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The first reviews of the complete KILL BILL saga
Hey folks, Harry here... KILL BILL VOL 2 is unbelievably great. In my opinion, so was VOL 1, but VOL 2 is just astonishingly more satisfying. I'm gonna get to see these back to back very soon, and I can't wait. This is gonna rock so hard! Here ya go...
Hey Harry, long time reader etc…
I just got out of a screening of Kill Bill Volumes 1 and 2 back to back, the only such screening in America to date. I’m not sure what strings were pulled and favors called in, but that makes no difference to me because I just got out of cinema bliss. Kill Bill Vol. 1 keeps on surprising me, and Vol. 2 blew my socks off.
Kill Bill Volume 2 is an incredible film. It’s funny, brutal, and in the end, touching. The scenes between the Bride and Billadd so much depth to both characters, it’s hard to describe. The onscreen chemistry between them really makes this film as great, which is saying a lot considering the strong performances from the supporting cast. The fight between Elle Driver and the Bride is so devastatingly rough it made every single person in the theatre recoil in fascinated horror. The Pei Mei training scene is hilarious and gets better with every beard tug performed by Gordon Liu. There are so many characters that add their 2 cents into the film it’s hard to keep track of them, although there is a very, very cool cameo from an old friend. Great.
The fight scenes in Volume 2 seem much different than in Volume 1. There is no grand, central fight, and when there are fights they tend to be much more gritty and real. The real gem of this volume is the storytelling; the background of the characters are explained and fit very well into the movie as a whole. The film clips along at a nice pace until the Bride starts to pick up on Bill’s trail. No worries though, this slow point only lasts about 5 minutes, and leads into what I think is the best part of the film: the ending. The last twenty minutes or so are just incredible. Here Uma shines her brightest, and the audience can see her move from student to master. This is the best, most touching, and emotional acting of her career. I’d say more but I don’t want to spoil it for anyone interested in this movie, which should be everyone.
This film makes me want to talk and talk and talk about every story point, the fates of the DiVAS, the end of Bill and the future for the Bride. But it’s late and I’d rather not ruin it for all the fans that have to wait until next Friday. Simply put: SEE THIS MOVIE! Skip work, skip class, drop everything and run to the theatres. My only regret about seeing this movie this early is I’m going to have to wait a week and a half to see it again.
Well it’s late and I’ve got class early, so off to bed I go to dream of David Carradine and Uma Thurman.
If you use this, call me the Unibomber.And now for Mr Viking...
Harry,
I just had the pleasure of seeing the first showing of both volume of Kill Bill
tonight. A fundraiser for the film department of UC Santa Barbara, the
screening was set up by the guy in charge of the Santa Barbara Film Festival.
The crowd went nuts, and it was a great atmosphere.To say the least, it was an
epic experience. Warning, there be major spoilers ahead.
Since everybody has seen the first volume already, and reviews have already hit
the web regarding the second volume, I will instead post my thoughts on the
entire, 4 hour + film, the way that I was lucky enough to view it.
The movie really was an epic story, and by the end I was pretty drained. Though
I thought it was odd that the movie slows down to an almost crawling pace near
the end, for me it worked. You can see just how masterful Taratino is with
dialogue when a simple conversation can hold you enthralled, even though the
first two hours were action-heavy and extremely fast. I am not a film student,
nor do I profess to be an expert of film in any major way. However, from my
humble experience, in movies, you tend to want to BUILD UP to a big climax. If
anything, the nature of the story demanded it: the goal is to kill Bill, and
damn if that doesn't imply a showdown of epic proportions.
However, in terms of action and fights, the movie blows its load with the fight
with O'Ren. The rest of the movie, as most of you have heard, is dialogue.
Surprisingly though, this worked wonderfully. Volume 2 was a slow-paced, but
much more engaging movie. It was not shallow, which I thought the first half of
the movie to be. The first volume sets up the Bride as fighting powerhouse, and
she dispatches the villains that are more loosely tied to the events in El
Paso. The second half, though, creates REASON for all remaining characters.
Together, they complement each other perfectly; The Bride gets
the big stuff out of the way, and it is now time for the more personal
confrontations. The second half MAKES it a more personal story, and fixes the
problems that many had with the first. Thanks to Taratino's gift with words,
the film takes a breath and doesn't hurt because of it. The Bride's final
conversation with Bill, for example, is LONG, but it was my favorite part.
I also would just like to say that Carradine is the MAN. This was his movie,
really. Seriously, what a badass.
