Product Details

• Actors: William Petersen, Gary Cole, Sheryl Lee, Patricia Charbonneau, Season Hubley
• Directors: Roger Young
• Writers: Eric Lerner
• Producers: Eric Lerner, Lope V. Juban Jr., Matthew O'Connor
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
• VHS Release Date: June 6, 2000
• Run Time: 105 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0792845420
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #359,392 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

In a classic instance of a film's reach exceeding its grasp, Kiss the Sky has the outline of greatness about it. The final result, though, is something less: a deeply flawed but genuinely interesting work. Nothing wrong with that.

More ambitious and less clichéd than American Beauty, Kiss the Sky stars William L. Petersen and Gary Cole as long-time friends evaluating how they arrived in middle age feeling dispirited and empty. Desperate to reconnect with their lost vitality, they pursue the obvious by zipping off to a tropical island to chase the local girls. Instead, they both end up falling for the same woman (Sheryl Lee), who in turn loves both of them. Opting for the unorthodox, the trio becomes a threesome with little internal jealousy, deep feelings shared all around, and an unspoken conviction that they have stumbled together into a sacred chapter in their lives.

If that scenario sounds merely provocative or mundane, the faith that screenwriter Eric Lerner demonstrates in his characters' quasi-religious certainty inspires a different reading. Not that Lerner and veteran television director Roger Young don't blow it on a few counts: the superfluous presence of Terence Stamp as a Zen monk, and a dead-end subplot about building a sanctuary for other soul pilgrims. But there's enough moral authenticity and adult experience between the lines to make this a compelling experience. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars That Movie that Oppressed Over 40 guys have been waiting for, June 30, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Kiss the Sky (DVD)

I've been in the video biz for 20 years because I love movies--especially those amazing auteur classics Hollywood somehow let slide for so long in the 70s-- and I'm now 48, comfortable, guilty, confused, and feeling totally misunderstood, misjudged, and about to give up. Then I run across "Kiss the Sky", this incredible movie that actually tries to honestly describe the emptiness inherent in being a successful upper middle class (probably white) American Male. How many buddy movies have you seen like "City Slickers" or "Very Bad Things" that almost get that ineffable feeling of loss and despair right only to cop out with lowest common denominator humor or cheap sentiment? "Kiss the Sky", given the times and given the state of the movie industry is the closest we'll ever get. Deftly sidestepping cliches and easy answers, this tale of 2 middle aged guys who are smart enough to know that their material success doesn't mean that much and isn't really their doing anyway goes bravely if imperfectly where no movie that I have ever seen has gone before. ("Leaving Las Vegas" has some resonance but it's ultimately a one man story, not a generational statement.) I don't know where this movie came from or how it got made or who was nuts enough to think it had any commercial viability (it doesn't except if it's hawked as a hard R straight-to-video cheapie, and the person who wants that will be disappointed by this.) Anyway, if I'm speaking to you, watch this movie!

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes deep, sometimes boring but always easy to watch..., August 16, 2001

By 

"dc-76" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kiss the Sky (DVD)

...is this movie about two yuppies Cole and Peterson searching for the sense of life. The story is quickly told: Jeff and Marty leave their families behind to go on a trip to a beautiful island where they fall in love with the same woman who is played by the amazingly sexy Sheryl Lee. Although "Kiss The Sky" goes on for too long it's never really hard to watch since there are beautiful locations and a nice supporting cast which includes Terence Stamp ("Bliss"), Patricia Charbonneau ("CallMe") and Season Hubley ("Hardcore"). The three leading actors are great, too - although I wasn't completely convinced by Peterson's performance (but maybe that's my fault since I just know him as a tough cop in "Manhunter" and "To Live and Die in L.A.").

Another positive aspect of "Kiss The Sky" is the nice soundtrack by Leonard Cohen (I especially like "Dance Me To The End Of Love").

Not everyone's taste, but if you like the actors you might also like "Kiss The Sky

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Better than I expected., December 31, 2005

By 

M. S. Driver (Woodside, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Kiss the Sky (DVD)

I liked this movie better as it went along. I, too, am not very happy with the way my life has gone. I guess that if you are self-satisfied, then you probably won't like this movie. But being who I am and where I have been in my life, it touched me deeply, particularly with its mournful Leonard Cohen songs in the background and its sad twist at the end. I strongly disagree with the reviewer who thought the presence of Terence Stamp's Buddhist monk and the story line of the building of the tower were extraneous. I see this story as the two main characters' search for an earthly nirvana, and the tower is a literal construction evoking the movie's title. I bought this movie because I am a big fan of Billy Petersen, and he gives really fine performance here, worth an extra star. (But I'm so glad that he's keeping his clothes on in his current role as CBS's top CSI, Gil Grissom.)