Shane Black's Kiss Kiss Bang Bang - Robert Downey Jr. Val Kilmer DVD Review

(aka 'L.A.P.I.' or 'You'll Never Die in This Town Again')

Directed by Shane Black
USA 2005

Okay, a cute premise and a shade inventive: A petty thief (Robert Downey Jr.) evades authorities by posing as an actor and 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 (Michelle Monaghan) and a detective (Val Kilmer) who's been training him for his upcoming role... Sure, lots of L.A. style wit and wisdom - with an over abundance on attempting 'cool' through the snappy dialogue. I don't know maybe I'm jaded but something about this film rubbed me the wrong way. I'm sure it will appeal to many - it had an Altman-esque beat to it. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang is certainly worth viewing for a little fun. I suppose the tag line "From the creator of Lethal Weapon" should tell you enough about its depth and how long it will stay with you though.

Gary W. Tooze

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Theatrical Release: May 14th, 2005 - Cannes Film Festival

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DVD Review: Warner - Region 1 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Warner Home Video - Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	1:42:32
Video	2.39:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.90 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 5.1), DUBs: French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
Subtitles	English, Spanish, French, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Warner Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original Aspect Ratio 2.39:1 Edition Details: • Commentary by: Val Kilmer, Robert Downey Jr., and Shane Black • Gag reel • Theatrical trailer DVD Release Date: June 13th, 2006 Keep Case Chapters: 29

Comments:

Great image, strong detail on this new Warner DVD. Day and night scenes show strength of contrast and tend to look very 'real' (see below). Colors (skin tones) are accurate, bright and vivid. The 5.1 audio was tested on a few occasions and the DVD represented itself very well in those instances. The animated menus reflect the creatively obtuse appeal of the film. The 'Gag Reel' has some humor but the big supplement is the commentary track which was lots of fun - they all seem to play off each other very well. Director Black certainly helps identify production details that would have been oblivious to me otherwise. Overall a great DVD of a film that will appeal to many.

Gary W. Tooze

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