Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang starts off as a film within a film and deviates far away into one of the coolest films you probably didn’t see last year.

Harry Lockhart (Robert Downey Jr.) is a petty thief who lands into a movie casting call in the midst of heat from playing cops and robbers. He is paired with ‘Gay’ Perry Van Shrike (Val Kilmer), a (you-guessed-it) homosexual private investigator on how to act like a P.I. Harry crosses paths with a damsel in his distant past, Harmony Lane (Michelle Monaghan) now a struggling actress, and the three of them get locked in a double murder mystery with more plot twists and turns than tilt-a-whirl and the less one knows, the better it plays.

The director and writer of the film, Shane Black creates a tongue and cheek film that worships the crime novels of Raymond Chandler complete with nods and winks to the crowd. The chapters within the film are even taken from Chandler’s novels while a series of fictitious novels play an important role. Playing to the clichés and dark corners of a pulp book, KKBB is filled with jazzy swings, a dead-end romance, planted evidence, double-cross corpses and lots of cigarette smoke. Then there’s the dialogue sounding so sweet, so rare. Screenplay students take note: Study this film.

Every character likes to talk, talk and talk. They talk fast, they talk dirty and they talk often. But the machine gun barrage of dialogue keeps the thick plot moving quickly. Don’t get left behind and beware of the hard laugh cocktails at each corner. Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer click, working off of each other’s timing and delivery. And both have this smooth chemistry with the sexy Michelle Monaghan who does her best to keep up with the boys.

Downey narrates throughout the film, addressing the viewing audience and egging us to keep up. His character is the vehicle and all three actors are fighting for the wheel. Harry is not only despicable; he’s loveable too. Most importantly from the very opening of the film, Downey grabs us and straps us in. Kilmer steals every scene and makes us scream, “Why is there not more work for this guy?” This was Kilmer’s only project in 2005, and now he’s slated for nine projects this year. Coincidence? No.

I don’t know if the studios would agree, but Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang is the type of film that begs for a sequel but only if Kilmer, Downey and Black are involved again. It’s not everyday this kind of screenplay and execution sees fruition and it’s doubtful I’m alone in my thoughts.

Presentation: B+

The disc loads with a trailer for V for Vendetta, a smart promotion considering Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang did have an earlier beginning as a spy comic book for CrossGen comics written by Tony Bedard. The menus are not as slick as the incredible opening credits (which deserves an award) but there is a wee bit of animation and clips of the movie flashing on a silhouetted billboard and the cursor is a lipstick kiss. The cover image of the amaray keep case is the very hip movie poster.

Audio/Video A- / A+

The center speaker will get a major workout with all of the talking in this movie but at the bursts of action, the 5.1 Dobly Digital places you at the scene. A French 5.1 Dolby Digital track and a Spanish Stereo track are also available. Subtitles are available in English, French and Spanish.

Look no further than the second chapter to see a sample of the many visual riches in this film. Michael Barrett is a master of lighting and cinematography so the vibrant hues just pop on the screen. The warm flesh tones are clear and nothing gets lost in the numerous night scenes. There’s no doubt that the larger the screen this is viewed on, the better the experience.

Special Features: A-

KKBB is lean with extras but there’s not an ounce of fat. The commentary with Val Kilmer, Robert Downey Jr. and Shane Black is highly entertaining with anecdotes, jokes and the three of them just having fun. You get the impression that making the film was one big party. Kilmer mentions a fake contest whereby he would give some prize on his website www.valkilmer.org at the first person to give an exact count of namedrops in the commentary. Honestly, this track should get as many repeat plays as the feature. A Gag Reel (4:18) full of goofs and giggles on the set show that it’s hard to keep a straight face with Kilmer in the scene. And closing the extras is the Theatrical Trailer (2:15), which shows a little too much of the best parts of the film for my liking. Amusingly I find it odd the movie music recycled in trailers and for KKBB, music from both Fight Club and Kill Bill

Overall: A

Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang is officially my favorite DVD to come out in some time. $4 million domestic gross did not do this film justice. It’s a great movie with fun extras and one that should find its core audience on DVD or on Video on Demand. Not every film deserves to be a blind buy but a penny won’t be wasted on this slick, super-cool flick full of style and sass. Mavens of modern noir film and comics, worn-out pulp fiction novels, and darting dialogue should hunt this disc down and wear out the DVD player. Buy Buy, Now Now.