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Review by theo ★★½

all the main characters ‘died’ atleast once and came back to life so very accurate title

Review by Dale Ranger ★★★½

Fay: “I always wondered what it would be like to die a really violent death.”
Jack: “Well now you know.”

Jack is a private detective with loan sharks breathing down his neck to clear his debt.
Fay and her psychopath boyfriend Vince, did a violent robbery, but the money is tied to the mob. Fay gets away and asks Jack to fake her death so she can escape.

But Vince is on their trail. 

This is really nice seeing Val Kilmer and his wife Joan Whalley-Kilmer on screen together.
They are a really sweet couple. This is 1 year after the release of Willow where they met and they are still newly weds on this film.

Written and directed by…

2

Rock solid Nevada Noir from Dahl, doing what he does best—a nifty thriller containing all the beats I’d want out of this kind of picture.... throwing a lot at the wall and most of it sticks. Kind of a precursor to the early 90’s crime thriller and definitely an entertaining late night gem.

7

It's been so long since I have seen this and it is Noirvember so I had to dip my toe(tag?) back into these frigid detective waters and hope I don't succumb to a femme fatality in this acrid portrayal of this dry landscape that is Nevada.
It's not as dark as "The Last Seduction" and feels more traditional then said film but Dahl really makes a meal of this and it's hard to not be entertained by this minimal budgeted neonoir. Kilmer is solid and Madison is just a great S.O.B. giving some solid A-hole responses that he delivers so well with his squinty eyed look that he does so well. Joanne Whalley portrays her self centered cruel role so…

1

Like RED ROCK WEST, KILL ME AGAIN is a fun little aside that dipsy-doodles through the conventions of the mystery-noir genre. All the reliable cliches are present:

* Gorgeous bitch/sweetheart of a femme fatale
* Private Eye deep in personal debt
* Briefcase of money
* Pissed of double-crossed mobsters
* Michael Madsen's serene-moving, unruffled thug

All cliches. All very standard small-budget, story-based staples. The film, ultimately, should be very ordinary, but it isn't. John Dahl's early work are tightly-paced little character thrillers that aren't deep or sophisticated, but whole-heartedly follow and trust their scripts devotedly.

Dahl doesn't get sidetracked by depth of subplot, theme, character backgrounds, or excessive visuals. His mastery lies in the plumbing each scene for its…

Review by Justin LaLiberty ★★★★ Liked

Nobody does this better than John Dahl. Nobody can trash a room like Michael Madsen.

4

I just love how noir and 90s this feels, even though it's '89. The characters, the triple crosses, that patina of sleaze. If it wasn't for the F bombs it could be 50 years older.

Kilmer is so understated here that I almost forgot I was watching him. It's fun seeing him partner up with Joanne Whalley again, but it's impossible to forget you're watching her.

Nothing like a tight little 90s thriller when you wake up too early on the wweekend. I was also pleasantly amused to again see a film with so few reviews (700!) yet four of them are from my crew. Y'all are the best.

4

John Dahl strikes again with his heavy, expressionistic Neo-noir style. He paints the Nevada/Arizona dessert with lush colors that mesmerize, like dangling a diamond before our eyes. Beyond Dahl’s direction, the casting is top notch: Val Kilmer, Joanne Whalley-Kilmer, Michael Madsen, and Jon Gries. Madsen especially makes you hate him so fast it’ll make your head spin. You’ve barely kept up with the gnarly plot and you get distracted by his cool bad boy greatness. Kilmer and (then wife) Joanne Whalley are decent as an updated Bonnie and Clyde type, though with some exceptions. Character decisions begin to get questionable halfway through. Dahl’s hand in the script shows his deep affection for the complicated noir web of intrigue and deception…

Review by Karl ★★★ Liked

Not the best film to Val Kilmer but I wanted to see him in something I hadn't seen. It's a neo-noir set in the southwest directed by John Dahl so it was an easy choice. Kilmer is the kind of private detective character you'd expect. You know the down-on-his luck type, mourning the death of his wife and owes $10K to some loan sharks. Jack's life gets (yes his name is Jack, as they so often are in this genre) even more complicated when femme fatale Fay Forrester slinks into his office asking him to fake her death. She's played by Joanne Whalley, who was married to Kilmer at the time. Michael Madsen is also on hand at his…

Review by Scott R ★★★½ Liked

(Neo) Noirvember 2024 - #3

“Vince killed one of them, it was awful! so we took the money and then we took off...” 

John Dahl is the master of the Neo-noir spliced in with the western, as seen in the absolute wild crime Nic Cage/Dennis Hopper mood piece Red Rock West! I guess lightning does strike twice because this one is solid precursor to that film.

Some Sinister Act 3 Spoilers Ahead 🕵🏼‍♂️ (limited)

This is a crazy noir crime ridden violent hell of a ride y’all. The movie wastes absolutely no time, so buckle up lol. Like boom!! holy fucking blood squibs! Interestingly it’s much more violent than Red Rock West is. But we fine with that, right?! 😈…

Review by matt lynch ★★★½

I miss this John Dahl. Discussed on Episode 17 of The Suspense is Killing Us.

Review by Katie Walsh

I really enjoyed this chunky slice of neo-noir (it's not even neo... it's just noir, but in the '80s). Joanne Whalley is so good, plus there are some fun "Thelma & Louise" vibes. A good candidate to be re-discovered by Film Twitter.

note: there is a wild wig continuity error that I am mentioning here to remind myself for later.