Movie Review – Kill Bill Vol 2.
The Plot – “The Bride” has already dispensed with Vernita Green & O-Ren Ishii, but there’s still Budd & Elle to deal with. Already a footnote in her memory, the audience will get a recap of events before the lady is off to Kill Bill.
The Review – As many know I’ve been waiting for this sequel ever since I reviewed Kill Bill Vol 1. The plastic wrap hadn’t even been broken on my DVD yet and Mich3lle & I were at the theatre last Friday for the premiere. Where the first movie was a whirlwind of action sequences Vol 2. firmly chokes up the reigns for a storytelling pace. Here the encounters are even more personal, the deaths seemingly more deserving, the overall tone more conflicted. “The Bride” seems less invincible this time around and we learn a little more of the back story via flashback. We also get to meet Bill.
One has to wonder if Quentin Tarantino might resurrect another career. Anyone catch David Carradine on Alias tonight? He was perfectly cast in this volume. I can’t imagine anyone else pulling off the role of Bill. Maybe you remember him as Kwai Chang Caine on the Kung Fu TV series, but I recall he played a sly villain opposite Chuck Norris back in 1983. And who could forget Death Race 2000 or Shane? No apologies for being a cult film guy.
The fact this isn’t the hack & slash fest the first movie is might throw some people, but I felt it complimented the overall story very well. It had predictable moments, but I thought the delivery by its cast well done. The kung fu training sequences were a humorous nod to that genre and yours truly is probably one of a few people that owns Shogun Assassin which was a character favorite in the film. (Imagine this totally geek moment – OMIGOD I HAVE THAT DVD! I KNOW WHAT DVD THEY’RE PLAYING!) Once again, no apologies for watching late night kung fu theatre as a kid.
Grade: B+ (It did have some slow moments)
Definitly, I didn’t mind the choice of more plot and less action in the second one, I think when the second one comes out on DVD and you can watch them both back to back people will find how well they flow together, I love the chapter idea, makes for kick ass transition sequences with the soundtrack.
Speaking of watching them back to back, apparently Tarantino has edited them together into one film for a special screening somewhere. Also, the soundtrack kicks even more ass than Vol. 1’s.
Lucky bludgers! I definitely want to see that one, but it’s probably a case of “wait for shonky distributor to finally put out DVD” than seeing it on the gigantic screen. I’ll be looking forward to it though.
A.J.,
I enjoyed Kill Bill vol 2, but I do think that it was a bit Tarantino formulaic with the awkwardly placed humorous talking sequences breaking up some of the monotony of the fighting scenes or dramatic tension…. and frankily, all his movies seem to have that signature element. This movie was also not as stylized as the first (no model airplanes on strings or anime), but it did do a lot more explaining in the dialog.
Overall, I was entertained, but I was not blown away like I was with Vol. I. Good review A.J.
-Rick
Oh yeah…. now we know her name… No logic there, as far as I can guess.
“do you not hear the grasshopper by your feet”
tis a line i shall probably never forget. Or was it the blind man that said it i’ll never forget…
i thought one of the more clever bits in the movie was the title of the chapter where elle driver meets her demise..
the title of that chapter was “elle and I”
think about it, eh?