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Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Movie Review

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a 2005 black comedy crime film directed by Shane Black and starring Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer. It’s a surprisingly good flick.

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“What, fuckhead? Who taught you grammar?

Badly’s an adverb. Get out. Vanish“

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A thief, pretending to be an actor, gets involved in a murder investigation in Hollywood when he befriends a private eye. He soon draws in a struggling actress in the investigation. The less you discuss this plot the better. Yes, this is one of those neo-noir pictures where the plot is so convoluted that you quickly become lost. It probably makes no sense, but it doesn’t matter at the end of the day as there are so many other strengths here that counter this weakness easily.

The crime and mystery elements definitely weren’t all that great with a couple of exceptions, but the comedic elements were so terrific that they lifted the entire movie to great heights. The flick flies by how fun it is, the various comedic situations are quite memorable and the characters are for the most part highly memorable, well developed and enjoyable.

The female characters are just okay, though Michelle Monaghan did the best she could with her material. But the best reason to see this movie lies in the central relationship between the two main characters played by Val Kilmer and Robert Downey Jr.

Downey really surprised me here. This is one of the rare roles of his where he isn’t playing an arrogant douchebag, but a more down-to-earth man who has his sense of humor, but is also the butt of the joke himself. That was quite refreshing to witness and it just might be his career-best work.

Val Kilmer plays a gay man who will stop at nothing to remind everybody of his sexuality in hilarious ways. He constantly insults Downey’s character and those verbal assaults constitute the funniest moments in the movie. They are just a riot together and it’s a blast watching them excel at these superb comedy creations.

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Kiss Kiss Bang Bang also has a satirical edge to it and a tongue in cheek quality with breaking the fourth wall moments and meta jokes that for the most part really worked. The movie is well filmed and scored while Shane Black’s direction is top-notch. It’s easily his best work to date.