Kiss Of Death (1995)

Although it doesn't slavishly follow the plot of the original movie, this neo-noir from director Barbet Schroeder does a good job of hitting a number of familiar key points while ensuring that everything feels in line with a slightly grittier and more modern approach to the story. Writer Richard Price did this more than once throughout the 1990s, with varying degrees of success, and his complete body of work illustrates just how good he is at crafting tales of tension, threats, and troubling dilemmas.

David Caruso plays Jimmy Kilmartin, an ex-convict trying to go straight. Unfortunately, he is roped into a job by his wayward cousin (Michael Rapaport), and it isn’t long until things go sour. A cop (Samuel L. Jackson) is nearly killed, Jimmy is caught, and this leads to a spiral and unfortunate fate for his wife (Helen Hunt). Knowing that others are benefiting from him taking the rap, Jimmy is eventually convinced to become an informant, looking to help police get enough evidence to arrest Little Junior Brown (Nicolas Cage).

Kiss Of Death is both helped and hindered by its cast. Cage is a definite highlight, whether he’s bench-pressing a young woman to show off to others around him or getting ready to have some beaten up while listening to House Of Pain. He heads up a brilliant assortment of supporting turns, including the aforementioned Hunt, Rapaport, and Jackson, as well as Stanley Tucci, Ving Rhames, Kathryn Erbe, Anthony Heald, and Philip Baker Hall. Unfortunately, this is another film that should have put anyone aside from Caruso in the lead role. He’s rarely been a good leading man in movies, with his turn in Session 9 being a notable exception, and this film would benefit from almost anyone else being cast in the central role. Sorry, I cannot quite put my finger on the problem, but Caruso just doesn’t emanate any decent amount of charisma or watchability.

Clocking in at almost the same runtime as the original, Price does a good job of moving pieces into place for the finale while also allowing room for a few scenes that just flesh out the characters. Things never feel rushed, yet it never feels too slow or indulgent either. The end result may be far from a perfect film, but all of the ingredients are mixed in perfect amounts. Having Schroeder at the helm seems guaranteed to keep things from excelling, he is a competent pair of hands, but no more than that, so it’s a real bonus that we got this script married up with this cast. There are so many ways this could have gone horribly wrong, and I imagine some big fans of the original will still disapprove, but I am pleasantly surprised that it ended up so enjoyable and effective.

You might be put off by Caruso. You might be put off by Cage (some people still don’t appreciate his brilliance). You might even be put off just by the fact that this is a remake. I would advise you to get over those prejudices and give it a go. You should end up having a good time in the company of some bad people.

7/10

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April Fools: The Heat (2013)

Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy are the odd couple thrown together in this standard buddy cop comedy that ends up providing a fair amount of chuckles, thanks to the talents of the cast and a consistently amusing, if not outright hilarious, script.

Bullock is Agent Ashburn, a Fed who takes great pride in her work. Well, it's basically all she has in her life. Except for her cat, which actually belongs to her neighbour. When a big case takes her to Boston it's not long until she bumps into the aggressive and unorthodox Mullins (McCarthy). Which means, of course, that the two of them have to work together to crack the case.

Director Paul Feig, who scored a huge hit with his previous movie, Bridesmaids, proves here that he has a knack of working well with talented comedic actresses. Or that he has a knack of working well with talented female writers, as it's Katie Dippold who wrote the script. Or maybe he just does well when paired up with McCarthy, who was one of many highlights in Bridesmaids, of course.

I've always been a fan of Bullock, and I think she's particularly good in comedic roles. The Heat reminds people of just how good she is with the right material. McCarthy gets most of the big laughs, of course, but Bullock does well as the uptight agent who might just learn to loosen up a little bit over the course of the movie. McCarthy really shines here, unlike her turn in the misjudged Identity Thief, and I hope she considers clearing her schedule for any future opportunities to work with Feig, who obviously knows how to get the best out of her.

While none of the other main characters are played by any BIG names, I must say that the supporting cast had a great selection of talent. Marlon Wayans, Michael Rapaport, Bill Burr, Thomas F. Wilson, Jane Curtin and others all join in with the fun, and everyone seems to have a good time.

The script could have been sharper, the film could have been tightened up a bit (the runtime is just under two hours), and there's a fine line being walked between filling the movie with cliches and having fun with them, but there's plenty here to enjoy, especially for fans of the two leads.

7/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Heat-Blu-ray-UV-Copy/dp/B00DHB410E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1391201784&sr=8-2&keywords=the+heat

Kiss Of The Damned (2012)

Vampire movies are much like the creatures themselves, just when you think they've been killed a drop of fresh blood comes along to bring them back to life. Well . . . . . . undead life. You know what I mean. There have been some very good vampire movies in recent years to reassure any horror fans who thought that the subgenre had been sentenced to death by sparkles.  Just last week I highly recommended We Are The Night and now I can highly recommend Kiss Of The Damned.

Josephine de la Baume plays Djuna, a vampire who tries to live in harmony with humans. She keeps her emotions in check and hunts animals to quench her bloodthirst. That delicate balance is threatened when she meets, and falls for, a young man named Paolo (Milo Ventimiglia). Things are almost completely turned upside down by the arrival of Mimi (Roxane Mesquida), Djuna's sister. Mimi likes to feed when she can and likes only the best blood that she can get down her throat - human blood.