I have some complaints with the movie, though. First of all, I wish they had
introduced Budd more into the film earlier on. I am not sure if this is a
result of the film being split into two parts (I really don't know the history
behind that)in order to create at least some closure at the end of Volume 1, but
I thought his character was by far more interesting than the
other members of the squad, excluding Bill. He just sorta shows up, and it turns
out he is the most complex viper assassin dude. In my opinion, he got the
shaft. Also, *HUGE SPOILERS*
The introduction of the daughter was so devoid of emotion and poorly done, I
actually got pissed. I can't really explain it very well, but all of a sudden,
the kid is there and The Bride doesn't really seem to be that surprised, just
really happy. WE, the audience, may know that the kid is alive, but The
Bride, who killed a bunch of damn people partly because of the death of her
daughter, didn't. The revelation that the daughter was alive was a great twist,
but the payoff for that twist was pretty weak. It SHOULD have been the
emotional climax of the movie, but it just sorta happened. Booo
But really, in the grand scheme of things, these are pretty petty problems, and
I urge anyone with the chance to see both volumes to do so. Rent the first one,
and go see the second immediately after. It will give you a very good idea of
just how much the first one, as good as it was, fooled us. A very human story,
it, amazingly enough, seems to be the most real out of all of Taratino's
movies.
Anyway, go see Kill Bill.
Mr. Viking. and now - we have Space Pope's look...
Hey Harry.
I caught a Kill Bill double feature at Campbell Hall on the UC Santa Barbara campus tonight. From what the Santa Barbara Film Festival people said, it was one of few - if not the only - back-to-back screenings of Kill Bill, Volumes 1 and 2 in the country. It's too bad, too because watching the two halves together really makes the movie work.
Of course, it rocked. Every question I had from the first movie gets answered, most joyously the one about how Elle Driver lost her eye, but I think a lot of people are going to see Volume 2 when it comes out and feel kind of disappointed. The second half plays way differently than the first - different pacing, different level of violence, different characters for Uma to tangle with, the whole deal. The people I went with kept saying that it was like 'a whole different movie.' Yeah, it was, technically. Even if Quentin didn't intend for it to be in the first place, the two volumes got released separately. It was a whole different movie.
I think each of the film's chapters throughout both volumes has its own distinct feel, and excluding House of Blue Leaves, there's not a significant reduction in the amount of violence from one to the other. Sure, the chapter Elle and I (good pun) doesn't kill of 50-some Yakuza, but talk about brutal.
Anyway, the problem with the two volumes being released so far apart is that by dropping us off on a cliffhanger, Quentin left is drooling for what the second part was going to be like while we were still dazzled by the first part. Since the House of Blue Leaves was the last part we saw, that's what hung in our heads as the lingering image of what Kill Bill was all about. People that have been hyping the second half up are going to be kind of pissy when they realize that there is no House of Blue Leaves. House of Blue Leaves is the movie's violent climax, but not it's emotional climax; that falls in the volume two. The second part, while different, complements the first part perfectly by giving depth to the characters we just started to learn about in volume one (minus Vernita and O-Ren, of course, which is too bad because I would have liked to learn more about them).
A friend of mine saw volume one for the first time at tonight's show, then immediately got to see volume two. Lucky, too, because she didn't have to deal with that blue-ball inducing cliffhanger. She enjoyed the second part a lot, I think, because she also didn't have six months to build up expectations about how volume two would have to blow volume one away in terms of graphic, over-the-top violence. She just enjoyed the two parts as one continuous story full of distinct little subplots.
Those of us who did volume one can't help those built-up expectations, but I think in we keep in mind that volume two is about the characters and not just their body parts, we'll be able to appreciate it.
So that's my deal. I think everyone should be clamoring to find back-to-back double features. It totally improves the viewing experience.
Also, I noticed something about the DiVAS members. So you learn the Bride's name is Beatrix, and Elle refers to her as 'B.' So then there's an L and a B. Then there's O-Ren. She's O. And it doesn't seem like Vernita is a letter, if your remember that her pseudonym is Jeannie Bell, that makes her G. And those letters together spell 'glob.' That's right. Think about it.
