The Movie

This is a scatterbrained romantic comedy. That pretty much sums up what you can expect from Just A Kiss. I expected more from a movie with a cast including names like Kyra Sedgwich, Taye Diggs, and Marisa Tomei, but in an attempt to be different, it ends up being a little too different.

The premise behind Just A Kiss has loads of promise. The movie tries to show us the amazing and sometimes improbable consequences that a simple kiss can bring, by way of individual stories. But the problem is the movie is trying to tell too many stories in a relatively short amount of time. If it had concentrated on fewer stories, and greater character development, this could have been a great romantic comedy.

Supposedly Just A Kiss is a "light comedy," however when you witness some of the jokes that are played out, you begin to wonder if "psychotic comedy" wouldn't be more appropriate.

Basically what we have here is a movie about a group of young friends and their failing relationships. We're supposed to find out in great detail what the repercussions of a single kiss can bring, but the story veers away from this topic and starts focusing on the individuals, though not nearly as diligently as it should.

The problem here is that we've got a great and talented cast, but not enough time and script to exploit it. With a run time of 85 minutes, this movie plays out like a mad rush rather than a mad love story. We never get to really explore the wonderful characters played by Sedgwich or Diggs. I guess I just wanted more characterization, and less bouncing around from one topic to another. Also, there was a lot of animation implemented into the movie, and it really shouldn't have been used. It seemed horribly out of place, and really took me out of the movie.

No doubt there will be people out there who really take to this movie and fall in love with its quirky originality. However it didn't appeal to me in the least. If you are searching for a romantic comedy that is "out there" and a little crazy, than this may be something you'd be interested in. But if you like to stay clear of things that dare to be a little too different, then you shouldn't lose any sleep over skipping over this DVD.


The DVD

Video:
Just A Kiss is presented in roughly 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. For a newer release I was surprised at the enormous amount of spots, streaks, and film blemishes found on the video transfer. They seem to be everywhere, and are noticeable even when you become immersed into the movie. Particularly distracting was the appearance of white or yellowish horizontal lines that popped up quite often. The picture also had a fair amount of graininess to it as well. On the positive side, effects of edge enhancement weren't readily visible. Overall this transfer isn't horrible, but I expected more from a new release such as this.

Audio:
A Dolby Digital 2.0 audio track is all we have to choose from here. Most of the audio comes from dialogue anyway, so a 5.1 track isn't sorely missed. But as it is a 2.0 track, the sound never becomes interactive and fails to fully pull you into the action, what little there is.

Extras:
There are no extras offered on this DVD.


Final Thoughts:
For me, Just A Kiss was neither entertaining, funny, nor sexy. Call me crazy, but aren't these elements essential to making a good romantic comedy? There will definitely be people out there who love this movie, but I wasn't one of them. If you feel this movie might appeal to you, by all means rent it and give it a try. It's dark, crazy, and a little schizophrenic, so those of you into these kinds of movies will love it. After all, your tastes may differ greatly from mine. Skip It