Noutions
Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .
StyleSk8r
At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.
AshUnow
This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.
jessegehrig
This movie is about the Church and Lesbians, and how some lesbians are evil vampires. Not all lesbians are vampires but enough lesbians are so the Church recommends just not being a lesbian, but also it's a horror movie. It could have been one of those horror movies that was good but instead it's a thinly veiled metaphor about how the Church is good and sexuality is bad, especially if that sexuality is not hetero. So you want to know things about this movie? You want me to tell you stuff about this movie, like my theories and opinions? Nope. This is a garbage movie, the time when it was made is irrelevant and nobody did a good job. If you want to redeem this movie start with lighter fluid and matches.
kapelusznik18
****SPOILERS**** Hard to phantom horror movie with the wild eyed and zombie like looking Felice Dunbar in that she seems to make no sense at all with this curse punt on her, as a little girl, by her possessed by the devil Aunt Irene when she was traveling by rail out of the Belgian Congo to settle back home in Europe. It's now 25 years later with Felice fully grown and a top fashion model coming to Albany New York to see her long separated sister Hilary Halloran to continue the devil's contract, through the kiss that she received back in the Congo, with her niece Amy Hilary's 15 year old, and all filled out, daughter. Before the two sisters can meet Hilary ends up getting killed in a spectacular car accident that seems to have been orchestrated, through some kind of mombo-jumbo like blood ritual, by her sister Felice. In fact Felice seems to put the whammy on a number of Amy's friends who suspects that there's something that's not all that kosher about her.We get to see Amy who's got the body of a Greek Goddess, but the brains of a a Dodo Bird, always finding time to get herself wet by jumping in the family swimming pool at every occasion even taking nightly skinny dips in it. It's when Felice is finally discovered by Amy's good friend and surrogate mom Heather things have by then gotten completely out of control with Felice who's having an affair with Amy's dad Jack Holloran being exposed as a combination walking dead zombie and blood sucking vampire rolled into one.****SPOILERS**** Determined to keep her blood line, whatever that is, active Falice tries to give Amy a kiss that would turn her into the monster that she is before she turns, since she's dead already, to dust. There's also this Tasmanian Devil like critter, mistaken by everyone to be a feral black cat, that pops up every now and then who's reason for being in the movie is never really explained. But it, the critter, adds to the shock and excitement in the film just by being in it. In the end Poppa Jack Harrolan finally wakes up and smells the coffee and realizes that Felice is no good and in his attempt to keep her from turning his what seems like, in not knowing what's going on, clueless daughter Amy into a zombie by kissing her that he puts an end to Felice and her plans to keep her bloodline continuing. That's by finishing her off in one of the most explosive movie finals since that of the movie "Jaws" back in 1975.
Coventry
"The Kiss" is actually just a rudimentary & simplistic witchcraft story about supernatural powers getting passed through the female members of the same bloodline, but director Densham neatly polishes up the concept with impressively explicit make-up effects (courtesy of Chris Walas' company), adequate supportive character drawings and atmospheric building up towards the death scenes. The story opens in the early 60's in the Belgian Congo, where two sisters become separated at the train station. The youngest one, Felice, is seriously ill but her aunt miraculously cures her by passing an alien-like creature into her body through a kiss. 25 years later the other sister tragically dies in a car accident, leaving behind a husband and a stunningly beautiful adolescent daughter named Amy. Aunt Felice shows up again (in the ravishingly matured version of Joanna Pacula) and quickly works her way into the family by seducing her widowed brother-in-law. Auntie Felice is clearly just interested in Amy's body as the host for the inheritable creature, and she won't hesitate to use violent voodoo tricks against anyone that stands between her and the young girl. "The Kiss" is one modest class above the majority of 80's witchcraft-movies, because it features a little more directorial flair and style. There's a continuously pleasing level of suspense and film is suitably gruesome, including images of people burning alive, losing body parts underneath trucks and getting strangled on escalators. Felice has an OTT grotesque wild cat assisting her to kill people and there's a bizarre (but macabre) montage showing Amy menstruating in class whilst her father makes love to the sinister aunt. That was quite an awkward moment, and I'm not entirely sure about the symbolic significance/importance of that sequence. In fact, there's quite a lot of sexual innuendo that appears to be a bit lost in the wholesome of the story. Anyway, the story grows increasingly sillier near the end, resulting in a highly implausible and chuckles-inducing finale. Meredith Salenger was truly adorable girl in the late 80's (and still a gorgeous woman today) and I severely regret the fact her career didn't skyrocketed after this film. Recommended to watch at least once, particularly if you appreciate feminine beauty and graphic gore.
Paul Andrews
The Kiss starts with a caption that informs us that we are in the 'Belgian Congo 1963' at a train station. A young girl named Felice Dunbar (Priscilla Mouzakiotis) is being sent away by her Father (Philip Pretten) with her Aunt Irene (Celine Lomez) while her sister Hilary (Talya Rubin) stays behind with him. On the journey Irene shows Felice an ancient tribal statue of some sort, not long after Irene's rotted corpse is found... The Kiss then informs us that it's '25 Years Later Albany New York'. Hilary (Pamela Collyer) is now married to Jack Halloran (Nicholas Kilbertus) & together they have & beautiful teenage daughter named Amy (Meredith Salenger). One day out of the blue Hilary receives a phone call from her sister Felice (Joanna Pacula) & they both arrange to meet, however on the way Hilary is killed in an accident. It's now '5 Months Later' & while visiting Hilary's grave Amy & her Father meet Felice, after they find out who she is Jack invites her to stay at their house. Amy starts to distrust & dislike Felice as one of her friends named Heather (Sabrina Boudot) dies in another bizarre accident & Felice seduces Jack. Amy's suspicions grow when she discovers a strange statue & Heather's sunglasses in Felice's room. More accidents happen & Felice becomes weirder & weirder until all is revealed when Amy realises she is about to become heir to a horrifying family secret & she has to fight for her life against The Kiss...Co-produced & directed by Pen Densham I thought The Kiss was a mildly entertaining horror film but nothing that was particularly special in any way shape or form. The script by Tom Ropelewski & Stephen Volk is reasonably well paced, it has one or two slightly slow points but it's not too bad. The script doesn't really try to explain what's going on that much, no explanation for the origins of the statue, the eventual creature or the psycho cat. The Kiss also suffers from the usual silliness one associates with the horror genre, the scene with the propane tank at the end is unrealistic to say the least & this daftness affects The Kiss at times because the film seems to be taking itself quite seriously. There is some gore in it, a burnt hand, a rotten corpse, death by escalator, scissors stuck in someones neck & a couple of nasty car accidents including one with a juicy severed leg. I did like the special effects sequence when Amy is in science class at school & the anatomy dummy comes to life with it's exposed beating heart & lungs, cool eh? The special effects are OK, except that is the killer psycho cat which looks very fake & somewhat silly throughout I'm afraid. The fine looking Pacula provides the nudity. The acting in The Kiss is adequate by horror film standards although I thought Pacula as the main villain should have had a bit more of an on screen presence. The Kiss is quite well made, nothing stands out as being technically brilliant but nothing stands out as being overly bad either. Generally speaking Densham films The Kiss in a rather bland & uninteresting way which isn't a great surprise I suppose. Overall I thought The Kiss was an OK way to pass an hour & a half but I'll have probably forgotten all about it by the middle of next week, just about worth watching but don't expect a masterpiece.
