Rating: 
Summary: Dazzling Hour
Review: A truly odd movie, "Kiss Me Stupid" is half masterpiece and half mess. The video version opens with the credits in widescreen, behind which we see Dean Martin in concert in Vegas, casually interrupting Gershwin's lovely "S'wonderful" to make lewd and unfunny jokes. You can feel Wilder's deep disgust seeping through the crisp black and white images. And yet he does the same thing he's chastising Dino for: though his story is a lovely portrait of people finding each other despite society's hypocrisy, he fouls his own movie with smutty jokes, leering, and crude overemphasis. Part of the problem is the substitution of Ray Walston for Peter Sellers; the latter might have made it a sweeter and more moving film, but Walston is helplessly grating and obnoxious. However, Kim Novak gives a memorable performance -- not as great as the one she gave in "Strangers When We Meet," but she's touching and funny as the whore longing for domesticity. As for Dino, the joke's on him, but as usual he couldn't care less.
Rating: 
Summary: Stupid and stupider. One of the worst films ever made.
Review: Billy Wilder is one of the great writer-directors. "Some Like It Hot," "Sunset Blvd.," "Stalag 17," and "Double Indemnity" remain critical and popular successes."Kiss Me, Stupid" is his most-controversial film, and for good reason - it's one of the very worst films ever made by a respected major director. Had Wilder obeyed his basic artistic rule -- "What would Lubitsch do?" -- "Kiss Me, Stupid" would never have been made. "Stupid" is a "bookend" for "The Apartment." In the latter, a man figuratively prostitutes himself to get ahead. In the former, a man literally prostitutes his wife to the same end. You might conceivably make a genuinely funny or dramatically valid film about a woman debasing herself to advance her husband's career, but "Stupid" isn't it. "Stupid" opens appropriately with Dean Martin as a Las Vegas singer/comic, playing a charmless and obnoxious version of his boozing, womanizing alter ego. "Dino"'s humor is vulgar and unfunny, but the audience and four waiters laugh their heads off. A fifth waiter -- representing Wilder himself -- stands unsmiling, with an expression that clearly indicates what he thinks of Dino. (When the director uses a stand-in to tell the audience how they're supposed to view the proceedings, you _know_ that what follows is going to be, at the very least, heavy-handed and unsubtle.) Meanwhile, in Climax, Nevada (yes, there really is such a place), piano teacher Ray Walston is venting his jealousy at every man (including the milkman) who comes near his adorable wife (Felicia Farr). When not teaching piano, he's working with the local auto mechanic (Cliff Osmond) on songs (actually unpublished Gershwin-brothers garbage) they hope will make their fortune. Taking a forced detour on the way to LA, Dino stops to buy gas. Osmond sabotages his car and convinces him to spend the night at Walston's house, where Walston and Osmond can pitch their songs. Osmond suggests that Dino's uncontrollable libido can be turned to their advantage by letting the singer have sex with Farr (the ex-president of Dino's fan club!), thus guaranteeing the sale of their songs. (Note the cynical assumption that sex will procure the sale, regardless of the songs' quality.) There's no need to let Dino actually boff Farr, because she can be replaced with one of the "waitresses" at "The Belly Button," a local road house. After much arguing, Walston reluctantly agrees, and proceeds -- on their wedding anniversary! -- to cruelly kick his wife out of the house. By this time Osmond has returned with Polly the Pistol (Kim Novak). The next half-hour revolves around Walston trying to convince Dino that his "wife" is ready, willing, and able. But as Novak begins to take a sincere interest in Walston (she detests Dino and, though being paid, has no desire to hit the sack with him), Walston responds with his characteristic jealousy and kicks Dino out -- then goes to bed with Novak. (Yes, I know, none of this makes much sense.) Farr has meanwhile been getting drunk at "The Belly Button." She can't hold her liquor, so the madam suggests she sleep in Novak's trailer. Then Dino shows up, desperate for a piece of tail -- if he doesn't have sex every night, he has a severe headache the next day -- and is referred to the trailer by a bartender who doesn't know Novak is away. When Dino tells Farr the local piano teacher kicked him out, she realizes what's going on, and tries, with apparent success, to sell Dino on "Sophia," one of the dreadful songs Walston pitched. Farr winds up having sex with Dino, even though he doesn't know she's Walston's wife, and he leaves $500 for her services. When Novak comes home, Farr gives her the $500 so she can buy a car and look for a better life. Though understanding Walston's motives, Farr nevertheless