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In 1955 a young man, who had produced a couple of 35mm. shorts and a feature which were so little known that they were never even shown in England, made a suspense thriller… From the fact that he co-produced it, wrote it, directed it and did the photography and editing himself you may deduce that he had more talent than backing… The movie was called "Killer's Kiss," and the multi-talented man who made it was the young Stanley Kubrick…

"Killer's Kiss" is a fascinating movie to look back as it is a notable thriller in its own right… It is a film about lonely people; alone people, which is not quite the same thing; their roots almost severed from a past which was once good and is now lost; solitary in the impartial big city at the end of the line…

It starts with a confident, quiet slowness that few directors would dare in the frenetic Seventies… It takes its time to develop, and for nearly half the film you can't guess what the plot is going to be… But this carefully measured film gives you a deep feeling for the characters and their context that leaves you, even after all the suspense, with an overwhelming feeling of the humanity of the movie…

The narrator, Davy Gordon (Jamie Smith) is a young and fading boxer, past it, but not defeated in his heart… The girl Gloria Price (Irene Kane), who lives in the same apartment block, has, like him, no family nor friends… She's come down to working as a dance partner in a shabby hall run by a baddie called Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera).

Kubrick slowly, and movingly, shows the two principals taking the downgrade: Davy fighting a losing bout in the ring while Gloria is trying to push off some heavy passes from Rapallo…

Even he, Rapallo, is made human, understandable… When he stands in his shadowed office, making up his mind to some malice, his eyes fall on cozy family photographs in nice domestic frames that he takes the trouble to keep there; and, when his mind is made up, he gestures irritably, guiltily, as if knowing he's letting them down and trying weakly to dismiss summarily aside their silent reproaches…

The whole story is condensed into three days… Yet it seems to have the natural, inevitable pace of real life; and the moments briefly taken out for little touches of New York street scenes add to the reality and place it in a context of truth…

Very little violence is actually shown except in Davy's boxing match which, in just a few minutes, gives a better feeling than most movies of what it's like to lose a fight in the ring… But, in spite of all, you're on the edge of your seat and you're glad to be there…

There is a classic chase over the rooftops, but even here there are human touches that kill cliché… These villains are not supermen, any more than Davy is: they can stumble on a fire escape, and not for laughs; one of them can fall as you or I would fall and drop out with a twisted ankle…

The suspense is not lessened by these touches: it is increased, because it is more real, seems less contrived…

"Killer's Kiss" was a first-class suspense film that foreshadowed conscious and technique that Kubrick was to take to the limit in later years… And, after all, the ending was fair enough for the Fifties… In the Seventies, Gloria would probably have got raped by the railway porter, and there'd have been a lot of unlovely detail and no suspense at all

In introducing "Killer's Kiss" on TCM, host Eddie Muller apologized all over himself for what a ragged, experimental film it was from newbie director Stanley Kubrick. But the thing is, as Muller himself pointed out, inexperienced Kubrick is still better than the best film of any number of other directors, so this one's a treat.

It's ragged to be sure, and it's clear that Kubrick had the outlines of a film that he then padded out to feature length proportions, but there's hardly a shot in the the thing that isn't remarkable in some way. It's my favorite kind of noir -- dripping in atmosphere, plot incidental (though there are some clever developments in the story), tough guy meter set to 11. There's a somewhat famous climactic fight scene set in a mannequin factory that's clearly used for its weirdness only, and the whole film is like that.

Many shots from this movie are used in TCM's intro montage to their late-night programming.

Grade: A-

This film, directed by Stanley Kubrik, is not seen often these days. It was a surprise that it was shown recently on cable as it gave all of Mr. Kubrik's fans the opportunity to watch one of his early works.

The copy that was shown is amazing in that it has been kept, or probably restored, with great care. Stanley Kubrik was a genius; he probably knew more about movies than many other of his contemporaries. Yet, his legacy is somehow meager, only sixteen full length features in almost fifty years as a director.

