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Kiss Me Deadly

Play trailer Poster for Kiss Me Deadly 1955 1h 45m Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
98% Tomatometer 41 Reviews 84% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
One evening, private detective Mike Hammer (Ralph Meeker) picks up a strange woman, Christina (Cloris Leachman), who's standing on the highway wearing only a trench coat. They're stopped farther on by strangers who knock out Mike and murder Christina. Although warned not to investigate by the police, Mike and his girlfriend and assistant, Velda (Maxine Cooper), become ensnared in a dark plot involving scientist Dr. Soberin (Albert Dekker) and Christina's terrified roommate, Lily (Gaby Rodgers).
Kiss Me Deadly

What to Know

Critics Consensus

An intriguing, wonderfully subversive blend of art and commerce, Kiss Me Deadly is an influential noir classic.

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Critics Reviews

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Richard Brody The New Yorker 09/12/2016
The actors' idiosyncratic voices, wrapped around such chrome-plated poetry as "the great whatsit" and "va-va-voom," are as hauntingly musical as Aldrich's images. Go to Full Review
Dave Kehr Chicago Reader 03/27/2009
This independently produced low-budget film was a shining example for the New Wave directors -- Truffaut, Godard, et al -- who found it proof positive that commercial films could accommodate the quirkiest and most personal of visions. Go to Full Review
Variety Staff Variety 10/30/2008
The trail leads to a series of amorous dames, murder-minded plug-uglies and dangerous adventures that offer excitement but have little clarity to let the viewer know what's going on. Go to Full Review
Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault 11/29/2022
A+
It takes Mickey Spillane's unreconstructed macho lout Mike Hammer and brutally interrogates him, slapping him around in a jazzy bebop rhythm that rides right up to apocalypse. Go to Full Review
Mike Massie Gone With The Twins 08/23/2020
7/10
The climax is so startlingly unusual that this Robert Aldrich-directed picture safely becomes unforgettable. Go to Full Review
Chris Barsanti Eyes Wide Open (Medium) 07/22/2020
By the time the movie comes to its gonzo Pandora's box conclusion on the beach, neither script nor screen have been able to keep up with reason, preferring instead to simply stay out of Hammer's way. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Ernie K 11/24/2024 Quintessential, dark, brooding, surprising noir, featuring a dynamite performance by Ralph Meeker as Mike Hammer as he portrays a man of intuition, violence, desire, and even occasional compassion. As hardboiled as they come, he also wishes to help a woman in great distress, and in the process there are dizzying twists and turns. A mid-50's watch that will still satisfying the noir fan - as well as anyone appreciating offbeat but compelling film making. See more Leo P 09/06/2024 I saw this B movie first time as a kid.I didn't understand what was that glowing and groaning thing in the shoe box and I became really scared.The sole purpose of this miscarriage is to frighten children,and can be of interest only for those who want to see one of the very first models of answering machine in action. See more Leaburn O 08/21/2024 Noir sci-fi weirdness. Psychedelic and fantastical but also hard to care about. Has all the signposts of a great noir but the intrigue is never adequately paid off or developed. Just ends with this pseudo nuclear nonsense. Watched on DVD. See more Andrew L 08/09/2024 Robert Aldrich gets Mickey Spillane's most famous character right in this film noir that takes a simple plot and raises the stakes to where the main character, an inexpensive private eye with little-to-no morals named Mike Hammer, has to stop a global catastrophe. See more acsdoug D @acsdoug 07/31/2024 Ralph Meeker looks the part of a tough guy detective, but he doesn't sound like one. That high pitched voice of his really detracts from the character. Maybe if he was a better actor he could overcome that deficiency. Still the film has all you could wish for in a detective noir: thugs. violence and pretty dames. Good enough for me. See more nick s @Nick_S 03/07/2024 Surprisingly gritty movie with an unsympathetic main character who doesn't stay within social guardrails. Lots of eye catching locations as he follows the clues around town. Some of the editing was a bit rough, the acting had some soft patches and the plot was merely squeezing one person after another to uncover the macguffin. However, all that doesn't take away from the fact this was excellent entertainment. See more Read all reviews
Kiss Me Deadly

My Rating

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Movie Info

Synopsis One evening, private detective Mike Hammer (Ralph Meeker) picks up a strange woman, Christina (Cloris Leachman), who's standing on the highway wearing only a trench coat. They're stopped farther on by strangers who knock out Mike and murder Christina. Although warned not to investigate by the police, Mike and his girlfriend and assistant, Velda (Maxine Cooper), become ensnared in a dark plot involving scientist Dr. Soberin (Albert Dekker) and Christina's terrified roommate, Lily (Gaby Rodgers).
Director
Robert Aldrich
Producer
Robert Aldrich
Screenwriter
Mickey Spillane, A. I. Bezzerides
Distributor
United Artists, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
Production Co
United Artists
Genre
Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 18, 1955, Original
Release Date (DVD)
Jun 19, 2001
Box Office (Gross USA)
$882
Runtime
1h 45m
Sound Mix
Mono
Aspect Ratio
35mm, 1.66:1