wants to divorce him. As they're about to enter the lawyer's office, next to a hardware store with TV sets in the window, they hear Dino singing "Sophia" on his TV special, and prasing Walston and Osmond for their song-writing abilities. Walston admits he has no idea what's going on but he still loves her. Farr responds, "Kiss me, stupid." The End. "Stupid" repeats a theme that pervades much of Wilder's work -- people will do _anything_ for money, no matter how degrading. This is hardly a profound insight, but in his other films it's usually subordinate to some greater issue. Here the audience's faces are rubbed in it. "Stupid"'s unerring vulgarity is exceeded only by the illogic of its resolution. What's the point of Farr going to bed with Dino when she doesn't tell him who she is, and thus has no leverage to persuade him to buy the song? (Not to mention that Dino _pays_ for her services.) Are we supposed to believe she's "nobly" prostituted herself to help her husband? She hasn't. This negates what appears to be the intended point of the film, leaving us witnesses to a two-hour dirty joke with no punch line. Would "Stupid" have been better with Peter Sellers? No. Ray Walston's performance has been called "charmless," and why shouldn't it be? Are we supposed to feel sympathy for, or identification with, a pathologically jealous man who treats his wife despicably, then commits adultery? Her dalliance with Dino neither justifies nor explains anything -- other than the desire to "get it on" with her favorite singer. It can't be seen as "revenge" for her husband's infidelity, of which she knows nothing. "Stupid" is the perfect example of Oscar Wilde's dictum that "There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well-written or badly written." There's nothing wrong with "Kiss Me, Stupid"'s subject matter -- only the vulgar, witless, and _stupid_ way it 's handled. "Stupid" is neither a sophisticated sex farce, nor even a cynical view of American mores and values. Rather, it's Billy Wilder spewing bile at the human race -- and nothing more.
Rating:
Summary: a perverse little comedy
Review: Do yourself a favor and ignore the negative reviews. This movie is hilarious. Kim Novak is a living doll in her role as 'Polly the Pistol' and Dean Martin's self-parody is worth the price of admission!
Rating: 
Summary: One of my favorite Wilder pictures!
Review: Do yourself a favor and ignore the negative reviews. This movie is hilarious. Kim Novak is a living doll in her role as 'Polly the Pistol' and Dean Martin's self-parody is worth the price of admission!
Rating:
Summary: If it weren't for venetian blinds, it'd be curtains for us..
Review: Just one of the great lines in this underrated film. In an era of pure garbage, this wonderful film is playing for one week in NYC at the Film Forum. If you read this message before the end of June 2002, run to see this provocative and endearing film. Ray Walston was an inspired choice to replace Peter Sellers; Kim Novak and Dean Martin are equally wonderful as the two other elements in this strange romantic triangle set in Climax, Nevada. Sharp, caustic, and very funny. Fans of director Billy Wilder should check out this 1964 film to check out the fun.
Rating:
Summary: From the President of the Dean Martin Fan Center
Review: Putting the story aside for a minute... "Kiss Me Stupid" is a great 'light-hearted' look at a time in history when Dean Martin ruled the entertainment field. He was a mega-star. It was 1964 - Dean's hit "Everybody Loves Somebody" just knocked the Beatles off the charts... His TV Variety Show was about to make it's debut, and his image of a playboy with a girl in one hand and a martini in the other that he was playing with the Rat Pack in Vegas was played to the hilt in this 126 minute movie by Oscar Winner Billy Wilder. Dean plays a spoof on himself that fits perfectly into the storyline of a super-entertainer who while traveling, meets and lusts over another man's wife. The comedy is a bit on the 'dark' side, but it's all in fun. This is not a film that is to be taken too deeply. As for music, Dean sing's "S'wonderful" and the rare unreleased great song "Sophia". Ray Walston (My Favorite Martian)is a bit strange in his role, but Kim Novak fits comfortably as the 'babe' of the plot. Shortly after the debut of this movie, I heard Dean mention that it was a "cute little picture". I think he liked the way it turned out. If you look hard, there are a lot of characture actors throughout the movie. It seems that some folks love this movie, while others think it was Billy Wilder's nightmare (They expect more from this Director. At the time of release, this was somewhat a taboo subject matter of 'cheating' on anothers spouse. The DVD version is cleaner than the VHS copy and has been remastered in a sharper image and nice saturated color with less hiss transfer from the optical soundtrack.
