KISS KISS BANG BANG

 I can't help wishing I had more than eight slices of pie to bestow upon Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.

As I settle in to write this review, I can't help wishing I had more than eight slices of pie to bestow upon Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. I'm not even sure where to begin extolling the virtues of this film, but I will say that its very existence is enough to bring tears to my eyes. As I watched, I kept thinking to myself, "this movie is so me," but the truth is that I am so Shane Black.

Fresh out of film school, Black penned Lethal Weapon, and at age twelve that movie captured my imagination so completely that it altered the course of my life. It sometimes strikes me as odd that an action movie had such an impact on me, but as watched Kiss Kiss Bang Bang it all made sense. Shane Black has a gift for writing movies that stretch beyond the boundaries of any genre. They combine action, comedy, suspense, and romance with witty dialogue, plot twists, and three-dimensional characters for a finished product that can only be described as cinematic perfection. It's no wonder his first film left me obsessed with Hollywood and bent on being a writer. Though his unpleasant experiences with The Last Boy Scout and The Long Kiss Goodnight left Black disillusioned with the studio system, his comeback is nothing short of triumphant.

Through his tongue-in-cheek narration, Harry (Robert Downey Jr.) guides us through the bizarre Hollywood adventure that is Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. While fleeing a toy store robbery, Harry stumbles into a casting call. His genuine panic is perfect for the scene he winds up reading, and the intrigued casting directors arrange for him to fly to L.A. for detective lessons. In reality, they're using him as a pawn in their negotiations with Colin Farrell, but this doesn't stop Harry from getting into a whole heap of trouble.

Shortly after his arrival in L.A., Harry runs into his childhood friend, Harmony (Michelle Monaghan). At 34, she's still a struggling actress, and she's nearing the end of her Hollywood prime. Growing up, Harmony was the beautiful, unattainable girl of Harry's dreams, and though she slept with every other boy in school, Harry remained her friend and confidante. Even now, Harry is protective of her, and he's disappointed that she's part of a world where women will trade their self-respect for a shot at stardom. There is a wonderful purity to their relationship, and a sense that the only reason they never got together is that they didn't want to sully the one true thing in their lives. Being together is so meaningful to them that it's terrifying, and they approach one another with equal parts familiarity and caution. Theirs is a truly compelling love story just begging to get off the ground.

Meanwhile, Gay Perry (Val Kilmer) is the P.I. assigned to give Harry his detective lessons. Though Harry only tags along to observe, he quickly finds himself in the thick of a murder mystery. The more he and Perry try to extract themselves, the deeper they get. Perry is especially anxious to get rid of Harry, whom he thinks is an absolute idiot, but this would deprive us of their excellent banter. It's been a long time since a movie left me quoting dialogue, but Kiss Kiss Bang Bang offers up a steady stream of clever lines. Poor Harry is forever trying to keep up with Perry's witty insults, but it seems he's always a step behind.

Every twist of the plot throws Perry and Harry back together, and soon Harmony is tangled up in the mystery as well. As a lover of detective novels and a smart cookie in her own right, she's the perfect addition to this unlikely team of crime solvers. Their adventures escalate to a state of nonstop peril, and leave you on the edge of your seat rooting for these characters. From the outset they become your friends, and you can't help worrying as they deal with severed fingers, torture sessions, bullet wounds, and a car chase that leaves Harry dangling from an overpass while hanging out of a casket.

When the movie ended, I found myself replaying scenes in my mind, just as I did with Lethal Weapon so many years ago. It's interesting that Black's two best films were written outside the studio system, and you've gotta love a guy who uses Hollywood to stick it to Hollywood. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang comments on all of the dysfunction of the movie industry, but with a movie this bankable, who's going to complain? Brace yourself, Mr. Black. If I ever meet you I may just have to give you a hug.