”Her Soft Mouth Was the Road to Sin-Smeared Violence!”
IMHO, Killer’s Kiss is an odd selection for 4k.
Extremely low-budget, shot and directed by a 27 year-old ex-Look Magazine photographer, who does a nice job here, especially shooting the underbelly of New York City.
Capable noir, with a couple of very nicely set up and directed sequences, but it’s still what it was in 1955 – a second feature on a practice run toward a hopeful career.
Three shorts and another feature (Fear and Desire – 1953) coming from Kino had be previously released.
All noted, I’m not certain that this needed to be in 4k, although the blacks presumably take on a nice shine. Scan was OCN.
Very respectful of Kino, who should receive kudos.
Image – 5 (Dolby Vision)
Audio – 5
Pass / Fail – Pass
Plays nicely with projectors – Just fine
Makes use of and works well in 4k – 3.5
Recommended
RAH
IMHO, Killer’s Kiss is an odd selection for 4k.
Extremely low-budget, shot and directed by a 27 year-old ex-Look Magazine photographer, who does a nice job here, especially shooting the underbelly of New York City.
Capable noir, with a couple of very nicely set up and directed sequences, but it’s still what it was in 1955 – a second feature on a practice run toward a hopeful career.
Three shorts and another feature (Fear and Desire – 1953) coming from Kino had be previously released.
All noted, I’m not certain that this needed to be in 4k, although the blacks presumably take on a nice shine. Scan was OCN.
Very respectful of Kino, who should receive kudos.
Image – 5 (Dolby Vision)
Audio – 5
Pass / Fail – Pass
Plays nicely with projectors – Just fine
Makes use of and works well in 4k – 3.5
Recommended
RAH
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Paul Penna
Screenwriter
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Criterion doesn't say what film element was used, just “Restored high-definition digital transfer…”
It’s also a 10+ year-old encode.
seangood79
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You may be thinking of The Killing.
Criterion didn’t release Killer’s Kiss.
Edit: my mistake. It’s a special feature on The Killing Blu Ray.
So if you want a stand-alone version, go for it.
I guess that's what I'm asking. How do they compare?
As a Kubrick fan, I like having this movie for academic and completist purposes, but it's not one I feel the need to own multiple copies of for what may be a small to negligible improvement.
Paul Penna
Screenwriter
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I point that out because Robert Harris says the Kino is from the original camera negative. If we knew what Criterion used that would provide a useful hint.
mackjay
Stunt Coordinator
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I was quite impressed by the look of KILLER'S KISS on the Criterion. I'd only seen the film once before, but it looked to me about as good as a film of its type would look. In fact, it was the deciding factor in upgrading my DVD copy of THE KILLING. A value-added release from Criterion for sure.
madfloyd
Stunt Coordinator
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I guess the director's career never took off. Poor guy.
owen35
Second Unit
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- Steve
He really struggled getting work. Only able to do a few films over a long career.
I was recently asked by family who had put in an old pan-and-scan DVD to “fix it”
2017 and people were still asking.
Patrick McCart
Senior HTF Member
While I would have expected Kino to make this and The Killing a double feature like Criterion did (only 2 1/2 hours combined), this is still an important entry in Kubrick's filmography. He was wise to make his second self-financed feature in his neighborhood instead of out in the wilderness. It's an incredibly photographed film given the threadbare budget he worked with. A lot of the nighttime shots were used in one of TCM's interstitals - the shot that stands out is the man in the ticket booth.
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