Product Details

• Actors: Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd, Cary Elwes, Alex McArthur, Tony Goldwyn
• Format: Color, Dolby, Subtitled, NTSC
• Subtitles: Spanish
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Paramount
• VHS Release Date: May 29, 2001
• Run Time: 117 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (88 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6304842414
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #229,951 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Coming after The Silence of the Lambs and Seven, this thriller about a collaboration between two serial killers feels like a pale attempt to cash in on the success of those earlier, better films. That's a pity, because this film certainly has its strengths--particularly in the central performances of Morgan Freeman as a forensic detective and Ashley Judd as a would-be victim who escaped from one of the killers. Director Gary Fleder demonstrates visual flair and maintains an involving undercurrent of tension, but as this adaptation of James Patterson's novel approaches its climax, familiar elements combine to form a chronic case of thriller déjà vu. It's altogether competent filmmaking in the service of a moribund story of competing psychopaths, and by the time the serial killers reach the home stretch of their twisted contest, the movie's dangerously close to Freddy Kruger territory, with a finale that could've been borrowed from any dozen similar thrillers. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kiss the Girls - A Non Love Story, September 5, 2004

By 

Mr D. "Artist/Designer/Kibitzer" (Cave Creek, Az United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kiss the Girls (DVD)

One thing I've learned is that just because I love something that doesn't mean that everyone will love it. Heck they may not even like it. What's that old saying? "One person's Treasure is another's Trash"

Despite that I was genuinely surprised when I noticed that a few (just a few)reviewers actually trashed Kiss The Girls. One or two reviewers said it wasn't like the book while another said something really crazy, that it was just like The Silence of the Lambs, so it wasn't worth seeing. Well let me tell you, comparing Kiss the Girls with The Silence of the Lambs is like comparing the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Monument because they're both monuments. This reviewer took the common denominator, serial murderers, and said they're both the same. By extension, all movies about serial murders are like TSOTL and not worth seeing and then perhaps all action movies are like Die Hard also are not worth seeing and so forth.

As for the comments about not following the book, thats why they write screen plays. Every book cannot be put into visual form without some modification, some more, some less and Kiss the Girls was definitely less. Now I have read Kiss the Girls and Silence of the Lambs too. If something was left out, so be it. That's the case in most movies. You can't cram six hundred pages of story into two hours. Now I didn't read it just before or just after I saw the movie but as I remembered it, I thought it followed the book pretty well.

The Plot

The Durham Police Department has problem. Pretty college co-eds are disappearing from area college campuses. Additionally a couple of the women have been located in the wilds tied to a tree, exposed to the elements and wild animals. A note was found at each crime scene that said "Cassanova". Whether the remaining captives are alive or dead the investigators can only speculate.

The latest victim happens to be the niece of Dr. Alex Cross (Morgan Freeman) a well reputed forensic detective and author from Washington. He has assured his frantic sister in law that he will do everything in his power to find out what happened to Naomi.

When Cross arrives in Durham he gets a tepid response from the authorities, being a famous big city cop nosing around in their business. But since this is family, this is personal and Cross will not be deterred. He discovers that there are six other victims, two of which have been found dead and that there is already a task force investigating.

Dr. Kate McTiernan (Ashley Judd) is a remarkable woman. She is an Intern at a local hospital whose hobby is kickboxing. She is beautiful, bright and talented, just the way Cassanova likes them. Kate will make an excellent addition to his collection.

The investigation is going nowhere, the investigators are stymied and need a break, when words comes that two boys found a woman on the bank of a river. It is the break they needed for it is the newly kidnapped Dr. McTiernan who apparently escaped from Cassanova but she is in the hospital and something is wrong with her.

With the help of Alex Cross, Kate recovers from the drugs that Cassanova had given her, however she is of limited help.
She is able to tell authorities that the other victims are alive and being held at some undisclosed location.

Conclusion

Well let's see, the movie is based on James Patterson's greatest novel and Ashley Judd is my favorite actress and Morgan Freeman is my favorite actor. The acting by all is superb, especially Judd and Freeman but everybody did an outstanding job. The directing was great, the story flows well and is extremely suspenseful. The camera work is also excellent as were the sets and the setting. The movie has no flat or dull spots and keeps you guessing full time and there are some unique plot twists that I haven't mentioned, that is the real genius of the story.

Do I like the movie? Da.... are you kidding, I love the movie, in fact it's one of my ten favorites.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Spine-Tingling Thriller!, September 16, 2002

By 

Barron Laycock "Labradorman" (Temple, New Hampshire United States) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kiss the Girls (DVD)

While others may argue that this action thriller was a "Silence of the Lambs' wannabe, I found both the plot and the characters to be far more compelling and plausible than in most contemporary suspense films. Of course, having someone as good at presenting the merits of forensic scientist as Morgan Freeman certainly helps, as does the strong performance by Ashley Judd, fresh from her star turn in "Heat" playing opposite Robert DeNiro and Val Kilmer. She is smart, sassy, and more than the match for the serial killer she must face alone here, and shows how well she can play an urbane, well-educated, and resourceful modern woman.

And such talents are required by the somewhat convoluted plot spun from author James Patterson's gory novel of the same name. Filmed in somber tones, much of the action takes place in a makeshift subterranean lockup the serial murderer uses to such gruesome effect. Yet other scenes contrast this muddy environment by depicting the upscale area of the lovely area around the "Research Triangle" area of North Carolina near Duke University and the University Of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Since Judd's character is a surgeon also doing important pediatric research, it shows a number of familiar scenes that denizens of the area will certainly recognize.

After Judd manages to escape from the killer and make her back to the world, she agrees to help Freeman find him. Of course, this is when all hell breaks loose, and a number of unexpected plot twists make this a suspenseful thriller that had me at the edge of my seat for the last half hour. It is a fast-paced movie, one that is fairly intelligent in its approach, and as relatively straight-forward `bang-em-up' entertainment it works quite well. Enjoy!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars why was this panned by the critics?, December 21, 2005

By 

Aspry Jones (East Coast) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kiss the Girls (DVD)

i'm into the Alex Cross novels these days and because Ashley Judd is one of the hottest little babes alive, i rented the dvd instead of reading the novel. I was not disappointed.

It's a nice thriller almost completely devoid of special effects or tricks. Someone has kidnapped and supposedly raped Alex Cross's neice. It turns out that she is just a number among several other women who have found the same fate. Some are found dead and tied to trees, but why not the rest? What is the serial criminal's motive? What's going on? No one knows until Judd is taken, beaten, drugged and escapes. She's the only one that gets away to tell the tale and help the police find the culprit.

But which culprit? That's the main theme to the story and a damn good one I have to say.

Good film and I hope that there are more to come. God bless Morgan Freeman. He is one of the best actors alive.