Hi, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab...
The fact that all these reviews of all these cool titles are finally pouring in is fun. There’s a lot of great stuff coming out right now, no matter where you are. Yes, if you’re in England, you’re probably pissed about HELLBOY, but you guys have SHAUN OF THE DEAD right now. If you’re not somewhere that KILL BILL VOL. 2 is about to open, then I pity you, because it’s pretty much as incredible an experience as you can have at the theater right now. Here are a few more reactions to it...
Heads up, Head Geek.
SPYder, here.
Whilst tidying up around the lair, I stumbled upon a pair of passes to a screening of KILL BILL VOLUME 2, with a curious note attached signed simply, "B." Apparently, someone out there decided I had been a good little arachnid and deserved a sneak peek at the conclusion of the Bride's rampage to kill Bill. This was a welcome change from last fall when yours truly was snubbed at a few screenings of Volume 1. I notice you've run one review of Volume 2 already, and now offer one of my own.
For those that don't know, have been hiding under a rock, or missed the earlier review, KILL BILL VOL. 2 is... well, the second part of KILL BILL VOL. 1. Quentin "I built Miramax" Tarantino had carte blanche in making his fourth film, and shot so much stuff that it was decided to release the story as two films. Volume 1 opened last October, Volume 2 opens April 16 (next Friday). As I understand it, Volume 1 comes out on video next Tuesday, just in time for those who missed it to catch up before seeing Volume 2.
The story of KILL BILL involves a nameless, mysterious, and rather pregnant Bride (Uma Thurman) who is gunned down on her wedding day in a now-infamous massacre. Shot and left for dead, she awakens years later from a coma and begins her quest for vengeance against her former boss, Bill (David Carradine). Oh, she also happens to be one of the most deadly assassins on the planet, and so are all the former co-workers she has to get through to get to Bill (the master assassin). As you might guess, since this story is told in two installments, Bill isn't dead by the end of the first movie which means that there is unfinished business in KILL BILL VOLUME 2.
KILL BILL VOLUME 1 was a fun ride through Quentin's world of fancy; it includes everything from animé and samurai flicks to bad-ass chick fights to really annoying 70's TV music cues. The action was fast, furious, and very stylized. The entire movie was rather stylized, including a soundtrack that drew from a variety of eras (with a heavy nod to the '70s that Quentin often seems stuck in) and genres (rock, sweeping scores, etc). One frequent criticism of the first movie was that it seemed to champion style over substance. It looked pretty cool, but lacked a real depth of character. Don't get me wrong, Q spent a ton of time on characters, especially in building up just why these people are such bad-asses (I'm thinking primarily of the amount of time spent on O-Ren). As I wasn't expecting more than coolness and rockin' fights, I enjoyed the first movie.
I also enjoyed KILL BILL VOLUME 2, but for largely different reasons. Whereas the first film was all style and little substance, Volume 2 shows us quite a bit more of the why and hows of the Bride, her relationship with Bill, and why things went the way they did between the two of them. We find out what happened to her child (hinted at in KILL BILL VOL. 1). We even learn the Bride's real name (bleeped out in the first movie).
The story of KILL BILL VOLUME 2, it's about what you might expect. The Bride is still on the warpath, having crossed off Vernita (Vivica A. Fox) and O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu) from her list in Volume 1. This time around it's Elle (Daryl Hannah, who looks surprisingly hot for a chick with an eye-patch), Budd (Michael Madsen), and the eponymous Bill himself. Armed with her Hattori Hanzo sword the Bride continues her swath of vengeance, which culminate in a few cool fights (memorable stuff with Elle) and some decent character moments. As one might expect, with a title like KILL BILL, you kind of go into it with some expectation of how it might end. I thought it worked fairly well, all in all.
The action sequences in KILL BILL VOLUME 1 generated a lot of talk. There is action in KILL BILL VOLUME 2, and it is pretty cool stuff. There isn't as much of it, though, and I'm not sure if that's good or bad. The runtime on what I saw was just about 2 hours, and most of felt like it was dialogue. That's something that Q is known for, and it was on par with his other work. I'm still on the fence as to whether there was too much of it or not; some of it bordered on self-indulgent, but I'm not sure what I'd have taken out. Part of me wanted the faster pace of the first picture, but at the same time I appreciated the fact that there was more real character development this time around. One could argue that the Bride's flashback training sequence with Pai Mei could have been trimmed a bit, and I suppose so, but it felt like Q's homage to the kung-fu flicks that must have been the mainstay of his childhood. Either way, Gordon Liu is perfect as the quintessential sifu.
