The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Renny Harlin

Writer (WGA):

Shane Black (written by)

Release Date:

11 October 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Eight years ago she lost her memory. Now, a detective must help her remember the past before it buries them both. What's forgotten is not always gone.

Plot:

A women suffering from amnesia begins to recover her memories after trouble from her past finds her again.

Plot Keywords:

Amnesia | Burning Corpse | Knife Throwing | Exploding Bridge | Terrorism

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Geena Davis	...	Samantha Caine / Charly Baltimore
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Mitch Henessey
Yvonne Zima	...	Caitlin Caine
Craig Bierko	...	Timothy
Tom Amandes	...	Hal
Brian Cox	...	Dr. Nathan Waldman
Patrick Malahide	...	Leland Perkins
David Morse	...	Luke / Daedalus
Joseph McKenna	...	One-Eyed Jack
Melina Kanakaredes	...	Trin
Dan Warry-Smith	...	Raymond
Kristen Bone	...	Girl #1
Jennifer Pisana	...	Girl #2
Rex Linn	...	Man in Bed
Alan North	...	Earl

MPAA:

Rated R for a substantial amount of strong bloody violence, and for strong language.

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Singapore:M18 | Iceland:16 | Australia:M (TV rating) | USA:R (certificate #34389) | South Korea:18 | Philippines:PG-13 | UK:15 (2008) | Malaysia:18SG | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:16 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | Canada:R (Nova Scotia/Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Forge

Trivia:

The movie playing on the TV at the hotel was The Long Goodbye (1973).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Samantha is thrown from her car after hitting the deer, she loses her shoes but she is wearing beige stockings. When she stands to walk through the snow toward the wounded deer, she is barefoot.

Quotes:

Caitlin, Caine: Mommy, I hit my head!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Shaft (2000)

Soundtrack:

Mannish Boy

Sit back and enjoy the ride

I feel extremely sad for some of the people who have been reviewing this film. It is apparent that their standards are so high that they will never be able to enjoy a film just for enjoyment sake. Or, perhaps, their enjoyment is derived from the act of picking films apart; looking for any reason at all to dislike them?

The Long Kiss Goodnight is an action film, in every sense of the word. Sure, there are holes in the plot big enough to drive a semi through, but none of them are enough to stop the flow of the film itself. I have never been a big Geena Davis fan, but I was impressed with how she was able to create two very different characters, Samantha Cain and Charlie Baltimore. In my opinion, it wasn't even necessary to have changed her physical appearance to differentiate between the two...her acting was more than enough to do the trick.

More than anything else, though, this film was Craig Bierko's. In another's hands, the character of Timothy could've been just another interchangeable villain. His decision to play him with a more casual approach was just the right counterpoint to all of the action scenes. It isn't often that you find an actor who can express himself so well with just his facial expressions...point in case: the scene in the freezer with Charlie and her daughter. Where most films would've cluttered the moment of "revelation" with unnecessary dialogue, Bierko's eyes told the whole story.

The basic plot? Thin, to be truthful. A seemingly average housewife who suffers from amnesia slowly discovers that she had been an assassin. As her memory returns, so do the people who want the assassin dead. Is she really Samantha, the cookie baking housewife, or Charlie, the cold blooded assassin? Or maybe a little bit of both? For me, The Long Kiss Goodnight was an enjoyable journey to find out.