Harry, you'd honor me if you call me 'The Space Pope.'Here's the last lucky bum... so jealous, I want to see it like this right now! Here ya go...
hey harry.
i just got back from a screening for kill bill volumes 1 and 2 back-to-back, which i was told was the only one in the country so far, at UCSB. the film studies department working with someone from the sb international film festival got the prints from miramax and screened the films as a fundraiser for the department. it took place in campbell hall on the ucsb campus, fits something like 800 people, and it was, obviously packed. and it was quite awesome.
kill bill vol. 1 im sure eveyrone knows by now, its incredible. kill bill volume 2, while not as well-crafted as the first in my opinion, starts with something good and just gets better and better as time passes. the cruel tutelage of pai mei was incredible, the showdown in the trailer was just kickass, and bill was pretty much perfect, i cant imagine anyone else fitting the character that quentin wrote better than carradine. and thinking about beatty doing it is laughable to say the least.
the only problems i had with the film were that it not only was long, but it felt long. it felt excessive. im not surethe runtime was completely justified by the final product. but if im going to give anyone leniency, its tarantino. so that is a minor issue. then of course was the fact that the best scenes with bill were the ones left out of the movie! i dont know how many have read that leaked script, but some of those scenes would have been dynamite in this movie.
that being said, it was a great time at the cinema, and i cant wait to see it again april 16th.
-geo
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Throwing together a bunch of movie homages does not a make a great film. But I'll see it anyway.
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Apr 08, 2004 2:34:57 PM CDT
Harry, why do you keep ignoring the FF directiing choice of Tim
by terry_1978
I know you're waiting for some reason. Though I've heard it on numerous other sites, I know a talkback would mostly consist of whining about him directing Barbershop and how all the characters are going to be played by black people.
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woot
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I am so stoked to see this movie. Truthfully speaking I think my girlfriend is EVEN more excited. I don't get the whole G*L*O*B thing. I hate to sound ignant but I suppose I am. Any QT will rule all of our geek asses with this I so know. CAN't hardly wait.
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It looks like Princess of Mars won't be happening. Tim Story? Wretched choice. I guess it could have been worse ( Sean Astin ).
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...just came out with a greatest hits package of DVD: MR. BILL'S DISASTERPIECE THEATER. Ohhhhhh Nooooo!!!!!
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Maybe Mr. Tarantino knew what he was doing when he wanted the movie to be just one long movie. That way he could incorporate campyness initially and gradually get more serious and stuff, interesting. Note to Harry or someone you mention about Kill Bill volume 1 dvd being out with almost no extras and stuff, maybe the intention is to not release a volume 2 dvd, but instead release a Kill Bill "The Movie" dvd you know both in one together as intended. The currently extraless dvd would be more for the people to rent before they go see volume 2 I imagine. I'm pretty smart about this kind of stuff too.
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Before the winey bitches start about how kill bill will be a flop ... tarantino steals his shit ... he's not original ... can't tell a good story ... lost his way ... makes more money than me ... to much talking ... not enough talking ... doesn't know how to make a good movie.... well i'd like to say HAAHAHAHHHHAHHHHAH HHA A HHHAAA HAAAA HHHHAAAAA HHHAHA AHAHAHHHHHH HAAAAA HHHHHAAAAAAA HHAAAAHHHAAAAA HHAAAAAA HAAAAA HHHAAAAA HAAAAAAA. Keep up with that funny shit cus i can't stop laughing when i read it. It's great to read shit from idiots that don't know what they are talking about. HAHAHAH HHAHAHAHAHH HAHAHAHAH HAHAHHA HAHHAHA HAHHHHAHHHH HAAAA HAAAA. And really i mean this with all my heart THANK YOU ALL.
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Apr 08, 2004 3:54:18 PM CDT
Kill Bill Vol's 1 & 2: Thursday Night! Cinerama Dome Hollywood!
by utz_world
Get your asses online right now!!!
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Apr 08, 2004 3:55:07 PM CDT
To that person who mentioned the Wayne Brady/Chappelle show thin
by sk909
Holy shit. Did everyone else see that? Just when you thought that show couldn't go any further, they come up with something that smashes your fucking skull in with how funny and out of left-field it is. I don't know what they did to get Wayne Brady to do that, but he was pretty convincing... this dude should be acting. If you can be that nice in his little daytime show and then turn around and act like a complete thug, and I mean, he had me convinced that HE shot 50 cent 9 times and that he's probably gonna do it again just cause he feels like it. Chappelle show is the funniest, most irreverant show on television and he's seriously putting SNL, Mad TV, and pretty much all other comedy shows that claim to be 'dangerous' to shame. I don't know about movies, but he's nailed this format.
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I swear to God, if I hear one more bad Rick James impression in a movie theater as the lights go down, I will murder someone. And that voice - argh! Someone needs to kill him, seriously. He's seriously not funny. Oh, and Kill Bill is gonna rock.
