Kill Bill: Volume 1 Review
by Josh Gilchrist (joshgilch AT aol DOT com)October 16th, 2003
Josh Gilchrist's review of "Kill Bill: Volume One" * * * 1/2 out of * * * *
Quentin Tarantino is one sadistic bastard. No one will dispute that fact. He also happens to be brilliant. Many fans of cinema would never think of disputing that. In an era where every filmmaker from Soderbergh to Linklater and Coen are busy selling out, Tarantino is busy giving audiences what they really want-anything that pops into his twisted head. I think it's fair to say that the man enjoys shocking every sense out of an audience with an onslaught of violence and language. He gave us "Reservoir Dogs" and its 254 utterances of
the f-word. Say what you will about his lack of restraint, but his gift for storytelling and humor is unmatchable. I remember in the fall of 1994, as a senior in high school, I desperately wanted to write up a review of "Pulp Fiction." The answer from my journalism instructor was a profound "No, no, no,"
given the subject matter. My English class then had a discussion on what may be
Tarantino's most admirable quality; his sense of humor. My teacher went into detail Quentin's ability to show something so violently horrific and then make it into a comic routine.
There are plenty of these moments during his latest foray into cinematic art, "Kill Bill: Volume One." Most notable is a scene where O-Ren Ishii (played with
full smirk and rage by Lucy Lui), after taking over the Japanese Mafia, punishes a criticizer by beheading him. Blood squirts up ten feet high and the men in the room are stunned. Now, this would only be funny if you're sick in the head, and there was a select few in the audience who laughed at the site of
blood like they were watching some comedy routine at Yuk Yuks. The humor in the
scene comes when Lui, infuriated, lifts up the severed head and warns the rest of the men in the room what will happen if they disobey her. No, doesn't sound funny on paper but when you see the absurdity of it, and the reactions, it's priceless, allowing the whole audience a chance to release guffaws.
One could even make the argument that "Kill Bill" is Tarantino's most consistently funny outing yet. Ever the pop culture whore, he unleashes a number of homage's during the films 96 minutes. The very first image is a quote
directly from "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" reading 'Revenge is a dish best
served cold." The most obvious link is between "Bill" and the Kung-Fu films of the 60's and 70's. There's hardly any gunplay in the film but the sword play is
extraordinary. Fight choreography is something new to Tarantino, yet he uses it
like it's a hidden talent he's been keeping from us all along. Compare the fight sequences in this film to the bland fight sequences that littered this summer's "Matrix Reloaded," and you'll finally realize that it's not the CGi but the style and grace that count. That doesn't mean that "Bill" does not have
its share of expensive sets and visuals. Before the film was cut into two volumes, ("Volume Two" comes out this February) it had a budget of higher than an indie film should, around 55 million. It could be considered the most expensive art film ever made.
But can this film be considered an art-film? The name Tarantino is synonymous with quirky and indie. Independent films used to be synonymous with low budgets
and, more often, intimacy over flashy excess. The line between independent cinema and Hollywood is forever being clouded. Myself, I still consider Tarantino cutting edge and independent in a sense that he still seems to be in control of his product. Although, Miramax chair Harvey Weinstein was the one who convinced Quentin that "Kill Bill" would work better as two films instead of a three hour epic. Two 90 minute films will make more money than one three hour plus film. What suffers is the film's balance and synergy.
Much of this first volume contains Tarantino's most original, if less character
driven work. His past films were filled with interesting personalities conflicting with each other. They are the definition of ensemble. What makes "Bill" different is that it only has one central character, a nameless woman known only by the names The Bride and, her past codename with the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, Black Mamba (Uma Thurman). There is a series of excellent villains but they are more reflections of Mamba's feelings than actual beings. Even the heroine's background is concealed from the audience except some key points. I've heard plenty of complaints about this film not being more character driven, but that's not what Tarantino went after. Kill Bill is supposed to be as dense but intriguing as all of the Kung-Fu films that inspired it. This was intended to be a three hour action fest so there's a lot of plot which was cut out to please Miramax. It never feels empty though because it follows such a wonderful setup filled with just the right amount of insanity. Plus, he has an angel playing the lead
As a character only known only as The Bride, Uma Thurman is given the chance to
act like the ultimate warrior; the intensity almost sweating out of her. She's the extreme of the determined female population which keeps getting larger each
day. She has a good natured and confident look, the type of woman every man would immediately be drawn to if she entered a single's bar. The wrath she carries inside has a horrible beginning. After wanting to leave the Squad to get married and start a family, her entire wedding party is taken out on the day of her wedding. The assassins are members of her former team, Vernita Green
(Vivica A. Fox), O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu), Elle Driver (Daryl Hannah), Budd (Michael Madsen) and of Bill (David Carradine). The opening shot is of Black Mamba, pregnant and beaten to a pulp, with Bill about to leave her for dead. It's a haunting scene which Tarantino films in black and white. We don't even see Bill, there's not sight of him throughout the entire film. We do hear his voice, questioning a barely surviving heroine, "Do you find me sadistic?" He then adds "There is nothing sadistic in my actions… This is me at my most masochistic." This scene is filmed in black and white with only Uma's defeated look in the frame. We see can see Bill's hands as he wipes blood from her face with a handkerchief labeled simply "Bill." Carradine's voice is perfect for a role like this, giving the character life even if we can't see him, a surreal quality.