Killer's Kiss shows the Manhattan of 1955 like it has never been seen in other movies made in the city. Mr. Kubrik's attention to detail and style overshadows the story. The main problem is his screen play, it never involves the viewer in what he is seeing. This is exacerbated by the voice over one hears over the action. We never know what makes these people tick, much less what's going on in their heads at any given moment.

The story is told in a flashback. We see Davy waiting at the old Pennsylvania Station for the train that is to take him to Seattle. He had planned to leave with Gloria, but she seems never to appear; for all we know, he might be waiting in vain.

The streets of Manhattan come alive in the brilliant black and white cinematography by Mr. Kubrik, himself. That old New York that is no longer around, is captured by Mr. Kubrik in such brilliant detail that we mourn the fact those buildings and institutions are not around any more. The night scenes around Times Square, especially the stairway leading to the dance hall have a style that brings some of Edward Hooper's work to mind. Mr. Kubrik deserves credit for filming on location and never making it feel as though those scenes have been fixed to give that effect. In fact, that's where Kubrik's genius comes into play, we realize he had an eye for making things real.

The acting is not the main focus of this film. Frank Silvera makes a menacing Vincent, the mobster and dance hall owner. Jamie Smith and Irene Kane, go through the paces, but they don't convey to the viewer the passion that is supposed to be going on between them.

This movie should be seen by the serious moviegoer as it shows Mr. Kubrik's tremendous talent. It might be a minor film, in comparison to his best work, but being one of his first movies, one can clearly see what will come later.

Few have captured the glitter and grub of a cityscape better than this 70-minutes of neon and alleyways. The plot's all over the place, along with choppy editing and so-so acting. Thus, the storyline leaves a lot to be desired. Nonetheless, the visuals are consistently striking, from crowded dancehall to jagged rooftop. Clearly, Kubrick's sense of compositional artistry has already kicked in. And judging from the slick flashback of The Killing (1956), a lot was learned from this project. Sure the movie's done on the cheap and Kubrick has to do everything but cater the food. Still, the imagination is rich and pervasive at a time when Hollywood was arguably most straitjacketed. Despite the many flaws (god-awful musical scoring), this slender film put Kubrick on the movie-making map. Not surprisingly, his next film The Killing would provide a lot more to work with. All in all, the production remains a treat for the eye, if not for the ear; that is, if you believe urban dour can be made compelling.

Stanley Kubrick's career really took off in 1956, upon the release of his first masterpiece; "The Killing", after which he would go on to make many much loved cinema classics such as "Dr Strangelove", "The Shining" and "A Clockwork Orange", to name a few. This movie is, however, no masterpiece; but that's not to say it's without it's plus points.

First and foremost, this movie is admirable for it's directing, which is excellent. Of course Stanley Kubrick would go on to show himself as a genius behind the camera, and this movie is an early taste of that genius in the directorial department. Secondly, despite the B-grade cast, the acting is not bad at all. It's not marvelous, but considering the cast's accomplishments, previously and after this movie was made, it's better than one would expect.

One of the movie's major flaws, however, is its lack of ideas. There are some nice ideas in the film, such as the part where Gloria tells her story to a backdrop of her sister doing ballet, and the Rear Window style way that the Gloria and Davy meet, but as the film is only 67 minutes long, it felt at times that Kubrick was spending too long on certain sequences, which is a problem if the movie is as short as this one is as it looked as though Kubrick was just dragging things out in order to meet an acceptable running time. That might be so bad in a longer film, but here it's not good.

This movie is a nice, taut little thriller and is definitely recommended to people that want to see some early Kubrick and thereby see how he developed as a filmmaker, but it's not a great film and I don't recommend going into this movie expecting it to be one.

"Killer's Kiss" (1955), acclaimed director Stanley Kubrick's second feature film, starred Jamie Smith, Irene Kane and Frank Silvera.

