No one would claim that director Lance Daly delivers an Emerald Isle version of "The Spirit of the Beehive," though this scrappy film does have a knack for capturing the elation and confusion of late childhood in their ragged glory.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
Captivating and poignant portayal of life on the edge for the disregarded of our societies.
The movie's ending may be less satisfying than that of "Slumdog Millionaire"--a film you can love for its infectiously wishful exuberance, but never fully believe in--but Kisses is truer to the tragedy of a generation of children whom we have utterly failed. If they're anything like Kylie and Dylan, they'll be back to let us know.
Los Angeles Times by Kenneth Turan
Small though it is, Kisses evokes all kinds of feelings, and that is no small thing from a film of any size.
Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum
A superior lyrical ragamuffin Irish drama.
Slight but engaging, and considerably energized by its two young leads, Daly's Kisses gives several fresh spins to one of Irish cinema's most common recent subjects: troubled working-class children on the lam.
Kisses is dreary to a fault. It looks fantastic, with its shadowy Dublin alleys illuminated by the heroes' light-up Heelys. But the writing doesn't have that same glow.
The Hollywood Reporter by Ray Bennett
By keeping his (Daly) focus on the two remarkable youngsters without an ounce of sentimentality he succeeds in making something true and satisfying.
The kids make stunning debuts, but their accents are thicker than porridge, rendering a good 90 percent of the dialogue so unintelligible that it might as well be in Swahili. Some subtitles are provided out of necessity, but not enough.
Boxoffice Magazine by Steve Ramos
The sweetest runaways you'll ever meet are pre-teens Kylie Lawless (Kelly O'Neill) and Dylan Dunne (Shane Curry).