A Kiss Before Dying (1991 film)

A Kiss Before Dying
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJames Dearden
Screenplay byJames Dearden
Based onA Kiss Before Dying
by Ira Levin
Produced byRobert Lawrence
Starring
CinematographyMike Southon
Edited byMichael Bradsell
Music byHoward Shore
Production
companies
Initial Pictures
Kellgate Limited
Distributed byUniversal Pictures (United States)
United International Pictures (United Kingdom)
Release dates
  • 26 April 1991 (1991-04-26) (United States)
  • 14 June 1991 (1991-06-14) (United Kingdom)
Running time
94 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$15 million or £8.1 million
Box office$15.4 million (US)

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 Edgar Award for Best First Novel. The film stars Matt Dillon, Sean Young, Max von Sydow, and Diane Ladd. It follows an ambitious young man (Dillon) who murders his pregnant girlfriend and assumes a false identity to seduce her twin sister, aiming to marry into a wealthy family.

The story was previously adapted into a film of the same name in 1956. The 1991 version was released in the United States on April 26, 1991, and received generally negative reviews from critics.