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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r |
(aka "Mickey Spillane's Kiss Me Deadly" )
directed by Robert Aldrich
USA 1955
Kiss Me Deadly (1955), Robert
Aldrich's hard-edged, stylistically innovative adaptation of
the Mickey Spillane novel, features what may be the most
violent and unsympathetic private eye in the history of
cinema. As Mike Hammer, Ralph Meeker is like a bull in a
china shop, lurching haphazardly from one deadly encounter
to the next, often employing the same brutal tactics of the
criminals he's pursuing. But as the plot of Kiss Me Deadly
unfolds, Hammer goes from being just a cheap hood who
specializes in divorce cases to serving as an unwitting
accomplice in the retrieval of a mysterious box that holds
"the great whatsit."
*** In this atomic adaptation of Mickey Spillane’s novel, directed by Robert Aldrich, the good manners of the 1950s are blown to smithereens. Ralph Meeker stars as snarling private dick Mike Hammer, whose decision one dark, lonely night to pick up a hitchhiking woman sends him down some terrifying byways. Brazen and bleak, Kiss Me Deadly is a film noir masterwork as well as an essential piece of cold war paranoia, and it features as nervy an ending as has ever been seen in American cinema. *** Starting with the opening scene in the film, our "hero" gets in over his head when he picks up a hysterical woman (Cloris Leachman) on the highway who has escaped from a mental institution. The ensuing events lead him to a subversive group led by Dr. Soberin (Albert Dekker) who appear to be trafficking in stolen atomic material. It all builds to an apocalyptic finish at an isolated beach house where the contents of the black box are finally revealed. |
Posters
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Theatrical Release: 18 May 1955 (USA)
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison:
MGM - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray vs. Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray
Big thanks to Gregory Meshman for the DVD Review!
1) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC LEFT 2) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray MIDDLE 3) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray RIGHT |
Box Cover |
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Released on Blu-ray in the UK by Criterion on August 5th, 2019: |
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Distribution |
MGM Region 1 - NTSC |
Criterion Collection, spine #568 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Carlotta Region 'B' - Blu-ray |
Runtime | 1:45:56 | 1:46:12.783 | 1:46:07.194 |
Video |
1.64:1 Original Aspect Ratio |
1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 46,489,435,585 bytesFeature: 31,341,520,896 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 35.00 Mbps |
1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 39,636,819,245 bytes Feature: 30,830,487,552 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 34.81 Mbps |
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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Bitrate |
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Bitrate Criterion Blu-ray |
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Bitrate Carlotta Blu-ray |
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Audio | Dolby Digital 2.0 (English) |
LPCM Audio English 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz /
1152 kbps / 24-bit Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps |
DTS-HD Master Audio English 819 kbps 1.0 / 48
kHz / 819 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 1.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit) DTS-HD Master Audio French 1058 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1058 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 1.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit) |
Subtitles | French, Spanish, None | English, None | French, None |
Features |
Release Information: Studio: MGM Aspect Ratio:
Edition Details: Chapters 16 |
Release Information: 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 46,489,435,585 bytesFeature: 31,341,520,896 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 35.00 Mbps
Edition Details:
Blu-ray
Release Date: June 21st, 2011
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Release Information: Studio: Carlotta Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 39,636,819,245 bytes Feature: 30,830,487,552 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 34.81 Mbps
Edition Details: • The Many Faces of Mike Hammer (27:58 in English / French subtitles - Fiction Factory) • Controversial Ending (:39)
• Trailer
(2:11) Chapters 21
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Comments |
NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. ADDITION: Carlotta Films - Region 'B' - Blu-ray (December 2013): Another strong transfer from Carlotta - technically right up there with the Criterion and I can see no significant difference between the image quality of the Blu-rays. The French 1080P release may be minutely brighter - but that is all.Ditto for the audio - a DTS-HD Master in original mono - I'd be hard-pressed to identify differences from the Criterion Blu-ray. They have included an optional French DUB and the French subtitles are optional via the 'subtitle' button on your remote. Carlotta may not have all the extras of the Criterion but they do offer some valuable video pieces - Disintegration is 22:45 long interview from Allerton Films (In French - no subtitles) with a scholar discussing Kiss Me Deadly. The Many Faces of Mike Hammer runs almost 1/2 hour and is in English from Robert Fischer's 'Fiction Factory'. Cult director Larry Cohen discusses Robert Aldrich’s KISS ME DEADLY (1955) and his own adaptation of a Mickey Spillane novel, I, THE JURY (1982). With great passion and verve, he also comments on Mike Hammer’s many other screen and television incarnations and even brings out his collection of Mike Hammer comic books. We get the brief Controversial Ending piece also found on the Criterion and a trailer.
