Widow's Kiss - Der Kuß der schwarzen Witwe

The NY Times called this movie "dryly witty" and it is. The performances are good but the dialogue is great. Most of the jokes are inside and sly, but if you're smart, you'll get it. My girlfriend and I loved it. Our favorite line: When Dennis Haysberg, a burned out cop, is asked why he's such a prick he says: "I woke up one day and I wasn't 25 anymore. It p***ed me off." The movie is full of great lines like that and the story works.

Sly witty movie with sneaky fun dialogue. All around good performances. The plot unfolds smoothly but the dialogue is full of clever wit. Really fun if you are a smartie and pick up on all the dry wit, but enjoyable even if you miss it.

While not the most original movie ever written, it is sharp fun if you pay attention. Some very funny clever lines. What most people don't seem to realize is that this is a dark comedy, sly and witty. D'Angelo is good, not great, and delivers some terrific "Joan Collins" style vamp lines that are very funny...if you understand you are watching a dark comedy, not "Medea" of some TV cop show. Very enjoyable, start to finish, mostly because of the sneaky clever writing, All the acting is solid, and Barbara Rush makes a welcome appearance, still beautiful. The directing is pedestrian, admittedly, (like in most movies) but the script is very funny. My wife and I laughed out loud at many of D'Angelo's snappy lines: she has her tongue firmly in cheek, and seems to be having a great good time. Recommended for a fun evening. Drink some wine and have a giggle.

Harmless enough with zero originality and a hardly believable string of events with some very soft porn thrown in for good measure. The characters are inconsistent and unrealistic. The token Brit lawyer is hilarious to any British person as a typical American stereotype of anyone British and it is strangely late 80's for a mid 90's film in both fashion and originality. The best line is when the world weary private detective explains why he has lost his enthusiasm for the job -'I woke up one morning and realised I wasn't 25 anymore and it p****d me off'. Watch only if you have no other options and leave all senses of reasoning.

"Widow's Kiss" is a well-crafted film-noir thriller with a steamy performance from Beverly D'Angelo as a woman who lives off the avails of rich, lonely men. The film is well directed by Peter Foldy and delivers some strong production values.

Mackenzie Astin (brother of Sean and son of Patty Duke) is great as the boy who suddenly inherits D'Angelo as his seductive stepmom. Bruce Davison is solid as Astin's dad and Dennis Haysbert gives a grounded performance as a down on his luck detective hired to solve a murder. At the end of the day, it is Ms. D'Angelo who carries the film as the cold-hearted Vivian. She bares all here and was at the top of her game when she made this film.

Though some of the dialogue may sound a bit on the money, "Widow's Kiss" is a great little film that should have gotten much more attention. It was an HBO World Premier back in the mid-90s and it's still a fun, sexy ride 20 years later. Would be nice to see this re-released on Blue Ray or DVD with a director's commentary.