---
title: "A Kiss Before Dying"
year: 1991
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/a-kiss-before-dying"
fi1m_id: "a-kiss-before-dying"
imdb_id: "tt0102220"
tmdb_id: 31696
wikidata_id: "Q1195071"
fi1m_score: 38
critics_score: 34
critics_reviews: 6
published: "2026-10-04T21:51:38.234781+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-04T21:51:39.166747+00:00"
region: "RO"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# A Kiss Before Dying (1991)

Directed by James Dearden · 1h 35m · Mystery, Thriller, Crime

## Identity

A Kiss Before Dying

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/a-kiss-before-dying
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** a-kiss-before-dying
- **IMDb ID:** tt0102220
- **TMDB ID:** 31696
- **Wikidata ID:** Q1195071
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102220/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/31696, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1195071

**Fi1m score: 38** · Critics 34 from 6 reviews

*In a sentence:* A psychopath this charming deserves people who can spot a clue

> Matt Dillon supplies credible charm and menace, but James Dearden’s thriller gives him unconvincing relationships and too little suspense. The handsome finish cannot disguise a screenplay that keeps its heroine several steps behind the audience.

## Synopsis

Jonathan Corliss (Matt Dillon) is a psychopath whose charm conceals the danger he poses. Around him are Ellen and Dorothy Carlsson, both played by Sean Young, and Thor Carlsson (Max von Sydow). His ability to seem harmless makes it difficult for those around him to recognise what they are dealing with. As clues to his character emerge, the question is who will take them seriously, and when. Adapted from Ira Levin’s novel, the story follows the gap between Jonathan’s outward manner and the intentions he keeps concealed.

## Review

James Dearden’s *A Kiss Before Dying* has a promising centre in Matt Dillon and too little suspense around him. It is a poor thriller, with enough polish to suggest that something more involving ought to be happening. Adapting Ira Levin’s novel for the screen, the director depends on the difference between Jonathan Corliss’s agreeable manner and his psychopathy. That gives his leading actor something to play, although the screenplay too often expects everyone else’s slow understanding to keep the story moving.

Matt Dillon is worth watching because he does not advertise each change in Jonathan Corliss’s manner. His charm is credible, and he lets the unpleasantness show without discarding it, so the performance makes sense as a way of getting close to people. We were briefly unsettled by how little his friendly manner had to change to become threatening. The trouble is that his control is doing work the surrounding scenes ought to share.

Sean Young, playing Ellen and Dorothy Carlsson, has the more exposed assignment. The screenplay asks the heroine to overlook clues that have already registered with us, and she cannot make that delay convincing. Her dual performance offers too little distinction or feeling to compensate, while her scenes with Matt Dillon lack the attraction that might explain such poor judgement. Once we start waiting for a character to notice the obvious, concern gives way to impatience. That is a serious problem for a thriller built around misplaced trust.

Mike Southon’s cinematography gives the film a composed, attractive surface, and Jim Clay’s production design helps make that finish coherent. Those are real virtues: there is no reason a crime thriller must look grubby to feel dangerous. Yet the handsome presentation seldom makes Jonathan Corliss’s company more uncomfortable, or gives his charm an extra edge. The film looks assured even when the scenes are struggling to hold our attention.

Michael Bradsell’s editing cannot solve the problem of a story that makes us wait for people to catch up. The delays become conspicuous because James Dearden has not made the heroine’s failure to understand sufficiently plausible. Howard Shore’s music offers some unease, but it cannot give these encounters the force missing from the relationships and writing. At 95 minutes, the film is hardly sprawling; it still contains stretches in which our attention has little to settle on beyond the leading man.

A thriller can let us recognise a dangerous man early and still frighten us, provided we believe the people who do not. It can also make their mistakes interesting enough that we keep following them despite ourselves. The director never gives the relationships that degree of conviction, and the familiar suspense situations offer little distraction from their weakness. Knowing that somebody is dangerous becomes tiresome when the film keeps postponing everyone else’s understanding of it.

There is a limited pleasure here for anyone interested in watching a capable actor find small variations inside a familiar part. Anyone coming for a persuasive relationship or a sustained sense of threat will have a less rewarding evening. The professional finish makes the weak writing more frustrating, because the film has plainly received care elsewhere. Make time for it only if Matt Dillon’s performance is the attraction.

*Fi1m score 38, published 4 October 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics find A Kiss Before Dying a weak thriller, with five negative reviews and one mixed assessment. The main point of agreement is its failure to generate suspense. Praise centres on Matt Dillon: Radio Times finds him chilling and persuasive as a charming psychopath, while Empire admires the subtlety and adaptability of his performance. Those notices give the film a credible lead, but find too little tension or sufficiently developed plotting around him.

The reservations range from derivative set pieces and unconvincing characterisation to the leads’ lack of chemistry. There is some variation within the largely negative response: Empire finds entertainment despite the film’s unfinished feel, whereas the Los Angeles Times sees a thriller that deteriorates as it proceeds. The New York Times supplies the least negative indication, but only its headline is available; its description of a handsome, modest film cannot establish a fuller dissent.

## Straight answers

**Is A Kiss Before Dying worth watching?**

*A Kiss Before Dying* is worth considering only for Matt Dillon’s performance; we score this poor thriller 38 out of 100. His credible charm and menace offer some pleasure, but unconvincing relationships and a heroine kept several steps behind the audience leave too little suspense to recommend it more widely.