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Apr 08, 2004 4:19:16 PM CDT
Don't blame Chappelle, blame the idiotic fucktards that think th
by terry_1978
That is all.
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That shit has become so old so fast it is amazing. People are saying it on the street to each other and NOW people will say I'm Wayne Brady bitch and etc. What really pissed me off in the first place was that most of the people saying "I'm Rick James bitch", they don't know who Rick James is!!! These people need to be tossed into an active volcano how can you think that shit is funny if you don't know who Rick James is? Idiots are out numbering everyone and if anyone says a Rick James quote or anything in a movie theatre just shut them down by saying it was funny about a month ago, or just beat their stupid ass. Oh yeah Kill Bill Vol. 2 will be so bad ass it should make people shit their pants. My problem is I have to see The Punisher and Kill Bill vol. 2 and only have one free day that weekend. Oh well I have always enjoyed a two movie day
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I loved the first one, it was such an interesting reinvention on the old school, I hope the second one is going to be as sweet!
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...out of a cannon, into the sun. I agree with the guy who said that most people saying that don't know who Rick James is; that pisses me off too. And to the other poster who said to blame the viewers who repeat it -- no. Because they don't "write" or "perform" this supremely unfunny material. It's just not any good. And Condi Rice is a total jackass, just like everyone else in this supremely evil administration.
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...and Quentin Tarentino sucks the loudest. The guy's never had an original idea in his entire life. He makes movies about other movies, period. If only someone in Hollywood had the balls to make a movie about the Tarantino P.R. machine... now THAT would be worth watching.
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1) Dave Chapelle is funny. 2) Condi Rice and her colleagues are all slimeballs 3) Kill Bill v2 will rock
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Apr 08, 2004 8:21:31 PM CDT
Actually, I'm sorry to hear that KB2 gets more serious as it goe
by frankdrebin
And Alexander Payne should've gotten the FF gig.
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Apr 08, 2004 8:34:32 PM CDT
I read a Tarantino Biography and noticed that a film called "The
by pancake
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Apr 08, 2004 9:03:33 PM CDT
Anyone who says Chapelle isn't funny doesn't watch the show.
by fluffyunbound
Or is a cunt. I have spoken.
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...because it sucks. So I guess that makes me a walking cunt then, huh? Y'know, you sound just like Wild Bill Hickok (now there's a series I can get behind).
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Self-knowledge is a gift. You should feel blessed. Now, if Chapelle isn't funny, what show on TV is? Other than South Park and Insomniac, of course. Are you a big SNL fan? Gilmore Girls? Take the skirt off, Johnny.
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I just skimmed the reviews 'cuz I didn't wanna see any spoilers so I don't know if she's in KB2 or not but man I hope so...I recall seeing a photo that was a flashback sequence featuring her and that French chick? Anyhoo, Chiaki Kuriyama roolz...I got callouses on my palm already ;)
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"Fluffy" (hm, that sounds slightly effeminate, enough so that you shouldn't be telling me to take off the skirt that I'm not wearing), I find South Park hilarious. Also Sealab 2021 and the rest of the Williams Street block. Chappelle is just condescending, pandering humor that wasn't funny when it started and isn't funny now. It's poorly written, poorly performed, and like most things of that nature, unfortunately popular. It bugs the crap out of me that it's this popular, because I can shit better comedy than this. And when ignorant suburbanites are shouting "I'm Rick James, bitch" in the hallway of your dorm when you're trying to sleep, and they don't even go to your school or know who Rick James is, well, then you know it's gone too far. I hope Chappelle falls out of an open window and dies. And I hope that death brings back "Firefly", "Farscape", "Angel," and the rest of GOOD cult TV.
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Apr 08, 2004 10:16:21 PM CDT
In a strange way, i could honestly rant on about Scoobie Doo 2 i
by theginger twit
I'm always sceptical of motives when reviews contain words like SEE THIS FILM and all that other crap. If it's good, fine. If it's not so good, fine. But if it's the best thing since chocolate covered breasts then I'm afraid I just don't believe you.
