While
KISS ME, STUPID ($20) finds co-writer/director Billy Wilder at his
cynical comic best, the film was, unfortunately, ill received at the time
of its release. Due to the censorship of the time, the movie business was
a very different thing back in 1964. This made it difficult, if not
downright impossible for filmmakers to touch upon adult subject matter,
even in comic form, which handicapped Wilder on this particular
production. For that reason, KISS ME, STUPID was advertised to an
"adults only" audience and was released through Lopert Pictures
Corporation, instead of United Artists (due to the racy material of Wilder’s
film). Making matters worse, KISS ME, STUPID was even condemned by
the Catholic Legion of Decency, which had the effect of helping to keep
the circa 1964 audiences away from the film. Of course, all of this seems
pretty silly now, because KISS ME, STUPID is rather tame by today’s
standards. Even with a story permeated by sex and infidelity, KISS ME,
STUPID is the kind of movie that would only garner a PG rating.
The
plot of KISS ME, STUPID follows a womanizing musical entertainer
named Dino (Dean Martin), who makes an unexpected stopover in the town of
Climax, Nevada, while driving from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. During his
unscheduled overnight stay, Dino finds himself in the home of piano
teacher and amateur songwriter Orville Spooner (Ray Walston) and his wife
Zelda (Felicia Farr). Taking advantage of Dino’s insatiable appetite for
women to sell some of his songs, Orville substitutes cocktail waitress
Polly the Pistol (Kim Novak) for the real Mrs. Spooner, with the intent of
Polly showing Dino some "hospitality," while Orville makes his
musical sales pitch. Of course, the real comedy comes when Polly begins
liking the notion of being Mrs. Spooner for an evening, as does the
notoriously jealous Orville.
KISS
ME, STUPID features some really fine performances, Martin does a
hilarious self-parody and Walston is amusingly abrasive, but completely
likable. One could only imagine what Peter Sellers would have done with
the role of Orville, since he was Wilder’s original choice and had been
shooting for several weeks before withdrawing from the production after
suffering a heart attack. Getting back to the completed film, it is Kim
Novak that supplies KISS ME, STUPID with its emotional center by
giving a rather endearing performance as the "party girl" that
longs to be domestic. Felicia Farr is a genuine delight as the real Mrs.
Spooner and it is nice that the DVD offers European version of the film,
which changes one crucial scene- thus giving Farr’s performance and the
film a bit more resonance. The cast of KISS ME, STUPID also
includes Cliff Osmond, Barbara Pepper, Bobo Lewis, Tommy Nolan, John
Fiedler, Mel Blanc and Henry Gibson.
MGM
Home Entertainment has made KISS ME, STUPID available on DVD in a
2.35:1 wide screen presentation that has been enhanced for playback on
16:9 displays. The transfer for KISS ME, STUPID is taken from a
rather nice black and white film element that doesn’t betray the fact
that the movie is nearly four decades old. Some very minor blemishes and
tiny scratches are about the worst signs of age on the film element. The
image appears rather sharp and pretty nicely defined, with a good sense of
depth. Blacks are perfectly inky and whites appear pure and stable.
Contrast is very good and the grayscale provides plenty of variation. A
grain structure is noticeable in places, but never becomes overwhelming.
Digital compression artifacts usually remain out of sight.
KISS
ME, STUPID comes with a perfectly fine Dolby Digital monaural
soundtrack. Age isn’t much of a problem as most of the background hiss
and other sonic anomalies have been removed from the track during the
mastering process. Fidelity is pretty much at "mid-fi"- without
clearly distinct top and bottom ends. Still, the track sounds quite
pleasant when given a bit of amplification during Dino and Orville’s
musical numbers (via George and Ira Gershwin). Dialogue is crisp and
always completely intelligible. A French monaural soundtrack is also
provided on the DVD, along with English, Spanish and French subtitles. The
basic interactive menus allow one access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as a theatrical trailer, theatrical teaser
and the alternate American version of one scene.
KISS
ME, STUPID is another undervalued gem from Billy Wilder- one of the
twentieth century’s greatest filmmakers. The movie is quite funny and
makes a genuine statement about love, sex and fidelity. MGM has done a
rather good job with the DVD presentation, giving Wilder fans nothing to
complain about. If you are a fan of Wilder, Martin, Novak or Walston, than
you will definitely want to check out KISS ME, STUPID on DVD.