In the end, I guess the best way to describe KILL BILL VOLUME 2 is to say that it's the conclusion of the same story, but it's a different type of movie. I think it will be really interesting when both volumes come out on DVD to watch the two back to back. It will also be rather interesting to see how KILL BILL VOLUME 2 fares in the box office, since it's not quite the same ride as the first movie, and a little slower than some action junkies might expect. If you're hoping for more depth to the character of the Bride and elaboration on her relationship with Bill, though, it's worth it.
-- SPYder, out.
And another...
The start of a new baseball season had put me in a mood for violent retribution, so I thought I'd take in Kill Bill volume 2. And to honor the gradually decaying pastime of my youth, I will continue the metaphor into the forthcoming "blurb friendly" paragraph of the above-mentioned movie that took place Saturday last in the land of free movies, Los Angeles California.
The clean up hitter of "semi-independent geek cinema" Quentin Tarantino has hit two doubles off the outfield wall with Kill Bill volume One and Two. However, the combined distance of the two shots equals a mammoth homerun or "Ruthian" proportions. Or at least Barry Bonds on "roids". If only their had been no salary cap. Now that the quote for the "Calendar" section is taken care of, I will dispense with overall impressions and reflections. The particulars I'll leave to you to discover.
Kill Bill volume 2 is much closer to a traditional Quentin Tarantino movie than its predecessor. This means if you're a fan of conversationally ironic dialogue followed by sudden brutal bursts of violence as opposed to the more sustained blood letting of volume 1, well prepare to be happy. But worry not fans of red oozing liquid and creative torture, this is a revenge movie from the creator "getting Medieval on yo ass" and when the violence comes, it comes fast, hard, and "gross" enough to satisfy even the most sadistic in the audience. .
The performances are top notch as you've come to expect from a Tarentino film. Uma Thurman is the queen of tearful rage, being both believable as a venerable women and deadly assassin, while still making you care for a person you really shouldn't. I especially liked the way she emotionally reacts the next morning, after her revenge is realized. She consistently makes unexpected yet believable choices, which for me is the most you can ask for from any performer. I can't think of any one actress who could have played the part as well.
The other standout performance to me was the work of Michael Madson as Bill's brother "Budd". Though he may look like an out of shape, hillbilly bouncer from Barstow, (and he is) he's still Bill's brother, and as dangerous as that implies. He's a lying, cheating, murdering bastard, and also the only character in the movie that feels any remorse for his past deeds. "wake e' wake e' eggs and bace' A career best so far.
Another highlight is Gorden Lui as Master Pai Mei, the "yoda" of the movie, all be it with a much shorter temper.
And of course…Bill. David Caradinne is excellent as the snake charmer, doing all you would expect with the part, though I have to confess, I wish the deleted Michael Jai White scene had stayed. I needed a sense of Bill's psychical skills, especially when dealing with a women who took down an entire gang of Samurai sword welding members of the Tokyo Mafia. Hopefully this scene will be included when one movie is cut together.
Tarantino's filmmaking is so assured that he allows you to see clearly that had "the Bride's" little strip not turned blue, she would have been happy to continue to invade others wedding chapels and creating her own blood splattered brides. Her assassination would have been poetic justice to many. She is not a nice person. We know it. She knows it. And Bill certainly knows it. In this way the Bride seems to be an extension of Tarantino's "Jules" character from Pulp Fiction. Were Marcelis Wallis turned on the reformed Jules trying to leave his organization, I think we could expect a similar movie. No samurai swords, but think of the gospel quotes and shotguns.
My one regret about this true masterpiece of big budget B movie cinema is that this was not released as one film. I can sit through three hours plus of movie and stay relatively focused and do so many times every November and December. Trust me, three and a half hours of this movie is going to go by a lot quicker than two and three quarters of Cold Mountain. You cut the wrong movie in two Harvey.
Now, to complete this review by beating the dead horse that is the baseball metaphor, get on down to your local Stadium, grab a bag of peanuts and a cold brew and see it on the biggest JumboTron you can find. And don't forget to sneak in a battery to bounce off the opposing team's skull, at the appropriate time of course.
With Resevoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, the tremendously under appreciated Jackie Brown, and Now Kill Bill (One Movie!!) Tarantino is batting four for four.
From the desk of:
President Murkin Muffley
Thanks, guys. I agree. It’s all that and more.
"Moriarty" out.