The story looks like it was partly inspired by Robert Siodmak's The Killers (1946): A boxer called on the slide Davey Gordon (Jamie Smith), is awakened from a dream (a stunning piece of surrealism, it's only fault being that it is too short) by the screams of Gloria Price (Irene Kane), who lives on the other side of his apartment block, as her lecherous boss Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera) forces himself on her. Gordon goes to her help, but Rapallo escapes. He falls in love with Gloria, a "dancer" at a nightclub run by Rapallo, but in doing so, he faces Rapallo's wrath and his deadly vengeance.

While the plot may be slightly run-on-the-mill stuff, the movie as a whole is certainly not. Shot on the streets of New York by Kubrick himself, the picture benefits enormously by this "breathing" quality, making the story more believable as it's set and shot in a real place, a rare practice at the time (one wonders if Kubrick did this for purely aesthetic reasons: the budget of the movie was only $40,000 or so, extremely cheap even then for a movie). The camera-work is very high contrast black and white, all the automobiles surfaces gleaming and enabling the tower blocks Gordon rushes past during the final look dark and foreboding. He also inserts a few stylistic shots like Gordon looking through a fish-bowl; but Kubrick uses these sparingly so they always look unexpected. Along with the beautiful cinematography, the action is the highlight of this motion picture: a violent and ruthless boxing match early on, shot with a hand-held camera is exciting and brutal; capturing what the sport is really like. Another set piece is justifiably famous: a climatic fight between Gordon and Rapallo in a mannequin store house with fire-axes.

But there are flaws, flaws than cannot be overlooked even if one is kind to the young Stanley Kubrick and very lenient. First and foremost is the acting: Irene Kane as the woman who sparks off all the trouble is desperately weak and is hard to see why a Rapallo lust after her and Gordon falls in love with her so quickly. Silvera is excellent as our villain and Smith, while nothing special, is good enough for his part, but because Kubrick opted to film the movie "silent" and then put in the sounds in post-production, not only do you have errors like cars driving in the background but no noise issuing forth from them, but the performances are made rather stilted and the dialogue spoken doesn't always match up to their lips. The motion picture is in (a needless) flashback, so we are given a redundant voice-over and the ending in the train-station is overly-sentimental and it is not only alien to the world of noir, but alien also to Kubrick. Despites these flaws, the movie reminds an enjoyable, at times very exciting, film noir that isn't just for Kubrick buffs.

Killer's Kiss is a 1955 movie produced, directed and written by a 27 year old Stanley Kubrick. Coming off the heels of a poorly received first effort, 1953's Fear and Desire, Kubrick stormed back with an interesting little story set in the heart of New York City. The film's protagonist Davy Gordon, is a struggling local boxer who gets involved with a woman, Gloria Price who's ex, Vincent Rapallo hasn't let go of her yet. Kubrick slowly, and movingly, shows the two principals taking the downgrade: Davy fighting a losing bout in the ring while Gloria is trying to push off some heavy passes from Rapallo.

While the pair try to flee the city, Rapallo and his henchmen foil there escape. Price meanwhile, has changed her mind and decides she's better off with a real man, Rapallo. In the thrilling climax, Gordon and Rapallo battle it out in a run-down mannequin factory which foreshadows his technique shown in later masterpieces.

"Killer's Kiss" was a first-class suspense film that foreshadowed conscious and technique that Kubrick was to take to the limit in later years. After all, the ending was fair enough for the Fifties. Out of a possible 5 stars, I give young Stanley Kubrick's "Killer's Kiss" 4 stars.

I saw this film quite a few years ago in a film appreciation class I

took. I am a Kubrick fan so I was interested in seeing it. The

acting is pretty bad in this film, but Kubrick was pretty much

producing this independently (in the mid-50's when that was not

done too often) and probably could not get very good actors. The

filmmaking was great. There were great tracking shots, wonderful

use of mise on scen, great long shots and close ups. In fact a lot

of sequences were similar to sequences in many of Kubrick's

famous films. Kubrick fans should see this movie at least once.

