Kill Bill Vol. 2
The Plot:
Continuing the story-line which unfolded in "Kill Bill Vol. I," this is a revenge tale of an expert assassin, called The Bride, who sets out on a quest to wreak vengeance upon her former employer, Bill, and other members of their assassin circle, for shooting her at her wedding--along with everyone else in attendance--and leaving her for dead. When this chapter in the story begins, The Bride will have already encountered some of her targets, as she continues battling her way up the chain of command, knowing it will ultimately lead her to her main goal: her chance to Kill Bill. (From Yahoo Movies)
My Thoughts: (Reviewed by Big Pun)
To properly review the movie experience that is Kill Bill vol.2, one has to first lay the ground work of their individual movie going experience. See, I have been an avid follower of director/writer Quentin Tarintino’s work since the very beginning with Reservoir Dogs. I actually remember the first time I saw the film. It was during a summer weeknight many years ago…had a hook up at the mom and pop video store in town and was just looking for a solid free rental....My brother and I stumble upon this little unknown title on the new release rack….having seen everything possible over the last few months, we decide to take a flyer on this flick….the rest is history….I have been hooked ever since. Repeated viewings of Res., Pulp Fiction, and Jackie Brown along with the Tarantino scribed True Romance and Natural Born Killers gave me an experience with movies that I had yet to find anywhere else. See the thing about Tarantino that makes his movies special is that he dares to break the rules. Before, an action movie would be defined by how many explosions or dead bodies you could squeeze into 90 minutes. Tarantino rewrote the formula….in fact he changed the entire movie making process. His movies fit no mold in my opinion….they are a mix of lots of things….part action, part drama, part comedy….and even part romance…..and he takes what is sometimes the most underappreciated aspect of any film and excels at it….writing dialogue. The way people talk to one another…plain and simple. This guy nails it. The scene in Reservoir Dogs where Mr. Pink talks about why he won’t tip a waitress…Classic….In Pulp Fiction, where Jules and Vince talk about a foot massage and its meanings…Priceless…it just doesn’t get better than that….but more importantly, every Tarantino movie I have seen has always left me wanting more….or wanting some question answered…(what was in Marcellus’ brief case?)…and this my friends, takes us to KILL BILL.
I was all over this thing when I first read a draft of the script a couple of year’s ago….The promise of a new Tarantino flick had me all giddy like a little school girl…..and you know, when vol.1 erupted on screens, I was there opening night…..BLEW ME AWAY!....his best work to date. Seeing this tasty blend of kung fu, spaghetti westerns, action, drama, romance…..unbelievable. and the best part of all of this….I walked out of that theatre that night knowing that in roughly six months time I would be back in that same seat to see how it all played out. And as April 16th drew closer day by day, all I could think about was would he be able to bring it all together with vol.2?….would there be a let down?....would there be any conceivable way known to man that I would not like this movie?...the answer my friends is that Tarantino delivers, and delivers and just keeps on delivering, time and time again.
Kill Bill vol.2 was as close to a perfect movie experience I have had since the Return of the King. The movie not only takes the events of vol.1 to an ultimate conclusion, it gives you an almost completely different experience than its first half. Where I think vol.1 was more of an action, kung fu, drama….vol.2 delves deeper into The Brides taste for revenge. We see her beginnings, her love for Bill, her need to distance herself from not only him but from her assassin life…not just for herself but for the sake of her child….we watch as she continues her quest to kill the remaining members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad…when we last saw our beautiful bride, she had just run rough shot through the Crazy 88’s and O-Ren Ishii with her Hattori Hanzo samurai sword…. Disposing of Vernita Green in her lovely suburban home…and on her way to KILL BILL as the lovely Uma Thurman puts it in the trailer. We pick it up in vol. 2 with some back story about the wedding and what actually went down….from there we are launched on a journey that takes the Bride against the likes of Bud and Elle on her way to her eventual prize…BILL…for the sake of those who have not seen the film, I won’t go into further detail, but trust me when I tell you, Tarantino pulls not a punch.
Some other thoughts….the music, as in vol.1, is absolutely amazing….he nails it in every way, cool, retro, funky….but most of all fits in every place it is used….The acting is perfect. Every actor and actress holds their own and is amazing. Mike Madsen is cool as ever, Darryl Hannah make me hate every ounce of her Elle, David Carradine (for those young folks out there, star of the TV series Kung Fu) is wonderfully poetic and his “Superman” dialogue blew my f*ing mind!....but most of all this movie would be nothing without Uma. Tarantino has been quoted as saying she is his “muse”…well, I think we can all pray and hope that his pen brings us another classic character for this fine actress to play. You really see that her character goes so far beyond a samurai sword wielding hero in this movie…from her interaction with Bud to her early teaching under the monk Pei Mei to her final confrontation with Bill, you see and understand why she has to do what she has set out to do….
And finally, my last kudos go out to Tarantino….many have said that he is nothing more than an ego maniac who only makes the same movie in different forms….Well, if that is your opinion, so what. Who cares….at least he gets it right. Of all his films, this along with vol. 1 (after seeing both, I now consider it one movie), this is his finest work…and like always, he has left me wanting more….wanting that killer DVD that you all know will be packed with tons and tons of extras, hopefully both movies cut into one long adventure…and maybe even some stuff off the Japanese and European versions of the film….
In short, this is a perfect movie….get your ass out to the theatre and check it out….and if you missed vol. 1, get your ass to a blockbuster, rent it, then get your ass to the theatre and see this majestic film…..
Until next time…..Big Pun OUT!
Starring:
Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Daryl Hannah, Michael Madsen, Sonny Chiba
Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
Rated R