**How long is A Kiss Before Dying, and what is it rated?**

*A Kiss Before Dying* runs 1h 35m. It is a mystery and thriller film.

**Where can I watch A Kiss Before Dying in Romania?**

*A Kiss Before Dying* is not on any streaming or rental service in Romania at the moment. It is available in 12 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily.

**How violent or frightening is A Kiss Before Dying, and is it suitable for children?**

*A Kiss Before Dying* carries a UK 15 certificate and is unsuitable for children under 15. We find Dillon’s shift from friendliness to menace briefly unsettling, but the film offers little sustained suspense; that judgement is not an assurance that its content suits younger viewers or the squeamish.

**How does A Kiss Before Dying compare to Shadow of a Doubt?**

*A Kiss Before Dying* is the weaker choice beside [*Shadow of a Doubt*](https://film.one/film/shadow-of-a-doubt), which we recommend for a more convincing thriller about a welcome guest whose charm conceals danger. Hitchcock makes family affection a reason to fear what people cannot recognise, while Dearden relies too heavily on his heroine overlooking clues the audience already understands.

**Is A Kiss Before Dying based on a true story or a book?**

*A Kiss Before Dying* is adapted from Ira Levin’s novel, rather than presented as a true story. Knowing the book is not necessary to grasp the central premise of a charming man concealing dangerous intentions; our reservations concern the film’s unconvincing relationships and delayed recognition of obvious clues, not its fidelity to the source.

**What should I watch after A Kiss Before Dying?**

After *A Kiss Before Dying*, try [*Shadow of a Doubt*](https://film.one/film/shadow-of-a-doubt) (1943, Fi1m 88): For another persuasive charmer whose welcome ought to come with questions. Then [*The Servant*](https://film.one/film/the-servant) (1963, Fi1m 89): Class ambition and uneasy dependence, with performances that make every courtesy suspicious; and [*The Last Seduction*](https://film.one/film/the-last-seduction) (1994, Fi1m 81): A crime thriller that gives its manipulator wit and everyone else believable weaknesses.

### Reviews we read (6)

- **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (69/100, inferred): The headline characterizes the film as handsome but modest, while emphasizing its murderous premise. The article text is unavailable, so its fuller verdict and specific praise cannot be verified. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1991/04/26/movies/review-film-handsome-and-modest-yes-but-also-murderous.html)
- **Radio Times**, John Ferguson (2/5): Ferguson says the thriller fails to generate real tension despite Matt Dillon’s chilling performance. He praises Dillon’s charming portrayal of a psychopath, while faulting Sean Young’s unconvincing dual role and the derivative set pieces. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-svaf2l/a-kiss-before-dying/)
- **Empire**, Kim Newman (35/100, inferred): Newman finds the remake entertaining but ultimately unfinished, with an abrupt ending that leaves major plot threads unresolved. He praises Matt Dillon’s subtle, adaptable performance as the film’s main strength. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/kiss-dying-review/)
- **Time Out**, BC (30/100, inferred): The critic finds Dearden’s adaptation routine, neither thrilling nor revealing. The review particularly faults it as a portrait of a psychopath. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/a-kiss-before-dying-1)
- **Variety**, Variety Staff (20/100, inferred): The critic finds the film a clunker when played straight. They single out Sean Young’s bland performance and the leads’ lack of chemistry. [Read](https://variety.com/1990/film/reviews/a-kiss-before-dying-2-1200429017/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Peter Rainer (10/100, inferred): Rainer strongly pans the film as a botched thriller that grows worse as it goes along. He faults its lack of suspense, singling out how the heroine takes too long to spot clues that seem obvious from the start. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-04-26-ca-571-story.html)

## Details

- **Director:** James Dearden
- **Director:** James Dearden
- **Screenplay:** James Dearden
- **Novel:** Ira Levin
- **Cinematography:** Mike Southon
- **Editor:** Michael Bradsell
- **Music:** Howard Shore
- **Production design:** Jim Clay
- **Costume design:** Marit Allen
- **Producer:** Robert Lawrence
- **Cast:** Matt Dillon as Jonathan Corliss; Sean Young as Ellen / Dorothy Carlsson; Max von Sydow as Thor Carlsson; Diane Ladd as Mrs. Corliss; James Russo as Dan Corelli; Ad-Rock as Jay Faraday; Martha Gehman as Patricia Farren; Ben Browder as Tommy Roussell
- **Runtime:** 1h 35m
- **First release (the US):** 26 April 1991
- **Genres:** Mystery, Thriller, Crime
- **Box office:** $15 million

## Where to watch in Romania

Not streaming, renting or buying in Romania at the last check.

Also available in: AT, DE, ES, FI, FR, IN, IT, NL, NO, PL, SE, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress 1992: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress (won)
- Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress 1992: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress (won)

## If you liked this

- *Purple Noon* (1960): A charming opportunist receives the patient attention and mounting suspicion that this film needs.
- *Shadow of a Doubt* (1943), Fi1m 88: For another persuasive charmer whose welcome ought to come with questions. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/shadow-of-a-doubt.md)
- *The Servant* (1963), Fi1m 89: Class ambition and uneasy dependence, with performances that make every courtesy suspicious. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-servant.md)
- *The Housemaid* (1960): Domestic trust becomes perilous through carefully established desires, resentments and divided loyalties.
- *The Last Seduction* (1994), Fi1m 81: A crime thriller that gives its manipulator wit and everyone else believable weaknesses. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-last-seduction.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/a-kiss-before-dying