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Apr 08, 2004 10:41:12 PM CDT
FrankBlackRules does indeed rule and other thoughts.
by allmightytallest
I love it when people slam Quentin because it is funny (to me at least). As a Hong Kong cinema fan I'd like to point out all of the movies that those directors stole from. Let's start with Ringo Lam. His film "Wild Search" is Peter Weir's "Witness". Kirk Wong's "Gunmen" is DePalma's "The Untouchables" and as for John Woo, the devestating "Bullet In The Head" is "The Deer Hunter", "The Killer" is Melville's "Le Samurai", and once again to Ringo Lam whose 1992 film "Full Contact" resembles Boorman's "Point Blank" (By the way if one more person slams Woo I'm going to kill someone. How can one director have influenced movies, T.V., and video games and still be considered a hack by fanboys? stupid asses). I enjoyed "Kill Bill Volume 1." and I don't care what anybody else says. I just needed to get that off my chest. Although I believe a point can be made against Quentin and "Resevoir Dogs". Having just seen "City On Fire" recently. He did take certain shots from that film.
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Your reasoning about the box-office is dead-on, IMHO. I could even see it doing about $40 mil, nearly half of which will be the opening weekend. Still, you can't really blame Weinstein for shit - he is, after all, in the movie BUSINESS. Would any exec who isn't a total fuckwit say, "Well, we could make almost twice the cash by splitting it in two, but what about all the poor fans who have to shell out double ..." This whole splitting-it-up scenario worked-out perfectly for Miramax, regardless of the extra money spent on marketing 2 movies instead of 1. ps. I didn't CAPS "business" to be condescending - I was stressing my point. Peace.
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Pretty cool! Doc Oc looks bad ass!
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I mean.. with all the sterile half baked bullshit coming out of hollywood today, and considering the type of films many of the people on this site seem to enjoy, why do so many of you feel the need to bash a filmmaker who has, in effect, used the system to his advantage to deliver exactly the type of movies he and many of you love to watch? See what I'm sayin? Most filmmakers could probably give a shit less how watchable their product is, as long as it keeps the seats full. But Tarantino loves this shit. You can tell from every second of Kill Bill that he is giving us something he believes in. If it isn't your bag then don't go. Simple as that. All this negativity and hate is completely counterproductive to what I assume we can all agree on to be the goal of making films - making art from the heart.
No one is making you like these films. I happened to have loved Vol. 1. It was the most thrilling, kinetic, visceral, and fun experience I've had at the movies since I can't remember when. Vol. 2 looks to hold a similar experience, and I can't wait. If you guys don't show up, that's fine... just means I get the good seats. -
In my yard.
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Mary Jane, Give It To Me Baby, You And I, Dream Maker, Love Gun, She Blew My Mind (69 Times), Bustin' Out (On Funk), Big Time, Ghetto Life, Fire And Desire, Standing On The Top, Hard To Get, Dance Wit' Me, Teardrops, Cold Blooded, 17, You Turn Me On, Glow, Moonchild, Divine Love (So Fine), Starship, Down By Law, Serious Love (Spend The Night), U Bring The Freak Out, Ebony Eyes.
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Thanks for the distinct lack of a spoiler warning before you revealed The Bride's real name. I particularly enjoyed having one of the film's major mysteries spoiled for me just so you could use the word "glob" in a review. You absolute fucking prick. It's not too much to ask to write "SPOILER WARNING" in big fucking letters. Asshole.
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Apr 09, 2004 10:02:57 AM CDT
Enough already Harry, I stop reading after the 3rd review
by lost skeleton
Kill Bill volume 2 is good...but was there any doubt. Too bad for the Punisher, which looks like it is going to get punished on April 16th.
Oh well...Avi still has...
"2" 6/30/04 -
I know...Chappelle is on another level with that show. South Park + Chappelle makes a funny damn hour of television on Wednesday night and I didn't think anything would turn me away from Law and Order.
"2" 6/30/04 -
Right and that is why you are in a DORM ROOM writing in a talkback. Alright buddy, show us better comedy. Seriously -post a script for a sketch or a joke. Oh, you're the joke. Got it.
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From the Associated Press.. see here: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=529&e=2&u=/ap/20040409/ap_en_mo/people_tarantino
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...I'm ignorant because I'm of college age and don't commute to school? That's the dumbest damn thing I've ever heard. Look, accept that I don't find Chappelle funny. It's just not my kind of thing. And on another note, the term "Baby Jones Johnson" is immensley clever. Eat any good books lately?
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...you stupid little putz. I'm in college, 3000 miles away from home. Where the fuck else am I supposed to live? A homeless shelter?
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...because arguing on the Internet is like participating in the Special Olympics. Even if you win -- well, you know the rest.
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How about an apartment? I lived in them all through college. It is waaaay better than the dorms dude!
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That's a valid point, and I would live in one, if the dorms weren't cheaper and easier to find then the apartments in this area.
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