A young Stanley Kubrick's bare-budget film - perhaps his first "mainline" movie - shows him still in the minor leagues but very close to making it to the Major Leagues. In fact, he did so the following year with "The Killing," a film noir that still ranks among the best. At any rate, this is an opportunity to see Kubrick at work right before he "makes it" in the business.

With an almost-nothing budget you aren't going to draw too many professional actors, and that certainly was the case here, but still is worth watching. It's definitely a "B" noir that is more melodrama than crime until the ending when it gets very, very suspenseful featuring a chase over New York City rooftops and then into abandoned warehouses.

Jamie Smith and Irene Kane are the stars and if you've never heard of them, it's probably because they weren't exactly Humphey Bogart and Bette Davis, acting-wise. The other star, Frank Silvera, at least is a name I recognized.

Overall, the best feature may be the camera-work. It gives us a preview of the visual talents that Kubrick would bring to the big screen in following decade. On its own merits, if you are a film noir fan, you'll want this in your collection.

With 3 short films and a feature (Fear And Desire [1953]) under his belt, none of which had received any notice (in fact, Kubrick bought up all of the existing prints of Fear And Desire, because he thought it was poorly done [not to mention that it was being billed as a sexploitation film]), Kubrick decided to try out something new. He decided to go with Film-Noir.

The film is filled with Kubrick trademarks through and through. He uses boxing (which was the subject of his very first short Day of the Fight [1951]), zooming techniques, flashbacks (also used in his next film The Killing [1956]) and narration. The cinematography is exquisite, as usual, with many shots (particularly in the boxing studio and the train station) being backlit with a soft, grey light to give it a disconnected, almost rear-screen-projection feel. However, it is obvious that this is the early, naive Kubrick at work here. The entire movie, like Fear And Desire, is post-dubbed (much like a Fellini film), with all of the sound effects being done over by a meticulous Kubrick. And, of course, the Film-Noir. Davey Gordon (played to perfection by Jamie Smith) is the almost-stereotypical Noir anti-hero, with Irene Kane (aka journalist Chris Chase) as his anti-heroine. Frank Silvera, who had the lead role in Fear And Desire, is the slimy villain, whom you actually want to die (a good sign [for a villain]).

This Kubrick film can most be compared to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) or Barry Lyndon (1975), in that, once you get past a slow beginning, the end is absolutely riveting. Kubrick knows that he wants to grab his audience, and he does so with perfection. Some of it is padded (the ballet sequence is not particular interest), but the rest it great, from the initial boxing sequence to the chase scene at the end. If you're a fan of Kubrick, see it. If you're a fan of great cinema, see it. If you're a fan of Film-Noir, see it (but take it with a pinch of salt). If you're none of these things, see it, and you will be.

At the relatively young age of 23 years old, a promising photographer named Stanley Kubrick decided to try his luck at making movies after becoming fascinated by the inventive camera-work of Max Ophüls' movies. The young Kubrick had a promising start, as he quickly sold his first two short films (the documentaries "Day of the Fight" and "Flying Padre") to RKO Radio Pictures' newsreel division, a success that made him decide to quit his job at "Look" and become a full-time filmmaker. However, not everything was easy, as the critical and commercial failure of his first theatrical movie, 1953's "Fear and Desire", almost put a halt to the young filmmaker's career. After this failure, Kubrick decided not to give up and spent the following two years saving money in order to make another movie: "Killer's Kiss", the movie that would pave the way for Kubrick's future masterpieces.

