directed by Lynne Stopkewich
Canada 1996

The subject of Lynn Stopkewich’s featuring debut Kissed is necrophilia, a subject rarely addressed, as it by nature is on the disturbing side of perverseness, both due to the pathology of the subject and the graphic nature of sexual encounters with corpses. But rather than provoking by grotesque dark comedy like Jürg Buttgereit did with Nekromatik, Stopkewich transforms necrophilia into an act of sexual spirituality; thus by the end, we are not disgusted by the acts of Sandra, but rather sympathetic.

Based on the short story “We So Seldom Look on Love” by Barbara Gowdy, Kissed deals with Sandra, played by Molly Parker, who since early adolescence has been attracted – fascinated even - to death. To her, dead beings have an energy, which she not only senses, but can see. “When love turns into hate, there are always sparks. But when life turns into death, it’s explosive”, she comments, and to her, this energy is channelled into sexual energy. When she gets involved with Matt, played by Peter Outerbridge, to whom she openly confesses her sexual preference, he becomes obsessed with not only understanding her, but also to share her sexuality.

Directed on a very minimal budget, cast and locations are limited to the bare minimum, which both adds to the film, by making it very intimate, and weakens it, as its simplicity reveals its limitations. To me, despite its intelligence and sympathetic nature, it never transcends the screen and never involves me. As much as I with hindsight can understand Sandra, I never attune to actions nor feel with her. This is indeed sad, as Molly Parker does her utmost to portrait Sandra. You can sense both the intelligence and emotions she invests in her character.
 

Theatrical Release: September 7, 1996 (Toronto Film Festival)

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Big thanks to Henrik Sylow and Per-Olaf Strandberg for the Screen captues!

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