Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

A murder mystery brings together a private eye, a struggling actress, and a thief masquerading as an actor.

Director:

Shane Black

Writers:

Brett Halliday (novel), Shane Black (screen story)

Stars:

Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan

5 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Harry Lockhart
Val Kilmer	...	Gay Perry
Michelle Monaghan	...	Harmony Faith Lane
Corbin Bernsen	...	Harlan Dexter
Dash Mihok	...	Mr. Frying Pan
Larry Miller	...	Dabney Shaw
Rockmond Dunbar	...	Mr. Fire
Shannyn Sossamon	...	Pink Hair Girl
Angela Lindvall	...	Flicka
Indio Falconer Downey	...	Harry Lockhart - Age 9
Ariel Winter	...	Harmony Faith Lane - Age 7
Duane Carnahan	...	Chainsaw Kid
Josh Richman	...	Richie
Martha Hackett	...	Pistol Woman
Nancy Fish	...	N.Y. Casting Woman

Storyline

A petty thief posing as an actor is brought to Los Angeles for an unlikely audition and finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation along with his high school dream girl and a detective who's been training him for his upcoming role...

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Plot Keywords:

neo noir | actor | thief | kidnapping | nightclub | 

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Taglines:

A bad week in a tough town.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Crime | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, violence and sexuality/nudity

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film is credited as being based (very loosely) on Bodies Are Where You Find Them, by Brett Halliday. This was the fifth novel (of more than 70) in the Mike Shayne detective series, originally published in 1941. Brett Halliday was the pen name of Davis Dresser, who created the character and wrote the first thirty novels, stepping down from the job in 1958. Dell Publishing hired other writers to pen the rest, sometimes assisted by Dresser; all of them continued to use the Brett Halliday pen name. The book covers of the Johnny Gossamer paperbacks created for the film are based on Dell's cover design for the Mike Shayne series from the early 1950s to mid 1960s. Bodies Are Where You Find Them was reprinted by Dell with this cover design in 1959.

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Goofs

When Harry answers Perry's mobile phone towards the end, the screen of the phone is clearly visible. Instead of showing "Harmony Calling" which would be correct, the phone display simply shows the phone book entry for Harmony instead.

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Quotes

Harry: [after overpowering and pistol-whipping a guy who'd had a gun on him and Perry] Doesn't that suck? I just hit you for no reason. I don't even know why.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the movie, Val Kilmer says not to leave; to stay and watch the credits; and if you're wondering who the Best Boy is, he's someone's nephew. (The actual Best Boy credit is Jack Bauer.)

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Connections

Referenced in Best of the Worst: Wheel of the Worst #4 (2014)

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Soundtracks

Fried Neck Bones and Some Home Fries
Written by Willie Bobo (as William "Bobo" Correa) and Melvin Lastie
Performed by Willie Bobo
Courtesy of The Verve Music Group
Under License from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

You're gonna love this...

KKBB was shown at the Fantasy Filmfest in Germany. This festival for horror, sci-fi and thrillers is touring Germany in several big cities. KKBB was the opening movie in Cologne and it got a feverish applause after wards.

I can only say that this movie is one of the biggest surprises in the Action/Thriller/Comedy-Genre in the last years. If you liked Black's scripts for Last Boy Scout, Long Kiss Goodnight, Lethal Weapon etc. for their tongue in cheek humor, wicked dialogues and sick ideas, you're gonna love this movie.

The cast delivers and gets the movie going. I don't want to spoil it for you, but Black still has some very cool one-liners and dialogue. Downey Jr is really amazing in this role as your typical looser-criminal kind of guy.

The film struggles a bit at the end, but it was so much fun to watch nonetheless. The Teaser Trailer came out today, so you might want to watch that. Luckily doesn't already show you the best parts.

I really hope that this movie attracts a big audience, because Black has definitely written and directed a highly entertaining movie, showing you Hollywood behind the scenes. Watch this movie!

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. [Belgium] Warner Bros. [Canada]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 November 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

L.A.P.I.

Filming Locations:

Monumental sculpture "Double Ascension" 1973 Herbert Bayer 505 South Flower St, Los Angeles, California USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$180,660, 23 October 2005

Gross USA:

$4,243,756

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$15,785,148

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Silver Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1