"Killer's Kiss" is the story of Davey Gordon (Jamie Smith), a 29 years old boxer living in New York at the apparent end of his career. After losing another fight against a younger and better opponent, Gordon contemplates to retire and return to his uncle's farm in Seattle to work. However, everything changes when he notices that Gloria Price (Irene Kane), the young lady who lives next to his apartment, is being attacked by a man named Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silver). Gordon quickly intervenes and manages to scare Rapallo away, and this event makes him meet Gloria and discover her life. He finds out that she is a dancer, and that Rapallo is her employer, a violent man that owns the dance hall where she works. While Gordon is quickly falling in love with Gloria, Mr. Rapallo is planning his vengeance, as he is not willing to let Gloria run away from his hands.

With a screenplay written by Howard Sackler (who also helped Kubrick in "Fear and Desire"), "Killer's Kiss" was based on an original story by Stanley Kubrick himself (something he would never do again) that in many ways seems to reflect Kubrick's vision of New York in those years. Essentially a crime film deeply rooted in the film noir genre, "Killer's Kiss" deals with Gordon's adventure through the dark side of New York and his gazing into the morbid world of low-life gangsters. It's certainly a very simple story, and while the quality of the dialogs ain't really amazing, Kubrick and Sackler manage to add nice twists to the plot, a good dose of suspense, and specially, an interesting development of the characters and their relationships. They all seem very human and realistic, which together with the dark and gritty world they inhabit enhances the realism of his story.

While the story may not be of the quality Kubrick would achieve later in his career, visually "Killer's Kiss" is a joy. With a superb work of cinematography, Kubrick captures New York city at its darkest with a raw and gritty style that fits perfectly the tone of the film. His mix of light and shadows in the noir style is remarkable, and adds a lot of atmosphere to the movie. Taking a realist approach to the story, Kubrick seems to give a good use to everything he learned by making documentaries (the fight scene brings back memories from his first short, "Day of the Fight"), and it is in fact his dynamic camera-work what makes the movie special. Finally, the music by Gerald Fried (who also started his career in Kubrick's first short) is another of the highlights of "Killer's Kiss", subtly adding a morbid and somber tone to the movie's images.

Well, the acting is not exactly good, as with the exception of Frank Silvera and Jamie Smith, nobody in the cast was a professional actor at the time of making "Killer's Kiss". As boxer Davy Gordon, Smith is actually good and is very convincing as a fighter whose better days are in the past. While his character is a tough guy, Smith manages to give him an everyman look, making really easy to sympathize with him. Like Smith, Frank Silvera is also good in the role of Mr. Rapallo, the sinister owner of the dance hall, although at times he is not as convincing as Smith. However, Kubrick's screenplay makes Rapallo more human than the villain caricature that it could had been, and Silvera truly takes good advantage of that. It is Irene Kane as Gloria Price where the movie fails, as she seems unable to do with her character something more than looking great on film.

Sadly, the rest of the cast is actually worse, with the probable exception of Jerry Jarret, a non-professional actor who is very convincing as Gordon's manager. The bad quality of the acting truly diminishes the power of the writers' script, as while the dialogs aren't exactly good, the bad acting makes them sound even worse. Still, Kubrick's visual poetry is what makes the movie to stand out among the rest as despite its flaws it shows that the young photographer who made it was truly a promising talent. Shot in areas near the apartment where Kubrick lived on those years, "Killer's Kiss" is like an oddly attractive postcard of those sides of New York where nobody would like to get lost, as Kubrick makes this dark and gritty story a haunting portrait of his city showing its best and its worst faces at the same time.

While at first sight it may seem that the movie is important only because a young Stanley Kubrick made it, "Killer's Kiss" really has some interesting elements on its favor. Kubrick's powerful cinematography and skill as a storyteller are already displayed here, as well as his skillful use of music to add atmosphere to the scenes. While certainly weak in some aspects, "Killer's Kiss" is an excellent film noir that most importantly, would attract producers for Kubrick's first masterpiece: 1956's "The Killing". 7/10

Stanley Kubrick's films were notable for, among other things, his control over the medium. Even in bad films like Barry Lyndon or Eyes Wide Shut it was always clear that Kubrick was getting exactly what he wanted.