This is a wonderful, French-friendly (and English-friendly)
Blu-ray release for Region 'B'
Blu-ray. Super a/v presentation and
brilliant value. Recommedned!
*
ADDITION:
Criterion - Region 'A' -
Blu-ray -
May 11':
Certainly
there is no need to compare to the non-anamorphic,
boosted SD transfer that has more artefacts and a
cropped frame. The Criterion 1080P image shows some
occasionally impressive detail, sublime contrast and
thick grain that mark it as a very film-like
presentation. It is certainly not glossy and the image,
while never looking pristine, brings back a wonderfully
textured look to Kiss Me Deadly. Aside from a few
scratches under the surface there is no damage to speak
of and aside from some minor fluctuation the gritty
presentation is consistent and should be very
pleasing to
Noir fans.
Criterion are faithful to the flat mono audio with a
linear PCM track at 1152 kbps. Any scattered audio is
more to be blamed on the production or source than the
transfer. It is imperfect but never hinders the
presentation with drop-outs or notable hiss. There
are optional subtitles and the
Blu-ray
disc is, as always from Criterion, coded for region 'A'.
Criterion supply a great audio commentary by two of the
best - film noir specialists Alain Silver and James
Ursini recorded in Los Angeles in March 2011. They cover
information about all the film's participants as well as
the characters. It is, as expected, very thorough and
extremely entertaining for devotees of Kiss Me Deadly.
There is a 6.5 minute new video tribute from director
Alex Cox who discusses the backwards title and his
deeply thought perceptions on the film and its meanings.
There are about 10-minutes of excerpts from The Long
Haul of A. I. Bezzerides, a 2007 documentary on the
Kiss Me Deadly screenwriter where Spillane,
Bezzerides and writers Barry Gifford and George
Pelecanos. This helps perpetuate the dark aura of the
film's ideals. In 1998 Mickey Spillane agreed to
participate in a documentary about his life and career,
directed by mystery writer and filmmaker Max Allan
Collins (atta boy Max! - author of the book
The Road to Perdition).
Mike
Hammer’s Mickey Spillane's debuted at a noir festival in Courmayeur, Italy. This new condensed cut was prepared
by Collins for this release and runs for about
40-minutes documenting the life and work of the author.
Also included is a 7-minute video piece, narrated by
writer-actor Don Bajema, where writer and Los Angeles
film buff Jim Dawson discusses some of the locations in
Kiss Me Deadly. For almost 3 decades more than a
minute of footage was missing from the end of the film.
How this happened remains a mystery but it resulted in a
very different fate for the characters. Neither director
Robert Aldrich nor anyone associated with the film's
production or distribution intended for these crucial
shots to be excised, and they were finally restored in
1997. It is presented under the title "Controversial
altered ending" and runs only, truncated at only 22
seconds. There is a theatrical trailer and a liner notes
booklet featuring an essay by critic J. Hoberman and a
1955 reprint by director Robert Aldrich.
This is like giving a tall, cool lemonade to a man dying
of thirst
-
Gary Tooze
*** ON THE
DVD: Robert
Aldrich's noir classic Kiss Me Deadly was released on
DVD in 2001, back when MGM thought that films less than
1.85:1 aspect ratio (in this film's case, it's around
1.64:1) doesn't require anamorphic enhancement. The film is
widescreen, in original theatrical ratio, but unfortunately
presented on this disc letterboxed format. The print itself
in a nice shape, with very light scratches and marks being
visible
from time to time, but it's never severe. The last minutes
suffer the most, but being restored from a different print (SEE
HERE) it was anticipated. An alternative
ending that most people saw in US theaters is available as
an extra. A trailer is also available; this important film
noir definitely deserves better special edition with
anamorphic transfer and some nice extras. The MGM disc is
currently out of print, but can be obtained new for a little
over $10 at Amazon. The film is highly lauded, but the
recommendation of this DVD release comes with some
reservations. Let's hope for a new edition soon!
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Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray
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CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
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1) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray MIDDLE 3) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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1) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray MIDDLE 3) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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1) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray MIDDLE 3) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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1) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray MIDDLE 3) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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1) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray MIDDLE 3) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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1) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray MIDDLE 3) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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More Blu-ray Captures
1) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP 2) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP 2) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP 2) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP 2) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP 2) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP 2) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP 2) Carlotta - Region 'B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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Box Cover |
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Distribution |
MGM Region 1 - NTSC |
Criterion Collection, spine #568 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Carlotta Region 'B' - Blu-ray |
![]() Search DVDBeaver |
S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r |