While
KISS ME, STUPID ($20) finds co-writer/director Billy Wilder at his
cynical comic best, the film was, unfortunately, ill received at the time
of its release. Due to the censorship of the time, the movie business was
a very different thing back in 1964. This made it difficult, if not
downright impossible for filmmakers to touch upon adult subject matter,
even in comic form, which handicapped Wilder on this particular
production. For that reason, KISS ME, STUPID was advertised to an
"adults only" audience and was released through Lopert Pictures
Corporation, instead of United Artists (due to the racy material of Wilder’s
film). Making matters worse, KISS ME, STUPID was even condemned by
the Catholic Legion of Decency, which had the effect of helping to keep
the circa 1964 audiences away from the film. Of course, all of this seems
pretty silly now, because KISS ME, STUPID is rather tame by today’s
standards. Even with a story permeated by sex and infidelity, KISS ME,
STUPID is the kind of movie that would only garner a PG rating.
The
plot of KISS ME, STUPID follows a womanizing musical entertainer
named Dino (Dean Martin), who makes an unexpected stopover in the town of
Climax, Nevada, while driving from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. During his
unscheduled overnight stay, Dino finds himself in the home of piano
teacher and amateur songwriter Orville Spooner (Ray Walston) and his wife
Zelda (Felicia Farr). Taking advantage of Dino’s insatiable appetite for
women to sell some of his songs, Orville substitutes cocktail waitress
Polly the Pistol (Kim Novak) for the real Mrs. Spooner, with the intent of
Polly showing Dino some "hospitality," while Orville makes his
musical sales pitch. Of course, the real comedy comes when Polly begins
liking the notion of being Mrs. Spooner for an evening, as does the
notoriously jealous Orville.
KISS
ME, STUPID features some really fine performances, Martin does a
hilarious self-parody and Walston is amusingly abrasive, but completely
likable. One could only imagine what Peter Sellers would have done with
the role of Orville, since he was Wilder’s original choice and had been
shooting for several weeks before withdrawing from the production after
suffering a heart attack. Getting back to the completed film, it is Kim
Novak that supplies KISS ME, STUPID with its emotional center by
giving a rather endearing performance as the "party girl" that
longs to be domestic. Felicia Farr is a genuine delight as the real Mrs.
Spooner and it is nice that the DVD offers European version of the film,
which changes one crucial scene- thus giving Farr’s performance and the
film a bit more resonance. The cast of KISS ME, STUPID also
includes Cliff Osmond, Barbara Pepper, Bobo Lewis, Tommy Nolan, John
Fiedler, Mel Blanc and Henry Gibson.
MGM
Home Entertainment has made KISS ME, STUPID available on DVD in a
2.35:1 wide screen presentation that has been enhanced for playback on
16:9 displays. The transfer for KISS ME, STUPID is taken from a
rather nice black and white film element that doesn’t betray the fact
that the movie is nearly four decades old. Some very minor blemishes and
tiny scratches are about the worst signs of age on the film element. The
image appears rather sharp and pretty nicely defined, with a good sense of
depth. Blacks are perfectly inky and whites appear pure and stable.
Contrast is very good and the grayscale provides plenty of variation. A
grain structure is noticeable in places, but never becomes overwhelming.
Digital compression artifacts usually remain out of sight.
KISS
ME, STUPID comes with a perfectly fine Dolby Digital monaural
soundtrack. Age isn’t much of a problem as most of the background hiss
and other sonic anomalies have been removed from the track during the
mastering process. Fidelity is pretty much at "mid-fi"- without
clearly distinct top and bottom ends. Still, the track sounds quite
pleasant when given a bit of amplification during Dino and Orville’s
musical numbers (via George and Ira Gershwin). Dialogue is crisp and
always completely intelligible. A French monaural soundtrack is also
provided on the DVD, along with English, Spanish and French subtitles. The
basic interactive menus allow one access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as a theatrical trailer, theatrical teaser
and the alternate American version of one scene.
KISS
ME, STUPID is another undervalued gem from Billy Wilder- one of the
twentieth century’s greatest filmmakers. The movie is quite funny and
makes a genuine statement about love, sex and fidelity. MGM has done a
rather good job with the DVD presentation, giving Wilder fans nothing to
complain about. If you are a fan of Wilder, Martin, Novak or Walston, than
you will definitely want to check out KISS ME, STUPID on DVD.