But when he made Killer's Kiss, he obviously hadn't got it all figured out yet. The movie has some interesting pieces, scenes with striking lighting, original, clever ideas, but it also has drably lit scenes and hackneyed dialog. You can see the future Kubrick in individual shots, but it's all over the place. The movie has the quality of a student film, in which Kubrick is so excited by all his super cool ideas and all the fun stuff he can do with film that he throws it all in willy nilly.

It is difficult to believe any of the people on this site who are declaring this movie a brilliant classic would do so if they'd never heard of the filmmaker. The story is perfunctory, the pacing is sluggish and the acting is abysmal. The movie is really only notable for film history, a way of understanding Kubrick's thought process as he was teaching himself the art of film. But it's a lousy movie.

At an age when most wannabe filmmakers are still 'in training' Stanley Kubrick was producing full length feature masterpieces.

I'm still shocked at how many fans of Kubrick's later work do not appreciate Killer's Kiss. While the basic plot of the movie is nothing special and decidely more 'Hollywood' than Kubrick's later works there are more signs of his trademark style in this film than I feel there were in The Killing or Paths of Glory.

Kubrick's own cinematography in particular blew me away. The use of depth, light and shadow and of his trademark moving camera show us more skill and thought than directors with dozens of films and much better scripts under their belt. And Kubrick's trademark use of his camera to observe silently, capturing the true spirit of his characters when they are alone (no music, no dialogue) is seen over and over in the apartment. If Kubrick's direction could turn a story like this into such a masterful cinematic experience I shudder at what he would of done with this film had he made 10 or 20 years later.

If you love the unique cinematic idiosynchracies of Kubrick's later work then you MUST SEE KILLER'S KISS!

After "Fear and Desire", Kubrick managed to pull off a more professional looking film, although also a less intriguing one. If FaD was poorly written, K'sK stands as a good improvement over it, with leaner lines but still stained by too long expository monologues, especially the less-than-relevant one about Gloria's relatives, which feels more like a showcase of Kubrick's wife as a dancer than a really significant part of the film. While FaD played a lot with the genre it was put in, though, and created an unsettling atmosphere with the doubles of the protagonists, K'sK agrees more to the dictats of the genre, only seldom driving away from it with some romance drama and continuing Kubrick's obsession for the bewilderment of his characters. The cinematography and staging are the true shiners of the film, with amazing shots that are statements for the masterpieces to come: I especially liked the nightmare scene, which clearly relates to the journey through space and time made by Bowman in "2001" (their names, Davey and David, are also very similar...). Acting, like in the previous film, is nothing worth noting, except maybe the fight in the mannequin factory, which was a good showcase of energy and rage by the two mains, especially for a low-budget film. The happy ending got me unprepared for, as I know Kubrick and his love for generating mixed feelings in his viewers, but I later learned that it was imposed by the producers for a lot of money, so I can see now why it is so.

All in all, being this his second film and with a low budget, it's still an interesting piece of history in the greatest director of all time's career.

I try to imagine going to the cinema back when "Killer's Kiss" (about a boxer reminiscing on unpleasant events while waiting for a train) was released back in 1955. Certainly, it was a mind-blowing movie - especially the chase sequence - but even so, it probably would have been hard to guess that the director would go on to direct some of the greatest movies of all time.

No matter, watching the movie today, one can see shades of what Stanley Kubrick (who would have turned 79 today) later brought to "Dr. Strangelove", "2001" and "A Clockwork Orange". Does this one count solidly as a film noir? That might be a matter of debate. But you can't deny that this movie is an important part of cinema history, affirming Kubrick as an indelible name on the silver screen.

Starring Frank Silvera and Irene Kane.

Davey Gordon (Jamie Smith) is an over the hill prizefighter who's considering returning to the family farm to help out his uncle. Then fate steps in: one night he witnesses a neighbour, the pretty Gloria Price (Irene Kane) being accosted by her employer Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera), a gangster. Davey is almost instantly taken with her, and after getting to know her a little bit, he decides that he will be her protector. That will prove to be a challenge, as Rapallo sends two of his goons (Mike Dana, Felice Orlandi) after Davey and abducts Gloria to boot.

