • Lt. Pat Murphyas Lt. Pat Murphy
    Marian Carr
    Marian Carr
    • Fridayas Friday
    • (as Marion Carr)
    Marjorie Bennett
    Marjorie Bennett
    • Manageras Manager
    Mort Marshall
    Mort Marshall
    • Ray Dikeras Ray Diker
    Fortunio Bonanova
    Fortunio Bonanova
    • Carmen Trivagoas Carmen Trivago
    Strother Martin
    Strother Martin
    • Harvey Wallaceas Harvey Wallace
    Mady Comfort
    Mady Comfort
    • Nightclub Singeras Nightclub Singer
    • (as Madi Comfort)
    James McCallion
    James McCallion
    • Horaceas Horace
    Robert Cornthwaite
    Robert Cornthwaite
    • FBI Agentas FBI Agent
    Silvio Minciotti
    • Moveras Mover
    Nick Dennis
    Nick Dennis
    • Nick Va Va Voomas Nick Va Va Voom
    Ben Morris
    • Radio Announceras Radio Announcer
    Jack Elam
    Jack Elam
    • Charlie Maxas Charlie Max
    Paul Richards
    Paul Richards
    • Attackeras Attacker
    • Director
      • Robert Aldrich
    • Writers
      • Mickey Spillane(novel "Kiss Me, Deadly")
      • A.I. Bezzerides(screenplay)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The first of three Robert Aldrich-directed films which begin with someone crying over the credits.
    • Goofs
      (at around 1h 10 mins) The singer is shown standing with both hands on the microphone stand. When Hammer is sitting at the bar, during the same song, the singer is shown in a reflection playing a piano and not singing, though she is still heard singing.
    • Quotes

      Mike Hammer: You're never around when I need you.

      Velda: You never need me when I'm around.

    • Crazy credits
      The opening credits scroll down instead of the usual up, resulting in needing to read them bottom to top.
    • Alternate versions
      Until 1997, all known copies in circulation of "Kiss Me Deadly" ended rather abruptly: the wounded Mike Hammer stumbling through the beach house looking for his partner Velda, and then there's a couple of brief shots of the house exploding and burning, with "The End" superimposed on the final shot. The music is cut off instead of fading out, and the screen turns black; it looks like Mike and Velda died in the blaze.
    • Connections
      Edited into American Cinema: Film Noir (1995)
    • Soundtracks
      Rather Have the Blues
      Sung by Nat 'King' Cole

      Written by Frank De Vol (uncredited)

      [Played on the car radio during the opening title card and credits]

    User reviews211

    Review
    Top review
    One of the greatest detective thrillers ever made.
    If The Maltese Falcon (1941) was the definitive true detective movie, The Big Sleep (1946) the definitive glamourized detective movie, and Chinatown (1974) the definitive allegorical detective movie, then Kiss Me Deadly is the definitive sleazy detective movie.

    Mickey Spillane's sadistic private eye Mike Hammer, turned from successful private eye to sleazy bedroom dick, is the quintessential anti-hero, doing just about anything and everything wrong to get a piece of the pie that the characters call "The Big What's-it."

    The movie survives by giving the usual Spillane buckets-of-blood story and its protagonist new dimensions. Right from the electric opening scene and the audacious opening credit sequence, the audience is drawn into Hammer's seedy world, where morality is suspended, and the credo of the end justifying the means dominates Hammer's actions. His reckless abandonment is almost never questionned and the film seems to understand his brutality as what he must do to get the job done in an equally brutal world.

    Director Robert Aldrich observes all of it with an objective eye that neither glorifies nor condemns the action on-screen, letting the audience draw its own conclusions--even where the plot is concerned. The pace is unrelentless and the plot turns are never fully explained, forcing the audience to participate willingly in all that Hammer does to, hopefully, see the story through to its ending.

    And what an ending! I'd de damned to a special place in Hell if I elaborated, so I'll just say that it's one of the greatest I've ever seen. That goes same for the movie itself, which is one of the most stylish, jarring and truly entertaining movies of its genre.
    helpful•60
    27
    • Bryan Ho
    • Nov 28, 1998

    FAQ4

    • Why are there two different endings?
    • Which one is the original ending?
    • What is the European ending?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 28, 1955 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Italian
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
      • Mickey Spillane's Kiss Me Deadly
    • Filming locations
      • Clay Street, Bunker Hill, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Parklane Pictures Inc.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $410,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $726,000
    • Gross worldwide
      • $952,000
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 46 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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