Ever watch a movie in a theater and leave being completely unsure about what you've just seen? You get into the car and just kind of stare blankly at the dash, baffled by what just unfolded. "Kill Bill Vol. 1" was one of those movies except for the fact that I stared at my TV screen after watching the DVD. I was confused, unsure if what I had just seen was entertaining. "Kill Bill Vol. 2" solved my quandary.
The Bride (Uma Thurman), having finished off two people from her "list," immediately begins seeking vengeance on the final three people who tried murdering her during a wedding rehearsal. Budd (Michael Madsen), Elle (Daryl Hannah), and of course Bill himself (David Carradine), prepare for the wrath of the Bride. What she doesn't know is that her daughter is actually alive and in the hands of Bill.
Tarantino's "Reservoir Dogs" opens with an ingenious segment in which all of the films main characters are finishing off a meal. The segment leads into a highly entertaining argument about tipping the waitress. Though it has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the film, this single scene enables viewers to get a feel for each of the characters in brilliant fashion. The snappy and witty dialogue the director is famous for tries to be transferred into this second chapter of the "Kill Bill" saga. One has to wonder what went wrong.
This is a film so wildly different from the first you have to wonder how they can be connected (they are technically the same movie, simply split into two parts). Where the first edition was kinetic, fast, and full of energy, this second part is dull, lifeless, and lacks any real tension. You would have to be an idiot not to figure out that Bill would meet his demise by the end of the film.
The plot of the entire saga is as paper-thin as an ancient 8-bit video game: "You're out for revenge against those that betrayed you! Fight off the 5 bosses and give them what they deserve!" Of course, that's really not what's important here. Tarantino is as gifted as they come with a camera and it shows here. Even if you know nothing about the way a film is made, you will still appreciate some of the shots produced here. The acting is also great, particularly David Carradine. The problem here is that the maddening pace and dialogue just don't work.
Article comments
1 - devon
matt
through this post it is importand to remember that kill bill is one movie.
when i first rented kill bill volume 1 i thought i knew what i was in for, from the previews and such. i was wrong. the same thing happened when i rented kill bill v.2. i (like you i think) expected to see kill bill 2 not the second half of kill bill.
kill bill v.1 was action for no real reason. v.2 is the reason for the action.
i liked how the movie never asked you to believe that the bride would die. and the movie never asks you to care if she does die. actually she should die, she is no better than the people she wonts to kill. but, O, right she was trying to start a new life away from all the killing with new friends and a new lover. but, wait, what do ya know? so was the first women she wiped off her list.
in v.1 you don't really know anything about any of the characters, in v.2 each secen tells you something about some character.
some people will find it boring though. it's not the same kind of movie as you would expect from seeing v.1.
there is humor in it though ever if it isn't funny. like how bill explains his actions at the wedding rehesal as the "Consequences to breaking the hart of a murderious bastard" if you think about it the whole movie is based on the consequences to breaking the hart of a murderious bitch.
kill bill has a lot more story in than most people think.
p.s. did any one else like budd? i found he was the only character i cared about and the supence around him was unbearable.