Short & sweet, this reasonably enjoyable little noir is compelling viewing for both fans of the genre and of filmmaker Stanley Kubrick. It may not be quite as accomplished as his later works (it *was* only his second feature film), but it still has some genuine stylishness going for it. The boxing scenes early on are noteworthy for the camera placement and operation, creating a genuine intensity. Kubrick also edited, shot, and wrote the story (Howard Sackler wrote the screenplay, uncredited), and it's clear that he was a real talent who could go far. There's one mighty fine bit of nightmare imagery, and the story does have a fairly good pace going for it. Unfortunately, the rather loud and jaunty music score tends to work against whatever tension that Kubrick is able to generate. The final battle between Davey and Rapallo is a pretty good one, and the fact that it takes place inside a mannequin factory helps to make it visually interesting. Silvera is fine as the gangster, Smith and Kane (the latter is better known as journalist Chris Chase) less satisfactory in the other principal roles. Ruth Sobotka, who was married to Kubrick at the time (and was also Kanes' sister!), plays the ballerina.

Overall, a solid effort although it was with his next picture, "The Killing", that Kubrick really hit his stride.

Seven out of 10.

I am about to say something so radical, that many film lovers will probably automatically dismiss the rest of this review. I much, much prefer director Stanley Kubrick's earlier work. While later in his career he became known for his obsessive-compulsiveness that led to him often filming the same scene a hundred or more times, in his earliest work he was quite the opposite--shooting the scene right the first time because he couldn't afford to use a bazillion feet of extra footage with each film. He was a master of the simplistic and reminded me, a bit, of Sam Fuller--who was also an incredibly talented director when given almost no budget. Both actually were not at their best when the studios gave them more money--at least when you are looking for the percentage return on their investment. Sure, Kubrick also did some great films with a large budget (DR. STRANGELOVE comes immediately to mind), but for tight and exciting films, it's hard to beat KILLER'S KISS or THE KILLING--two exceptional Noir films.

Now I am NOT saying that KILLER'S KISS is a perfect or even near-perfect film--there are some technical problems that make it obvious it isn't great art. But, given that Kubrick was on welfare when he made it, he had almost no money or backers and he had equipment problems that necessitating re-dubbing the film, it's an amazing little film. In particular, the black and white camera work is among the best I've seen of the era for a Film Noir picture---dark and occasionally just a bit grainy and filled with amazing camera angles. I particularly loved the boxing match--bizarre but highly exciting camera shots abounded, you could see and almost feel all the sweat on the boxers (more so than in more polished films like CHAMPION or REQUIEM FOR A HEAVYWEIGHT) and the boxers looked like they were beating the crap out of each other--not pulling their punches or dancing.

As for the story, it ain't deep but it's a textbook example of "simple is best"--and for some films this is definitely true. The only failings are minor and can be forgiven considering the budget and that this is Kubrick's first film. Occasionally poor dubbing, a few irrelevant camera shots and two scenes that summarized what happened instead of actually filming the scenes that just screamed "we ran out of money". The ballerina scene was poorly done--just showing the same dancer for a LONG time while the female star told her life story. It just looked cheap. Also, the final scene where the hero gave a lengthy exposition what happened once the police showed was obviously done because of economy--I really wanted to see instead of hear about this.

Overall, despite some minor problems, this is a great film for young film makers. This is one of the very best independent films you can find--and few films have come close to it for a quality to investment dollars ratio.

For a few other exceptional low-budget films, try CARNIVAL OF SOULS, STEEL HELMET, the original VILLAGE OF THE DAMNED and TWO THOUSAND MANIACS! (this final one is a bit terrible in spots, but is amazingly watchable--and bears repeated viewing). There are many, many more and when I find one of these films, it thrills me.

