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Austin Film Festival: “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” - Popcorn Films Have Never Tasted So Good
We went to our first screening at the Austin Film Festival last night, and we were treated to one of the more entertaining movies we have seen in quite some time. And, we got to pick the director's brain a little afterwards.
Shane Black goes back to some familiar writing territory in his directorial debut “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.” But instead of staying within one genre, say, a buddy flick, a thriller or a good cop/bad cop movie, Black almost recreates the genre, telling a story that harkens back to the detective movies of the late 60’s and early 70’s, where the tough guys had smart mouths, the women were gorgeous, the bad guys were unscrupulously villainous, the plot had more twists than Mullholland Drive and the sex was as dangerous as the guns. However, where he takes this movie to new ground is with his playing with the genre conventions; for instance, the guy who wants to be the tough guy is actually a petty theft artist who falls flat in his attempt to enter the world of real crime, and the true expert in murder and intrigue, the real tough guy, is gay. Black has fun in this movie, part homage to a bygone era of cinematic detective flicks and part send-up of modern film conventions.
Robert Downey Jr. plays Harry, a down-on-his-luck robber in New York City who serendipitously finds his way into a studio audition, and next thing you know, he is shmoozing at parties in the Hollywood Hills. We discover his back-story in his own words, as he is the narrator, who very convivially invites us to “join the party” out in L.A., a place one can instantly tell Harry loathes. A place where all the women are damaged goods. He humors us, puts as at ease and persuades us instantly to root for him. Throughout the film Black plays with Harry's role, painting an unconventional narrator, morphing the unreliable narrator familiar in other films into the inept narrator. He self-edits, asks the audience to bear with his loss of concentration and lack of narrative flow. One of the true genius-strokes in the film is its constant self-referentiality. The movie constantly keeps us aware that the characters in the movie are in on the same joke as the audience. There is almost a voluntary dismissal of the idea of ‘suspension of disbelief,’ in that the fact that you are watching a movie is addressed by the characters themselves, a tactic that could have horribly backfired if left in the hands of lesser actors or a lesser writer/director.
After the jump, more about the film and highlights of the Q&A with writer/director Shane Black.
After trying to make a play at a gorgeous struggling actress (like every other women under the age of 35 in L.A.), Harry realizes the woman of his affection, Harmony Faith (Michelle Monaghan), is the all-grown-up version of his childhood sweetheart back in Indiana, a girl to whom we were introduced in the first scene. As Harry struggles with his own acting career (a career which to this point involves taking private detective lessons from a gay P.I. named Gay Perry, played with excellent wit, charm and toughness by Val Kilmer) he becomes entangled in a messy homicide case that strikes close to home for him. So this thief cum thespian cum private detective is set off on a whirlwind murder mystery thriller, becoming a pawn in his own life.
The film has good the smash-em-ups one would expect from the author of the first two Lethal Weapon films and the requisite witty repartee that made Mel Gibson and Danny Glover such a good pair. But the eccentric chemistry between Downey and Kilmer electrifies the screen in a dissonance not seen in the previously mnetioned ways. The jokes pop in your face like firecrackers; the surprising episodes of serious violence are not gory and have a thin veil of humor about them, as well. The film does what so few films do well, it constantly surprises you and involves you without pandering to you. It is a rare film in that it could be called an honestly intelligent and compelling popcorn movie. And, eventually, it is really about the loss of the lives we wanted to live or thought we would live and how we can, often through friendship and love, make the best of the hand we have ostensibly dealt ourselves.
As Black said after the screening, he hates making movies that cater to the audience; he wants the audience to keep up with the film’s pace and language, to feel the rhythms and to leave the film feeling like they had been on a journey. From the non-stop riotous laughter and the moaning and groaning along to the situational irony of certain scene, to the thunderous applause following the screening, it is quite apparent that in his first film, Black has accomplished exactly what he set out to do.
After the film Black shared his thoughts with the audience. We found him to be engaging, thoughtful, funny, playful, provocative, foul-mouthed and very sincere. What follows is a bit of the Q&A with Black, paraphrased by us here at Austinist:
On his attending this year’s festival
Finally I have a reason to come here (film release) instead of just sitting in your damn Driskill Hotel bar like I have for the last 9 years.
On genesis of KKBB
The script took 21 months from start to finish. It originally started as a romantic comedy, and it was very dark. I took it to James L. Brooks (Broadcast News, As Good as It Gets) and he said it seemed like I was trying to be him. His point was that I could still make a thriller and action movie but one with humor and a very human element to it. He mentioned Chinatown and basically encouraged me to break the mold, in that just because it is a certain type film does not mean it has to be just that type of film. Play with convention.
On getting the movie made
Joel Silver (Weird Science, Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, Predator), my producer, was the Rock of Gibraltar on this thing. He read the script and loved it and basically got behind me, and that was all I needed. He had just made $1.5 billion for Warner Bros. on the Matrix movies, so they gave him full control, since the budget was only $15 for this picture. So I only had to please two people, me and Joel. If Joel liked it and I liked it, it’s in the movie.
On casting Downey and Kilmer
It was amazing, really. You know, you hear stories about how people don’t want to work with these guys or they’re difficult, but these are the people other actors strive to emulate. Downey was dating Joel Silver’s producer, so he would be around the office. One day, almost on a lark, we grabbed him and had him read. It was like I had typed the script right into his mouth. He was perfect, so we had to lock him up. Mel Gibson called up and vouched for Downey personally and put his name on the line. He said, “Look, I have had substance abuse problems myself in the past so this is important to me, but I am telling you, Robert is clean now. I will vouch for him personally.” But Robert and Val were great. They were angels to work with and the chemistry was amazing. People always say that but you could actually see it and feel it, and now the two are good friends.
On the genre of the film
I wanted to make a detective thriller like they had in the late 60’s and 70’s. I wanted it to be a commercial for detective films. They don’t make many good ones anymore.
On writing and directing
I don’t want the directing and writing to interfere with or inform each other too much. I don’t want the fact that I am a director make me self-edit or change the way I write just because I may be more aware of time constraints. But this was a great experience. It is the first time that exactly what was on the page was on the screen.
On Los Angeles
I like to describe Los Angeles as a Fairy Tale read out loud by a pervert
On his childhood
I spent my junior prom in a mental ward under lock and key. I read books almost to the exclusion of breathing and would sit in my room alone listening to stand-up comedy albums and just crack up.
On the size and independence of the film
We only had a $15 million budget in total so people pretty much left us alone. We had no audience testing, no studio notes, nothing.
On the possibility of this or other of his films being compared to Coen Brothers or Charlie Kauffman
I don’t think I make movies like the Coens. They make movies that are very much about other movies. They are very heady and intellectual. I make movies that come from life not other movies. As for Kauffman, it is my fault, but I have not seen any of his films. I have heard great things about Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine, I just have never seen his work.
