I wouldn't say this is boring, but in the end "The Kiss" didn't do too much for me. It's a commonplace witchcraft tale in what is a primitively decent little late 80's supernatural occult horror item. There are moments of creativity, from its story arches to its grisly, mean- spirited imagery (there being some neat twisted special effects on show by Chris Walas), but still evident is that it does seem to meander at times (who knew tree trimming could be relaxing), sometimes the messy plot just throws in things with no explanations (what about that ugly looking artifact statue and where the hell did that nasty looking feral cat come from?!), secondary characters are less interesting (although Mimi Kuzyk has her moments) and eventually the overall silliness takes control (wait around for the overblown climax involving a late-night dip). However it can be atmospherically tense and quite sexed-up with the mysteriously fetching Joanna Pacula seductively manipulating things to her advantage as this scarlet happens to be possessed by some sort of ancient curse that's passed on through the females of the same bloodline with a kiss.
The story opens up in the early 1960s in the Belgian Congo, where a young girl is inflicted with ancient curse from her auntie. Twenty-five years later, the girl Felice is a famous fashion model travelling the world, which suddenly turns up in New York after the strange accidental death of her older sister. There she meets her teenage niece Amy (a strong performance by Meredith Salenger), but Amy isn't so keen on her and wonders why her mum never talked about her. Yet Felice does have plans for Amy to become heir to this horrifying family legacy.
Generic and rather blotchy, but Pen Densham's direction etches out some style and Pacula has a hypnotic screen presence that not only intrudes on the family, but also the viewer.
"Amy if your curious about me, all you have to do is ask."
The story opens up in the early 1960s in the Belgian Congo, where a young girl is inflicted with ancient curse from her auntie. Twenty-five years later, the girl Felice is a famous fashion model travelling the world, which suddenly turns up in New York after the strange accidental death of her older sister. There she meets her teenage niece Amy (a strong performance by Meredith Salenger), but Amy isn't so keen on her and wonders why her mum never talked about her. Yet Felice does have plans for Amy to become heir to this horrifying family legacy.
Generic and rather blotchy, but Pen Densham's direction etches out some style and Pacula has a hypnotic screen presence that not only intrudes on the family, but also the viewer.
"Amy if your curious about me, all you have to do is ask."