Decent, B-NeoNoir with the expected trimmings--boxer, dame, thugs, dingy walk-up apartments--given some class (to use the noir vernacular) via Kubrick's lush direction, and a wildly unsettling finale amongst disemboweled mannequins. Earns a place on your "must" list for its remarkable on-location NYC photography, some of the best of any noir. Two locales in particular--the cavernous original Penn Station (already on the road to ruin) and 1955 Times Square with its acres of movie palaces and neon marquees--get plenty of footage, serving as an irresistible time capsule. It lends great realism to one of the least glamorous urban films since the Warner pre-Code era.

Moody film noir has boxer Frank Silvera becoming involved with his comely neighbor (Irene Kane, later known as film critic Chris Chase); she's being harassed by her gangster boss, whom the boxer eventually crosses paths with. Stanley Kubrick directed (he also wrote the initial treatment, co-produced, edited and photographed the movie!), and he does well with his first full-length feature, although his unerring eye for detail and ambiance outclasses the script and characters. The picture is enjoyable for film-buffs on a minor level (it's a footnote, nothing more), yet the set-ups and camera-work must have seemed high-reaching in 1955. It's a vivid, arresting movie which grabs you by the eyeballs, but the sum total isn't equal to these parts, and half the time there's just not much happening plot-wise. ** from ****

I saw this film about two weeks ago on AMC. It was in the morning so there was no tag by Bob Osborne when it ended and since I did not catch the very beginning, I did not see the credits. I saw the boxing match and it was BRUTAL. What a fighter goes through was never conveyed more clearly and more succinctly. I remember Frank Silvera from other films (and it was his name that I looked up to find here at IMD. The actors were unknown and the two leads were not that convincing but the story was riveting. I was prepared for an ending suitable to the type of dark film it had been up to that point. I really liked the ending that was revealed. I came here to read comments on this little known film and was totally surprised to learn that Stanley Kubrick directed it. He told a story in a lean, sparse way that was different from the way he told later films but his genius was showing here. Bravo to all connected with this little gem!

Missed this great film of director Stanley Kubrick in 1955. The black and white effect was perfect for this depressing story. However, it was enjoyable watching these two actors, Jamie Smith (Dave Gordon),"Only Fools & Horses '81 TV Series" and Irene Kane(Gloria Price) "All That Jazz" '79, look at each other through the windows of their one room apartments in the same building, dressing and undressing and looking very depressed and down in the dumps. Jamie was a down and out prizer fighter and Gloria was a dance for hire gal, who was down on her luck working along Broadway, NYC and being taken advantage of by the villian, Frank Silvera (Vincent Rapallo) "Valdez Is Coming" '71". Stanley Kubrick wanted this film to be a very realistic film about two people being drawn together by hard luck, therefore, he had these actors act just the way ordinary people would act in REAL LIFE, it makes it appear that they are both poor actors, which is far from the truth. It was great to see a man and a woman become drawn to each other and be able to try and cope with their horrible situations in life. This a great Classic film by Stanley Kubrick!!

"Like the man said, 'Can happiness buy money?'"

Bad acting, bad storytelling, bad sound/dubbing, bad editing, bad ending ... so many aspects of Kubrick's second film are amateurish to say the least. There are some almost comically bad bits here, one of which was the voiceover over a ballet performance (Kubrick's wife, Ruth Sobotka). However, Kubrick's cinematography made the film worth seeing - the man certainly knew how to frame a shot. The highlights were the images of New York at night, the intimacy of the boxing scene, and the battle amidst mannequins. Mercifully, the film is just 67 minutes long, because aside from occasionally nice visuals, the story was a snooze. It's hard to believe that this was just one year before The Killing (1956) and two before Paths of Glory (1957), both of which were brilliant, but a big part of that undoubtedly was the shoestring budget and technical difficulties he encountered. Watch it to get a glimpse of Kubrick's genius in the larval stage though.