In this weeks installment of Scene Selection, I take you on a journey to find one of the best films of the decade and to find the best films of this summer.
I introduce to you the 2005 film "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang" starring the hilarious duo of Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer. Yes, Val Kilmer can actually do comedy. Robert Downey Jr. is hilarious as the dimwit Harry Lockhart and Val Kilmer is amazing as a gay private eye. Harry is an actor being trained by Val Kilmer's character Gay Perry, and they stumble upon a murder mystery in Los Angeles involving Harry's high school sweetheart.
The film is more than any normal detective story because Harry continually breaks the fourth wall to tell the story. For those of you who do not remember your high school Shakespeare, breaking the fourth wall means that a character leaves the action of the film or stage and directly interacts with the audience. This is used extremely intelligently, in which he stops the film and rewinds it several times to add in a forgotten scene or tell backstory.
The comedy in "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang" is so fast and hilarious that it may take several viewings to catch all the jokes. As soon as you see the film then you can use jokes with your friends such as "I call this my fag gun" or "Look up the word idiot in the dictionary" or even the ever popular line "Your mouth is a recommended place to put a sock."
If that isn't enough incentive to go find this film, here's an anecdote. I rented it from my local library sometime last year. After viewing the film, I told one of my good film-buff friends how amazing I thought the film was. I told him that maybe I should just steal the rental copy, when he informed me that, coincidentally, he stole a copy of "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang" from Blockbuster. End of story. The final fact that may persuade my stubborn readers is that the film is produced by Joel Silver. He happens to be the producer for some of the great action movies of our time including "Die Hard," "Lethal Weapon," "The Matrix Trilogy," "V for Vendetta," and one of the best TV shows no one knows about: "Action."
Go find "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang" at a local rental store or ask someone to borrow it. I bought it for $5 at a major store, so do not resort to stealing the rental copy if you happen to enjoy it as much as you should.
Now I present my essential summer film preview. "Star Trek" comes out during Finals Week: it looks like a great start to the summer. "Angels & Demons" looks like a redemption from "The Da Vinci Code." "The Brothers Bloom:" great looking con film. "Terminator Salvation:" Christian Bale may save mankind and the franchise. "Up" at the end of May: it's Pixar, enough said.
For June: "Drag Me to Hell" looks like a great return to horror for Sam Raimi. "The Hangover" looks hilarious. "Moon:" the next great sci-fi? It looks to be the new "2001" and it's an independent film so it will rely on storytelling. And ending out June is the return of huge explosions and giant robots in "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
July has some great ones too, starting with "Public Enemies:" the John Dillinger story starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. "The Hurt Locker" may be the first excellent movie about the Iraq War. Then of course there is "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince," which looks epic. One of the best may be "500 Days of Summer," which is a love story that isn't a love story. Finishing July is the next Judd Apatow film "Funny People," which should be hysterical and touching.
And coming out in August is the last of the blockbusters. "Taking Woodstock" revisits Woodstock. "The Time Traveler's Wife" might be confusingly brilliant. Finally, Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds," promises action, blood and Nazi scalping. Have a great summer, happy viewings and "get busy livin' or get busy dyin'."
Alex Kartman is a sophomore telecommunications major and writes 'Scene Selection' for the Daily News. His views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper.
Write to Alex at ajkartman@bsu.edu
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
