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Kill Bill, Volume 2 [2004]


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Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review

"The Bride" (Uma Thurman) gets her satisfaction--and so do we--in Quentin Tarantino's "roaring rampage of revenge", Kill Bill, Vol. 2. Where Vol. 1 was a hyper-kinetic tribute to the Asian chop-socky grindhouse flicks that have been thoroughly cross-referenced in Tarantino's film-loving brain, Vol. 2--not a sequel, but Part Two of a breathtakingly cinematic epic--is Tarantino's contemporary martial-arts Western, fuelled by iconic images, music and themes lifted from any source that Tarantino holds dear, from the action-packed cheapies of William Witney (one of several filmmakers Tarantino gratefully honours in the closing credits) to the spaghetti epics of Sergio Leone. Tarantino doesn't copy so much as elevate the genres he loves, and the entirety of Kill Bill is clearly the product of a singular artistic vision, even as it careens from one influence to another. Violence erupts with dynamic impact, but unlike Vol. 1, this slower grand finale revels in Tarantino's trademark dialogue and loopy longueurs, reviving the career of David Carradine (who plays Bill for what he is: a snake charmer), and giving Thurman's Bride an outlet for maternal love and well-earned happiness. Has any actress endured so much for the sake of a unique collaboration? As the credits remind us, "The Bride" was jointly created by "Q&U", and she's become an unforgettable heroine in a pair of delirious movie-movies (Vol. 3 awaits, some 15 years hence) that Tarantino fans will study and love for decades to come. --Jeff Shannon


TOTALLY OVERRATED
Review date: 2008-07-13 Rating: 4 out of 10

I don't understand the hype about this movie at all - or about any Tarantino film that is. I got the impression a 12-year-old wrote and directed it! The worst part about it: it is OVERLY CHEESY! Although probably intended that way, it totally ruined the film for me. Yes, many Asian films are cheesy, but in this one it simply doesn't fit.
The excellent acting by most of the cast is wasted. A really good fighting scene at the end doesn't save it either.
Being a revenge movie you will have to compare it to others of that genre - namely "Ms. 45 / Angel of Vengeance" and doing so KILL BILL simply doesn't stand a chance. KILL BILL is simply a motion picture comic book, a farce. The characters are so unbelievably ridiculous - a Japanese schoolgirl as a bodyguard? Sorry: no go!

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lacks the intensity of the first
Review date: 2008-07-06 Rating: 8 out of 10

In the follow up to the widely successful Volume 1, Uma Thurman reprises her role as the Bride who continues to search for the remaining members of Bill's group.

Tarantino (Pulp Fiction) had set the bench mark with the first instalment, a sharp, exciting and devastating film about a woman who loses everything and is out for revenge, and because the first film was practically perfect apart from a few faults, this sequel wasn't really going to challenge the first. Nevertheless it is a gripping and exciting watch.

Uma Thurman (Dangerous Liaisons) again excels in her central role as The Bride, with a strong determination on her mind to finally get full revenge for everything Bill has done to her, and in perhaps the best role of her career apart from Pulp Fiction, Thurman really steals the light in both films with a cutting devilish performance that does her character true justice. With a steely attitude and an emotional life troubling her, the Bride is given the depth and attention by Thurman to make the character an icon in the crime genre.

As with the first volume, Tarantino directs in a vibrant way, some scenes in black and white, stories told at different times, flashbacks, fantasises to give the film a very unique approach and something which I had never seen before. The first instalment was certainly better directed and with a wider choice of styles including animations but still there are some true iconic scenes, none more so than the coffin scene, the most uncomfortable scene ever created in such a unique way.

Despite the excellent direction and acting, the plot really lacks in comparison. The formula behind the first was more basic with fewer strings attached and there was a clear intention to where the film wanted to go. With the follow up, flashbacks and other stories seem more muddled and over the place, but still interesting. There are a few scary scenes, with snakes, coffins and surprises used to conform to the thriller genre.

Again, well directed with great acting and characters but it lacks the intensity and consistency that the first one had without even trying.

7/10


sewage volume 2
Review date: 2008-06-07 Rating: 2 out of 10

again another vile hateful and nasty film.people need to avoid quentin tarantino films cause thier no good we need to get rid of this hack and his hateful,vile sludge

Weaker
Review date: 2008-03-13 Rating: 4 out of 10

Kill Bill Volume 2 is Tarantino's somewhat weaker follow up to the super entertainment in Kill Bill Volume 1.

Frankly, as soon as the Bride stops talking to the camera in the splendid opening sequence, the film drifts listlessly from one scene to another. The narration of the film is absent and so too is any coherent structure. The film is only really held together by the good choice of music.

We do meet some interesting characters such as Pai Mei (Gordon Liu) and Ele (Daryl Hannah). Although there are some interesting moments, the film ultimately stalls and takes itself too seriously. There is a lack of that self-mocking quality, style and innovation we see in Volume 1 which would lend the film better credibility given the lack of realism.

At all times the dialogue in the film is cringingly silly and even plain rubbish. There is no end to the trashy and even sentimental filler in this film.

The work is also let down because The Bride becomes a third person who melds into the action for most of the film. With the lack of strong visuals, innovation, and profiling of the characters the audience cannot really identify with what is going on. Contrast that with Volume 1- there The Bride was the audience's first person narrator with whom we toured the world.

