The Naked Kiss (Samuel Fuller, 1964)
plot synopsis: The setup is pure pulp: A former prostitute relocates to a buttoned-down suburb, determined to fit into mainstream society. But in the strange, hallucinatory territory of writer/director/producer Sam Fuller, perverse secrets simmer beneath a seemingly wholesome facade.
One of Samuel Fuller’s early works, The Naked Kiss is billed as a pulpy b-movie, and in a lot of ways it is; there’s a lot of overacting (and some that’s just straight up bad), the story is quite “risque” (especially for the time period), and you couldn’t count the number of sexual innuendos on several pairs of hands. But I really think this film is a near-masterpiece. Constance Towers is brilliant in the lead role, and the film features several beautifully shot sequences (and one particular “sing-a-long” that is both hauntingly beautiful and slightly disturbing). The story may be over-the-top to the extreme, but what you see here is the early makings of one of America’s great independent filmmakers.
tcp status: 161/505
up next: #198 – ali: fear eats the soul (rainer werner fassbinder, 1974)
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