Written and directed by Xan Cassavetes, Kiss Of The Damned movie is a vampire movie steeped in the fine tradition of many that have come before it. There are many moments that are inarguably sexy, but there are also just as many moments that remind viewers of the bad side of being a sexy vampire. The addiction, the aftermath, the analogy of vampirism as a STD. The aesthetic of the film, as many others have already noted, is a blend of Jean Rollin and The Hunger, with that favourite trope of the subgenre, the brat who doesn't seem able to maintain self-control.

The cast are okay, with de la Baume and Mesquida making up for their weaknesses with their general air of European savoire faire, and Anna Mouglalis and Riley Keough doing great work in much smaller, though no less impactful, roles. As for the men, Milo Ventimiglia is very good as Paolo. The script makes his integration into the world of Djuna a smooth and believable one, and Ventimiglia seems just as easygoing and adaptable as the character needs to be. Michael Rapaport does well in a supporting role, but he's one of the few people ill-served by the script, his character feeling (albeit rightly so) that he's wandered in from another movie altogether.

Kiss Of The Damned is a quality film. It tries to throw one or two enjoyable surprised into the mix, it's never dull, the blood gets to flow and there are a few scenes that are, as mentioned above, just downright sexy. It's a very traditional mix of vampiric moments that Cassavetes somehow manages to make seem more than just tired, stale cliches.

8/10

http://www.amazon.com/Kiss-Damned-Jos%C3%A9phine-La-Baume/dp/B00CBFB8PI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1379274211&sr=8-1&keywords=kiss+of+the+damned

The Baytown Outlaws (2012)

I went into The Baytown Outlaws expecting to enjoy it, but I was being hopeful. I didn't really know much about the plot and I certainly had no idea who the main actors were. Eva Longoria and Billy Bob Thornton were the main names being used to market the movie, but I knew that they weren't in it for all that long. Thankfully, Clayne Crawford, Daniel Cudmore and Travis Fimmel in the lead roles are pretty perfect and they help make this into one hell of an enjoyable experience.

The three men I just mentioned play the Oodie brothers, gun-toting lads who are more than happy to kill any criminals that are working in their area. They get the satisfaction of being good citizens and also pleasing the local law enforcement (well, pleasing Andre Braugher's character anyway). When they are approached by the fine-looking Celeste (Eva Longoria) with a job offer that will see them a fair bit richer for getting her godson, Rob (Thomas Brodie-Sangster), back to her. It seems like an easy job, but they have to get Rob away from the dastardly Carlod (Billy Bob Thornton) and then avoid retribution from the people who will come after them, including some dangerous women played by Zoe Bell and the gorgeous Serinda Swan, among others.

Directed by Barry Battles (who also co-wrote the movie with Griffin Hood), The Baytown Outlaws is a near-perfect slice of entertainment for fans of this particular style. But what particular style is it? Well, that's the beauty of it. You get a choice. If you want rednecks arguing with each other then you can enjoy the many moments in which the Oodie brothers get on each other's nerves (though Lincoln, played by Daniel Cudmore is mute unless talking through a speech synthesising device, but leader Brick, played by Clayne Crawford, and McQueen, played by Travis Fimmel, more than make up for his relative silence). If you want something that's more violent and confrontational then don't worry because there sure are plenty of moments that will make the grade for you there. Want something rough and rugged that also has real heart? It's got that. The movie covers all bases, really, and expertly blends thrills with comedy and some real emotion.

This is thanks in no small part to the script and direction, of course, but everything is also given a major boost by the top-notch cast. The actors playing the Oodie brothers are absolutely superb. They carry the movie effortlessly and collectively make for the best anti-hero(es) that I have seen on-screen in some time. Billy Bob Thornton has some fun, Eva Longoria does well enough and did I mention the gorgeous Serinda Swan (who I last saw in the godawful Creature)? In fact, the cast is a veritable who's who of people that you will know from other movies even if the name escapes you. Andre Braugher is best known to many people for his role in The Mist. Michael Rapaport, who has a small, but memorable, role has been in plenty, from True Romance to Deep Blue Sea. Zoe Bell, who put in many years as a hard-working stunt-woman, is perhaps best known to audiences nowadays for her role in Death Proof and even Thomas Brodie-Sangster may make people scratch their heads while they try to figure out what else he has been in - he's been in plenty, but I remembered him most clearly from Love Actually (and it's fun to see that he's grown up, but his face just hasn't changed a bit). Paul Wesley, who plays a non-local officer named Reese out to upset the status quo, was the only face I didn't recognise from other movies, but he has an extensive filmography full of stuff that just hasn't passed before my eyes yet.

Overall, I can't think of any other 2012 release that has the mix of great characters, fierce violence, hot and dangerous biker chicks, corrupt police officers and even a cracking soundtrack accompanying everything. The fact that it also has one of the best title sequences I've seen in a long time is just the icing on the cake. Rent it, see it, consider buying it.

8/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Baytown-Outlaws-Blu-ray-Paul-Wesley/dp/B0090JBOZW/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1361165344&sr=1-2