The plot turns increasingly bizarre in Volume 2 and, eventually, totally absurd and a cop-out. It's a shame but as the DVD blurb states, 'until you've seen Kill Bill Vol. 2 you only know half the story'.

DVD has one disc.



The cartoon spectacle of the first film is replaced with character, drama and pathos
Review date: 2008-03-07 Rating: 8 out of 10

Whereas Reservoir Dogs (1991) and Pulp Fiction (1994) took elements from the French New Wave and American independent cinema of the 1980's to create bold, iconic, character driven films rife with clever dialog, uncompromising violence and subtle allusions to a myriad of varied, textured film references, Kill Bill: Volumes 1 & 2 (2003-2004) take the idea of referencing even further, giving us blatant and literal references that cross from one genre to the next with a complete disregard for whether or not the audience is familiar with the kind of work being quoted. This technique is pushed even further in the subsequent Death Proof (2007), which really does require an audience to be familiar with its subject in order to get the most out of the style, set-up and intent. Here, all pretentions to the cinema of the French New Wave are dropped, as well as the more adult-orientated flavour of the previous Jackie Brown (1997), which was perhaps more in keeping with the aging spirit of the blacksploitation sub-genre of films from which it drew a superficial influence.

Instead, Kill Bil finds director Quentin Tarantino shifting his focus to Asian cinema and referencing sources as disparate as Kung-Fu (1972), Lone Wolf and Cub (1972), Lady Snowblood (1973), The Street Fighter (1974), Shogun Assassin (1980) and Ichi the Killer (2001), as well as taking direct influence from the Shaw Brothers studio productions of the 1960's and filmmakers like Kinji Fukasaku and Seijun Suzuki. Alongside these visual and thematic reference points we also have a continual reliance on juxtaposing ideas and iconography taken from spaghetti westerns, blacksploitation pictures, Chinese "wuxia" and kung fu movies, Japanese Manga and Anime, hip-hop, American exploitation and revenge cinema, and François Truffaut's The Bride Wore Black (1968). These influences are all combined, sometimes obviously and sometimes with more subtlety, but all used with flair, imagination and intelligence to create the right kind of cinematic environment for this purposely elaborate, over-the-top, comic-book-style tale of roaring rampage and revenge to play out against.

As the film is split into two halves (for commercial reasons, as opposed to artistic; but regardless, tying in with the literary use of voice-over, chapter-heading, an unreliable narrator, etc) there will always be the question of how to critique the film. Do we view them as two separate films that should each deliver on the characteristics that we think cinema should pertain to, or do we view this as one long film; a continuation of a single character and theme over the course of two very different though ultimately linked feature films? If we take the former approach, then Volume 2 (2004) is the film that will probably take longer to appreciate on an immediate level, concerning itself more with scenes of character development and that typically unique structuring of dialog that Tarantino does so well. There are a couple of prolonged fight scenes, but nothing approaching the balletic, visually rich and heavily choreographed action of Volume 1; with Tarantino cleverly cutting away from the actual massacre at Two Pines so that the brief snippets from the first film and the few moments that depict the punishing aftermath become even more clouded in mystery, as well as giving us a final "battle" that works on an emotional level, as opposed to the physical.

The film gives us much more insight into the relationship between "The Bride" and Bill, as well as further fleshing out the background of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. This gives us much more in the way of context when we go back to re-experience the previous instalment in an attempt to restructure the chronology. As with the first film we still have the stylistic elements of over the top martial arts choreography juxtaposed against scenes of more brutal, hard-hitting violence, obvious miniature work that almost points to the original Godzilla films, retro use of rear-screen projection (much like Pulp Fiction), allusions to films as disparate as Twisted Nerve (1968), Hitchcock, Brian De Palma's elaborate use of split-screen, the production design from Gate of Flesh (1964) and Sex and Fury (1974), etc; however here, the references are used for the purposes of drama as opposed to opulent spectacle. Though the performances, plotting and the emotional impact of that grand, unexpected final are all incredible well handled, the overall effect could perhaps be wrongly misinterpreted as boring or uneventful, simply because of the bold contrast to the over-the-top violence and technical virtuosity presented in the high-octane thrills of Volume 1 (2003).

With this in mind, it would seem more appropriate to view the films as one single film; taking into account both the bursts of colour and energy presented in Volume 1 and the slower, more character-driven approach of Volume 2 to really get the most out of the incredible journey that this larger than life character undertakes. It also allows us to better appreciate the extraordinary performance from Uma Thurman in the central role, who here gives one of the best performances of her career; instilling "The Bride" with a sense of honour and purpose that makes her violence and bloodshed all the more understandable. Kill Bill: Volume 1 doesn't quite scale the dizzying heights of Tarantino's first three films; lacking the intuitive style, unique dialog and intricate plotting - but it does represent a new phase of his career; one that pushes cinematic reference even further to create a visual tapestry of self-aware cinema that appeals to learned cineastes preoccupied with technique, as well as offering a bold story, memorable characters and a great sense of entertainment.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Liu Chia Hui
David Carradine
Daryl Hannah
Michael Madsen
Uma Thurman

Creators:
Uma Thurman (Primary Contributor)
David Carradine (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainm
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainm
EAN: 5017188812740
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: PAL,
Release date: 2004-08-16
Audience rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 131 minutes
Theatrical release date: 2004-04-16
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: Spanish (Original Language)

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