A Kiss Before Dying (1991 film)
A Kiss Before Dying is a 1991 American romantic thriller film directed by James Dearden, and based on Ira Levin's 1953 novel of the same name, which won the 1954 Edgar Award for Best First Novel.Returning downstairs, and after mailing a letter in the lobby, he calmly walks past Dorothy's shattered body as a crowd gathers.Jonathan returns to his working-class home in Pittsburgh with clippings about the Carlsson family, particularly the suicides of Thor's wife and son.Promising his mother to make something of his life, Jonathan hitchhikes to New York, accepting a ride from Jay Faraday, a bohemian drifter whose parents died on Korean Air Lines Flight 007.At a bar with Ellen, Jay is recognized as Jonathan Corliss by an acquaintance from Philadelphia but insists he is mistaken, eventually hitting him.His mother leaves, and Ellen sneaks inside to search Jonathan's room, finding his suitcase of clippings about her family and her sister's lighter.They approached him several times for the role, and kept increasing their offers, but he didn't feel a connection to the material and felt he was unsuitable to play the part, so he repeatedly turned it down and Matt Dillon was then cast.Bridget Fonda was originally cast, but quit the production due to scheduling conflicts and Sean Young signed on to replace her.He possesses the secret of not giving too much, of not trying so hard that we're distracted by his performance... [and director] Dearden helps it work because he doesn't press his point.In this film, Corliss meets his end while attempting to kill Ellen after she discovers who he really is; while chasing her down, and for the sake of irony, he is run over by one of her father's trains.