Rating:
Summary: a perverse little comedy
Review: Sex runs rampant throughout Billy Wilder's films. One can only wonder what they would have been like if he had continued past the sexual revolution of the late sixties. As it is, this little set piece of the swinging sixties shows a tolerance, if not sanction, of the stray, recreational encounter, while celebrating the bond of devotion. Dean Martin and Kim Novak are dead on as the swinging idol and the experienced escort, but the centerpiece of the movie is a loving couple. Ray Walston has been criticized as being too serious and energetic as the jealous husband, a part originally created for Peter Sellers just before a heart attack forced the casting change. Sellers would have added the right comic touch to keep the early jealousy scenes from getting uncomfortably realistic. But this character requires Walston's strong emotional depth to make his sudden love and protection of an imposter wife hired for the id-driven singer believable. Plus, Walston's broadway musical background doesn't hurt when he ends up singing the unfamiliar Gershwin tunes he has supposedly written and is trying to sell to the lusting Dino. Felicia Farr has the pivotal role of the beautiful wife with a healthy enough spirit to tolerate and correct her husband's foibles, and find a way to support him by indulging in some recreational fulfilment. She is the embodiment of early sixties sophistication. Good, not great. Better than any sex comedy you are likely to encounter any time soon.
Rating:
Summary: Kim Novak as Professional
Review: This flick is one of a series of Billy Wilder-directed movies which trace the sexual revolution of the 60's. The Apartment, Irma La Douce, Kiss Me, Stupid, and Avanti all have female roles which were quite shocking at the time. While Shirley MacLaine is not a very convincing hooker in Irma La Douce, Kim Novak is a very attractive prostitute (and sometime waitress) in Kiss Me, Stupid. She's professional: "Get out of here," she tells Ray Walston as she is about to service Dean Martin, "I've got a job to do." She is sentimental, as some working girls are: She happily plays the part of Ray Waltson's wife for a night. She's experienced: Her voice has a husky, worldly, I-know-my-job quality that makes a customer comfortable. She steals the movie, but Felicia Farr and Dean Martin contribute credible performances to support her. Ray Walston, as Felicia Farr's ridiculously jealous husband (he suspects her of cheating with a fourteen year old boy), does his best with an absurd character, but there's nothing of his Singing in the Rain character here. Still, Kim Novak makes this a gem of a movie. Be warned, though. As the trailer says, this movie is for adults only.
Rating:
Summary: Kim Novak as Professional
Review: This flick is one of a series of Billy Wilder-directed movies which trace the sexual revolution of the 60's. The Apartment, Irma La Douce, Kiss Me, Stupid, and Avanti all have female roles which were quite shocking at the time. While Shirley MacLaine is not a very convincing hooker in Irma La Douce, Kim Novak is a very attractive prostitute (and sometime waitress) in Kiss Me, Stupid. She's professional: "Get out of here," she tells Ray Walston as she is about to service Dean Martin, "I've got a job to do." She is sentimental, as some working girls are: She happily plays the part of Ray Waltson's wife for a night. She's experienced: Her voice has a husky, worldly, I-know-my-job quality that makes a customer comfortable. She steals the movie, but Felicia Farr and Dean Martin contribute credible performances to support her. Ray Walston, as Felicia Farr's ridiculously jealous husband (he suspects her of cheating with a fourteen year old boy), does his best with an absurd character, but there's nothing of his Singing in the Rain character here. Still, Kim Novak makes this a gem of a movie. Be warned, though. As the trailer says, this movie is for adults only.
Rating:
Summary: Kiss me Stupid
Review: This is an amazing movie, which was un-successfull when released and has yet to garner public attention. The film, among other things, is a harsh criticism of America's overzealous and often hypocritical sense of morality during the 1960's. This aspect of the film is probably the reason for its obscurity, but it is also the reason I find this movie so powerfull and ground breaking. The film is touching, harsh, funny and disturbing almost at the same time and also features incredible performances. If you're a Dean Martin fan, this movie is a must. Not only is he great in the film, but the opening of the movie features live footage from one of his concerts. If none of these reasons apeal to you, then see teh movie simply becuase it was made by a true master Billy Wilder. See this movie, grant it the popularity it deserves, but do yourself a favor and see it widescreen. You should be able to enjoy the gorgeos and sometimes powerfully harsh cinematography and framing. I can only sit by and wait until this forgotten masterpiece is finally recognized and released on DVD.
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