Their attempt to kill her fails, and she goes into a four year coma. This may demonstrate most universal message. Italian political philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli once said "If an injury has to be done to a man it should be so severe that his vengeance need not be feared." With her complete memory still intact, our heroine sets out on a journey of cold-hearted revenge. She becomes more focused after training and help from Hattori Hanzo (Sonny Chiba), a retired warrior and trainer who designs the ultimate sword for her. This first volume gives us little insight on what The Bride was like before her fateful wedding day. There's that occasional smile and sparkle in her eye, yet it's obvious she's concentrating only on this mission. She's in a trance. She's Charles Bronson's character in "Death Wish" with long blonde hair and a size B bra.
"Kill Bill" is a more satirical stab at the Kung Fu legacy and the art of revenge-both things Tarantino knows a lot about. He also knows about casting. Giving Thurman, who here is more gritty than she has ever been, the lead allowed her to find that one vehicle that puts her in the spotlight, instead of
sharing it with bigger characters. She's no longer the wallflower either. With the exception of her dreadful work as Emma Peel in "The Avengers" and Poison Ivy in "Batman and Robin," Thurman has never been the fighting type. This is also, amazingly, her first major lead film role since 1995's "Even Cowgirls Get
the Blues." She's a remarkable presence but I believe critics had a right to question whether she was fit for a role as gritty as this. She still is making love to the camera, but it's the love of a rough and confident lover. Tarantino
holds nothing back when making her look grungy. After the film's final epic battle, one where she defeats 90 plus Japanese warriors and one Chinese Lucy Lui all by herself, the sleek yellow bike suit she just purchased for the occasion is now soaked in blood. Most of the grit though is inside of The Bride. It's a devastatingly hurt and honestly open character to work with. As her character first awakes from her coma and feels her belly, watch the breakdown that Thurman presents. It's a mother realizing her baby died in the womb four years after the fact. Curling up in a ball, her tears never seem fake
and Thurman captures the audience. It's the type of performance that breaks down the emotional barriers that often keep an audience at a distance. I've never seen Thurman this vulnerable onscreen before, and it moved me as well.
The villains do not get enough screen time in "Volume One" so we'll have to wait until "Volume Two" to see Michael Madsen get violent, Daryl Hannah strutting her stuff and David Carradine to finally showing his face. There are basically three featured villains in "Volume One" and what each looks more like
a model than an assassin. The Bride first visits Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox) and they go at it in Green's house, right as her four year old daughter is arriving home from school. This is a prime example of Tarantino's knack for making these awkward situations even more awkward. He also makes the villains just as likeable to watch as the hero. The audience may even be upset when one of his baddies bites the dust since their presence will be missed. Never fear, Quentin will just bring in another one in.
Lucy Lui's O-Ren Ishii is an ideal choice for The Bride's main adversary in the
film. When her character addresses the room you believe her intensity. Her confident voice brings you in. And the bitter diatribes she spouts off when she's had enough could make even the most violent man quiver. Lui's beauty accentuates her ruling nature; she's got the look of a pussy cat but will fool you with the roar of a lion. There's even a very inventive anime telling the back story of O-Ren; we can only hope there is something similar to explain the
ones that are left for "Volume Two." The showdown between our heroine and O-Ren is only logical. The two actresses work great together, thanks mostly to Quentin's script which gives them some very entertaining verbal sparring towards the end. After The Bride has defeated most of the obstacles put in front of her, O-Ren brings in more and says with a condescending tone "You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" The Bride throws on a smirk and replies ""You know... for a second, there? Yeah. I kinda did." I don't think I've anticipated a one on one showdown more since I was three and anxiously awaited Skywalker to finally face Vader in "Empire Strikes Back." Leave it up to Tarantino to pick the best setting for the Bride vs. O-Ren match. It's a ceremonial garden with soft snow gracing the ground. A heavenly image that's about to get ugly. It's a very intricate and beautifully fought match between these ladies; a ballet with an edge as sharp as their Samurai swords.
Adding more beauty to the villainous madness is French actress Julie Dreyfus playing O-Ren's high-priced lawyer and best friend. Even though she's evil, she
carries herself like a Twenty First Century Audrey Hepburn, and has the distinct looks to back it up. The type of beauty that makes the eye wander straight to her when she's in the frame. Her character is also given the most arc. By the end of the film, she's not the cool and calculated person she was only moments earlier. She's lost and helpless, and the audience buys it because
we can see her pain and she doesn't even have to utter a word to remind us.
