Movie Review: Kill Bill Vol. 2

Kill Bill Vol. 2

Kill Bill Vol. 2 is obviously the continuation of Kill Bill Vol. 1, which was released last fall. As what is essentially the second half of a single story, Kill Bill Vol. 2 not only had to complete the narrative, but live up to the truly amazing movie that Vol. 1 was. After having seen Kill Bill Vol. 2 today, I can only say that Quentin Tarantino is every bit the genius some have called him. Pulp Fiction put us all on notice of the fact; Kill Bill Vols. 1 and 2 proves that Pulp Fiction was no fluke.

In Kill Bill Vol. 1, we met The Bride (Uma Thurman) who, after barely surviving a massacre at her wedding, goes on a vengeful crusade to kill all of those who participated in the bloodbath at the chapel. Volume 1 is very much an homage by Tarantino to his beloved martial arts and samurai movies, so O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu) meets her fate in a beautifully rendered Japanese setting. Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox) has a less exotic setting for her death, but there is never-the-less an Asian feel in the honor the two assassins exhibit in their fight to the death. In Kill Bill Vol. 2, the story continues but with an ambiance that's now clearly beholden to the old spaghetti westerns (although it maintains the martial arts film look and feel as well).

As Vol. 2 opens, The Bride is on the trail of more mayhem. Still alive and very much on The Bride's hit list are Elle Driver (Darryl Hannah) and Budd (Michael Madsen). Bill (David Carradine) warns Budd that The Bride could be on her way, but Budd is sanguine about the possibility. A ne'er do well with a penchant for booze, he turns out to be the biggest challenge The Bride has yet faced. When Budd gets the drop on her, he decides that a quick death is now much too good for her and so he determines to bury her alive. He also plans to sell her nearly priceless samurai sword to Elle just as soon as The Bride is out of the way. Meanwhile, Bill - knowing he's almost certainly number one on The Bride's list - is as well hidden as he can make himself. But The Bride's determination and skills throw a monkey wrench into the plans of just about everyone as she continues to see revenge. Still, Bill has an ace in the hole The Bride knows nothing about...

The story in Vol. 2 is again told in "chapters" that move from the present to the past and back again. In some ways, it's a bit like a puzzle to see how one chapter relates to the one before it and to another two chapters after it. But the puzzle pieces mesh flawlessly, and the story remains compelling throughout. Uma Thurman is again excellent. And what a delight to see David Carradine in such a juicy role! He, too, is terrific. Daryl Hannah and Michael Madsden are both quite good, and an appearance by a well-known (in China) martial arts actor named Gordon Liu is the perfect - and relatively authentic! - addition to the film.

The script is nothing short of brilliant; the make-up effects are again superlative as is the fight scene choreography. Once again, the judicious use of black and white photography is a beautiful - and surprisingly emotional - touch, and creative camera angles and edits abound. Amazingly, a scene I found appallingly real and frightening involved only sound effects to get its point across, something which shows that Tarantino is paying close attention to all the dimensions of his movie. On its own merits, Kill Bill Vol. 2 is wonderful. Taken as the follow-up to Vol. 1, it's even better. The Kill Bill movies are works of art, but the canvas is neither untouchable or abstract. Painted in fine strokes of words, music, excellent acting, and beautiful direction, Kill Bill does what a good work of art is supposed to do: to offer great pleasure even as it generates deep emotion.

FAMILY SUITABILITY: Kill Bill Vol. 2 is rated R for "violence, language, and brief drug use." Kill Bill Vol. 1 is a very, very bloody movie. Vol. 2 is somewhat less so, but still extremely and very graphically violent. I don't recommend the movie for children under age 15. But if you can handle some onscreen blood and nicely choreographed mayhem, you'll find Kill Bill Vol. 2 to be worth the price of your ticket and then some.