The Long Kiss Goodnight is one of the better action movies that I have seen. I had forgotten much about the movie, including just how good it was until I caught part of it on television a few months ago. After that, I ended up picking up the DVD and have watched it again.

Samantha Caine was a single mother and school teacher. She and her daughter Caitlin had a good life, but Samantha had a problem. She didn’t know anything about her past or ever who Caitlin’s father was. Samantha had spent the last eight years trying to learn about her past by hiring private detectives but they never managed to uncover any information. Samantha didn’t give up though and finally one detective, Mitch Henessey, uncovered something. Around the same time, Samantha was involved in a car accident. She wasn’t badly hurt, but she started to do some odd things and have strange dreams after that. Shortly after the accident, an armed man showed up at Samantha’s house. Once that was handled, Samantha decided she should go with Mitch to find out exactly what had happened in her past. Samantha learned that she had been an assassin for the government named Charley. Someone didn’t want her asking questions about her past.

The Long Kiss Goodnight began with a voice over by Samantha. The voice over explained her situation and that she wasn’t going to give up on learning the truth. After the first few minutes, the voice over wasn’t used anymore. Only enough of Samantha’s life was shared as was needed to establish her as a character. She had spent a lot of time trying to uncover her past, but the movie didn’t dwell on it. The accident that seemed to start to trigger Samantha’s memory happened early, and after that she started to remember little bits and pieces that were connected to her past in some way. Everything about her past wasn’t revealed all at once, so there was some mystery to what was going on. The movie really didn’t have a strong mystery, but there were mystery elements in it. There were suspenseful moments throughout the movie that kept things very interesting. Even once Samantha and Mitch uncovered some answers there were still other answered questions about Samantha to resolve. It wasn’t always clear how Samantha was going to react to what she was learning either. The movie wasn’t boring at any time. I never knew what would happen next.

I consider The Long Kiss Goodnight to be an action movie. There were several action scenes throughout the movie. The action started fairly early with the car accident Samantha was in. The accident was shown as it happened and while she wasn’t hurt too badly, the car ended up really banged up. Later in the movie there were shootings, fights, explosions, and a character was even tortured at one point. Several people ended up dead and the main characters sustained many injuries. It did seem like a few of them got up and kept going after injuries that should have killed them. Not everything that happened in the movie was realistic, but that didn’t bother me. There was violence in most of the scenes with action. The action did keep the plot moving and keep things interesting, but the movie might be too violent for some people. This is not a movie for children of any age to see. In addition to all of the violence, there was a lot of swearing used by most of the characters. The word that rhymes with luck, and several variations of that word, were used repeatedly. People that are offended by a lot of swearing probably shouldn’t bother watching this movie. An edited version that cut out the swearing and toned down the violence some has been on television. There were a few small moments that added a little bit of humor and lightened the mood briefly.

Samantha was involved with a man named Hal, but she didn’t seem to be a sexual person. She did tend to dress in loose clothing that completly covered her and made her look a bit frumpy. Once her memory started to return, Samantha started to act and dress differently. She wore more form fitting clothes that showed off her figure and she acted more sexual. Samantha was wearing only her underwear in one scene, and right after that, she was shown naked in the shower, though not from the front. Samuel L. Jackson also showed off a lot of skin in one scene. There were some sexual conversations and situations in the movie, but no actual sex scenes.

Samantha was a fairly complicated character mostly because of her amnesia. She had a quiet life and was content, though she did want to know about her past. Once her memory started to return, she started acting very differently as Charley started trying to reemerge. Geena Davis was very good in the part and created an extremely strong female character. This is the first action movie I remember seeing that had a woman as the man character. She was the toughest character in the movie and ended up saving men more than once. Samantha was really like two different characters, complete with different looks, and Davis was completly convincing as both. It was clear when Charley was taking over just by the look on her face. This was one of the best performances I’ve seen Geena Davis given. Mitch wasn’t as complicated a character, but he ended up being just as important to the movie. He wasn’t above bending some laws to get things done. Mitch wore some interesting looking outfits. Samuel L. Jackson was very good in the part. Jackson has been in several popular movies, including the three prequel Star Wars movies. Caitlin was only in a few scenes, but she did play an important role in one part of the movie. Yvonne Zima was good in the part. Brian Cox, who has been in X2: X-Men United, Manhunter, and the Bourne movies had a small part as someone connected to Samantha’s past.

CAST

Tom Amandes - Hal
Craig Bierko - Timothy
Brian Cox - Dr. Nathan Waldman
Geena Davis - Samantha Caine/Charley
Samuel L. Jackson - Mitch Henessey
Yvonne Zima - Caitlin

Renny Harlin - Director

The DVD for The Long Kiss Goodnight has both the full screen and widescreen versions of the movie. One version is one each side of the disc, so if you prefer one over the other you need to check closely when putting the DVD in. The DVD also includes the theatrical trailer and background information on the cast. The movie was 120 minutes long and rated R.

The Long Kiss Goodnight was a very violent movie, but it was entertaining. I really enjoyed it, though some people will feel it is too violent. Fans of Geena Davis or Samuel L. Jackson may also like it. Anyone in the mood for a movie featuring a strong woman character should check this movie out.

Related Reviews
The Bourne Identity ~ The Bourne Supremacy ~ Manhunter ~ X2: X-Men United ~ S.W.A.T. ~ Amos & Andrew ~ Twisted ~ No Good Deed ~ The Incredibles ~ Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace ~ Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones ~ Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith ~



Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age