Killer's Kiss

Killer's Kiss (1955)

Following Fear and Desire, Kubrick began working on ideas for a new boxing film. Originally titled Kiss Me, Kill Me and then The Nymph and the Maniac, Killer's Kiss is a film noir about a young heavyweight boxer's involvement with a woman being abused by her criminal boss.

Like Fear and Desire, it was privately funded by Kubrick's family and friends, with $40,000 from Bronx pharmacist Morris Bousse. Kubrick began shooting footage on Times Square, and on one night was approached by policemen on Wall Street, to each of whom he gave $20 to keep quiet.

He initially recorded sound on location but encountered difficulties with microphone boom shadows. His decision to drop the sound in favour of imagery was costly — after 12–14 weeks shooting, he spent seven months and $35,000 on the sound.

Although the film met with limited commercial success, film historian Alexander Walker found it "oddly compelling", noting Kubrick's lighting and photography and the tone of urban loneliness. The climactic fight in a mannequin warehouse was an intentional metaphor for the way the central characters become other people's puppets.