Quentin Tarantino is back after a six year
hiatus from directing his last film, Jackie Brown (1997).
For those of you missed that one and aren't familiar with him, he also
wrote and directed Pulp Fiction (1994) and Reservoir Dogs
(1992). He also wrote True Romance (1993), Natural Born
Killers (1994), and From Dusk 'Til Dawn (1996).
Kill Bill is the new and highly anticipated film from this
highly regarded director. Not many directors have received so much
praise for such a small body of work. Tarantino is largely
responsible for the huge success of Miramax Films, and though he does
receive quite a bit of criticism, he has a huge fan base that will turn
up to see his latest work.
The first thing worth discussing with Kill Bill is that it was
not originally intended to be released in two parts. The decision
was made by Miramax execs a few months ago to split the film in half,
even though the entire film is completed. Allegedly the decision
had something to do with the fact that the three hour running time was
too long, though the Lord of the Rings and Titanic both
seemed to do pretty well. It seems more likely that the Big
Cheese's saw the huge marketing potential of having a multi-part
mega-hit, like Lord of the Rings, Back to the Future II & III, or
the last two Matrix movies. The result is, Kill Bill
Volume 1 is a cliffhanger, which some people won't be happy with.
Especially since Kill Bill Volume 2 won't be out for several
months (probably February).
Gee, with that much time between releases, it seems like audiences
will have to go see Kill Bill Volume 1 again or buy the DVD
before Volume 2 comes out, so they won't get lost. Miramax
probably didn't think about that.
Now, what should you expect with Kill Bill? First of
all, it has Tarantino written all over it (not literally), even though
it is a bit of a departure from the subject matter of his other films.
At its heart, Kill Bill is in the style of an Asian revenge
flick. It's somewhere between a Spaghetti Western and a Saturday
morning kung-fu film from the 70's. The difference being that it's
loaded with style and great dialogue and interesting characters.
Of course, the films that are being paid homage to never had good
dialogue and usually had only one interesting character at best.
The result is an interesting mix of influences that's greatly
entertaining.
One of the common criticisms of Tarantino is his prolific use of
violent imagery. Without question, Kill Bill is filled with
violence. However, it's over-the-top violence that is
simultaneously cartoonish, stylized, and yet effective. There's
more killing in Kill Bill than in several of his other films
combined (if there weren't, it would be called Don't Hurt Bill)
but it's unlikely to make very many people squeamish. In fact, the
violence is deliberately comical at times, without losing the impact of
the violence.
The film creates a great mood, drawing from a number of disjointed
cultures. The music, the clothing, the sets, everything create a
mood. What kind of mood? The Masked Reviewer doesn't know.
But the Masked Reviewer likes it.
Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, and Sonny Chiba are the main focal points in
this episode, and the acting is excellent across the board. Chiaki
Kuriyama, who those of you lucky enough to have seen
Battle Royale will instantly
recognize, is another highlight of the film. Sonny Chiba (of
Street Fighter fame (the movie, not the video game (and not the
movie based on the videogame starring Jean-Claude Van Damme))) gives a
great performance, certainly one of the best of his career. Uma
Thurman as the unnamed hero is compelling to watch in every scene.
Lucy Liu brings a depth an intensity to her role with subtle looks and
body language.
There are a number of other characters that we see in the film, but
they won't become important (one assumes) until Volume 2.
So, you'll just have to come back then if you want to see them.
The dialogue, as usual in a Tarantino film, is interesting, cool, and
punchy.
The film features a number of fight scenes. Sadly, these weren't
as excellent as the Masked Reviewer had hoped. They suffer from
too many quick cuts. The editing does the work that the actors
should do, as in Japanese or Hong Kong cinema. You never get a
chance to really marvel at the amazing moves or the epic scope of the
battles, because there's a new cut every few seconds. That's not
to say the fight scenes are bad, but they aren't as good as, for
example, classic Jackie Chan or Jet Li. If action weren't such a
focus of the film, it wouldn't be a big deal, but as this is an action
film, it is quite noticeable.
Our old friend, Woo-ping Yuen is the kung-fu choreographer (you may
remember him from such films as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
and all of the Matrix films). Some might say he's the man
responsible for the now greatly overused trend in films to use wires to
allow people to do impossible acrobatics. The Masked Reviewer
feels that this trend is now horribly overused. Those effects have
been used in so many films since Crouching Tiger that the impact
is completely muted. Granted, wires have been used in kung-fu
films for years, but often combined with actual acrobatics or used
sparingly enough to be effective. Fortunately, the use of wires in
Kill Bill isn't excessive, but every time you see someone do a
triple backflip or spin wildly while balanced on a narrow rail, you'll
know they're there.
By the way, Sonny Chiba did the sword choreography on the film.
There are a number of other cameos by famous Asian action stars, too.
Who will like Kill Bill? Fans of Tarantino won't be
disappointed. If you didn't like Jackie Brown, Kill Bill
may restore your enthusiasm for Tarantino. If you couldn't stomach
the violence in Resevoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction (wuss) then
Kill Bill's stylized violence shouldn't be too much to take.
If you like anime, you'll want to check out Kill Bill because it
features a well done anime section in the middle. If you have the
hots for Uma Thurman or Lucy Liu (or Viveca Fox), you're sure to find
something to be aroused by. If you like to watch catfights (meow!)
this film will make you happy. If you like schoolgirl uniforms,
you'll be happy. If you like to see women in a role of
empowerment, this movie is for you. If you enjoy Japanese or Hong
Kong revenge films, this is right up your alley. On the other
hand, if none of this appeals to you, you might just find it to be
silly. It's certainly a lot closer to From Dusk 'Til Dawn
than it is to True Romance (though there aren't any vampires).
And, if you can't stand the thought of a cliffhanger that won't be
resolved for several months, well, you might want to spare yourself the
torture.
Kill Bill will chop your socks off. It's sexy, exciting,
amazing fun.
Expectation from the Title: While a young woman is watching
her favorite soap opera, she gets a call. The man on the other end
of the line says he wants to talk about an invoice he has for
exterminating a giant rat in her basement, but he can't hear her over
the TV, so, reluctantly, she reaches for the remote control.
Mother's Rule (Always Say Something Good About Everything):
Uma Thurman always looks on the bright side of life, even after all the
nasty things that happen to her.
The Pros: A really cool style, great dialogue, fine acting.
A slick version of the chop-saki 70's revenge flick. Leaves you
wanting more.
The Cons: You're left wanting more, and it's months away.
Could've easily been one movie. The fight scenes could've been
better.