Kiss of Death
 | Fox Film NoirDirected by Henry Hathaway Starring: Victor Mature, Brian Donlevy, Coleen Gray, Richard Widmark, Taylor Holmes 20th Century Fox, 1947, DVD Customer Rating: 48 reviews Recommend |
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Henry Hathaway's directorial skills brought a heightened sense of realism to crime dramas in this classic 1947 original that marked Richard Widmark's Oscar -nominated debut. When a small time crook (Victor Mature) gets a twenty year sentence for robbery, he refuses to reveal his accomplices, even after a D.A. (Brian Donlevy) offers to help him. But he changes his mind once he learns that his wife has committed suicide and a psychopath (Widmark) has threatened his children.
Richard Widmark's bravura debut as snickering gangster Tommy Udo, and particularly his infamous encounter with an old woman in a wheelchair, enjoys such pop cachet that the movie itself has been somewhat underrated. More's the pity. Henry Hathaway's third entry in 20th Century–Fox's series of post–WWII thrillers is just about the best of the bunch. These films incorporated the semidocumentary techniques and wondrously persuasive on-location shooting Hollywood learned from Italian neorealism and the wartime filming of some of its own best directors. Kiss of Death is more fictional than documentary in thrust, with a solid script by ace screenwriters Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer. But that only makes its imaginative, atmospheric use of real places and spaces — e.g., a superb opening robbery sequence in a New York skyscraper — the more remarkable.
Victor Mature belies his rep as one of the Hollywood star system's bad jokes with his intense performance as Nick Bianco, a career criminal driven to turn squealer. Nick's motivation is family values: although he had gone to Sing Sing (yes, they filmed there, too) as a stand-up guy, "the boys" failed to take care of his wife and daughters as promised, with devastating results. Despite the best efforts of an assistant D.A. (Brian Donlevy), Nick is forced to lay everything on the line to rescue his family's future. The movie abounds in evocative texture, thanks to the no-frills excellence of Norbert Brodine's camerawork and an exemplary supporting cast including Millard Mitchell (as a sardonic police detective), Karl Malden (another D.A.), and Taylor Holmes (a flannel-mouthed Mob shyster). Kiss of Death was remade twice, as a Western titled The Fiend That Walked the West and as a straight thriller again in the '90s. — Richard T. Jameson
Title: Kiss of Death (Fox Film Noir)
Sales Rank: 1225 in DVD
Actor: Victor Mature, Brian Donlevy, Coleen Gray, Richard Widmark, Taylor Holmes
Director: Henry Hathaway
Studio: 20th Century Fox, 2005-12-06, Theatrical Release: 1947-08-27
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC, Acpect Ratio 1.33:1
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), English (Dubbed), Spanish (Dubbed)
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Region Code: 1
Running Time: 98 minutes
Item Dimensions: 0.25 pounds
Package Dimensions: 7.1 x 5.42 x 0.58 inches, 0.18 pounds
- Another Crime Story
- All scenes, exterior and interior, were photographed in New York on actual locale. It is Christmas time. Three men rob a jewelry store in a tall building. The alarm sounds and the police seal the building. Nick Bianco is caught. He won't squeal. His lawyer will work for him. He meets Tommy Udo in jail. "Next stop Ossining." There is a textile factory… More reviews
- Victor Mature is the real star in this ace noir that made Richard Widmark's name
- Nick Bianco and his gang sweat through the first few minutes of this knockout noir as they pull off a jewelry heist on a high floor in a Manhattan skyscraper. The tension is superbly handled as the trio waits out a long elevator ride down, knowing that one of the tied up or unconscious jewelers could be alerting the police at any time, and the… More reviews
- One of the best "hoodlum" movies of the era!
- If you have never seen the snickering gangster Tommy Udo and, particularly, his infamous encounter with an old woman in a wheelchair, you have missed true film-noir. More reviews
- Great copy
- This is a fantastic film. I own it on VHS and searched vigorously to find a copy on DVD. I have to say I was satisfied with my purchase, and the way the transaction was handled.… More reviews
- 'Udo' Gives This Film Some Bite
- This was a 1940s film noir with a little bit different slant: the main character "Nick Bianco" (Victor Mature) being a caring father. Here's a guy torn between being a crook most of his life and the damage it did to him mentally, but at heart a real softie who is desperate to go straight and just be a regular family guy with everyone leaving… More reviews