"Kill Bill" is more than likely the most violent film in American history, and a Japanese cut is apparently even more vicious. That's going to turn off many viewers but its typical Tarantino. It's not like this is brought to us from the
eye of Ron Howard. I pity the audience who might be clueless of Quentin's fascination with the obscene but, with his hyped reputation; I can't see that happening too often. The difference between the violence in this film and his earlier works is that it seems more glorified here. When Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) slices off the ear of a cop in "Reservoir Dogs" we're horrified at the visual but we know that even Tarantino doesn't agree. With "Kill Bill," he's using the glorified violence found in the Kung Fu and Western genres as a joke,
even if it is in excess. I was disgusted on more than one occasion but to let that get in the way of the films inventive and lively style would be a shame. This is the ultimate revenge fantasy. Quentin also describes it as a feminist statement. There's no better way to make this statement than to develop some of
the juiciest female roles in a long time. The director's other films have been male dominated, even sexist. When the film flirts with sexism with a hospital worker doing some pimping on the side and allowing a creep to have sex with what they believe is a comatose Thurman, she makes them pay. Kind of reminds you of Helen Reddy's "I am Woman, Hear Me Roar," only the Bride's roar is harsher than anyone expects.
Speaking of music, Tarantino once again puts together an iconic soundtrack filled with just the right old standards and lost classics. Over the opening credits we hear Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang," which is a perfect setup for the rest of the film. The before mentioned massive fight sequence has O-Ren sending
her Crazy 88 Fighters after Bride. Soon, 88 Japanese fighters storm into the room, all wearing masks that Kato would wear in Green Hornet. The music he uses
here is simply the Green Hornet theme. As the fight proceeds, the music switches to female pop to accent the feminist tone.
Tarantino has been able to work well with small budgets, yet "Kill Bill" is his
most costly and ambitious work to date. It's often the case that when too much ambition goes into a project, the end result isn't top notch. There's some of that going on with this film since I feel that this outing is more Tarantino's baby than anyone else's. This might be film which Tarantino has always dreamed of making. There are no real missed opportunities in the film, just a few less than spectacular ones. Overall, everything still manages comes together to form
one of the most exhilarating experiences of the year. Credit Tarantino's quirky
nature and love of cinema for making this happen. Some people are turned off by
Tarantino, saying that he's doing nothing more than taking from other films and
areas of pop culture. There was even a even a short film made by filmmaker Mike
White tiled "Who Do You Think You're Fooling" where he charges Tarantino with directly copying a 1987 Hong Kong film titled "City On Fire" when he made "Reservoir Dogs." White then made a second short film titled "You're Still Not Fooling Anyone," where he charges Tarantino with taking from various films to make "Pulp Fiction." To me, these reports seem to be coming from some hack who is jealous. Tarantino was working as a clerk at a video store before he hit it big and that set off a whole generation of video geeks who now want to make their own films. To say that Tarantino is not fooling anyone is an absurd statement considering the accolades, acclaim and his popularity. What Tarantino
needs to be credited with is reviving a lost art of storytelling and character that was not only present in the 70's. This type of filmmaking was prominent throughout the early years of Hollywood, although without the obvious obscenities thanks to the Hays Code and America's fascination with the "ideal" yet faulty society. Tarantino's work is no necessarily in the category of Film Noir. Author Nicholas Christopher pointed this out in his profile on Film Noir titled "Somewhere in the Night: Film Noir and the American City." Quentin's films deal with seedy characters and even reference other films in the Noir genre. "Reservoir Dogs" clearly references Stanley Kubrick's "The Killing" while "Pulp Fiction" has tracings of "Kiss Me Deadly" and "Point Blank," but these are just references. What Tarantino does so fascinatingly is construct opuses around this by adding intelligent dialogue and compelling moments on the
screen. If anything, credit him for introducing a whole new generation to the power of the cinematic arts. I can't think of any other director who has had as
much impact on film lovers in my generation.
There is a certain rush of excitement that comes from viewing a film like "Kill
Bill": when the film ends abruptly. It's a minor letdown that will be satisfied
when "Volume Two" arrives. The full 200 + page screenplay is online as we speak
and I'm tempted to take a peek at it. I feel like my feelings are reverting back to when I was a young child waiting on Christmas Eve. There was a combination of anxiety and dread. I thought I knew what awaited me when I opened the presents the next morning, but past history made me doubt. It didn't
help matters that I knew some kids that got to open their gifts on Christmas Eve instead of having to wait until morning. At this point, I know I can find out the ending to "Kill Bill," but I'm trying to use a little restraint here. Hopefully, the final payoff with be worth the excruciation of waiting.
More on 'Kill Bill: Volume 1'...
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