Product Description: The Bride, a former member the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad seeks revenge for the death of her groom and unborn child at the hands of her associates. Genre: Feature Film-Action/Adventure Rating: R Release Date: 25-JAN-2005 Media Type: DVD
Amazon.com: Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill, Vol. 1 is trash for connoisseurs. From his opening gambit (including a "Shaw-Scope" logo and gaudy '70s-vintage "Our Feature Presentation" title card) to his cliffhanger finale (a teasing lead-in to 2004's Vol. 2), Tarantino pays loving tribute to grindhouse cinema, specifically the Hong Kong action flicks and spaghetti Westerns that fill his fervent brain--and this frequently breathtaking movie--with enough cinematic references and cleverly pilfered soundtrack cues to send cinephiles running for their reference books. Everything old is new again in Tarantino's humor-laced vision: he steals from the best while injecting his own oft-copied, never-duplicated style into what is, quite simply, a revenge flick, beginning with the near-murder of the Bride (Uma Thurman), pregnant on her wedding day and left for dead by the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad (or DiVAS)--including Lucy Liu and the unseen David Carradine (as Bill)--who become targets for the Bride's lethal vengeance. Culminating in an ultraviolent, ultra-stylized tour-de-force showdown, Tarantino's fourth film is either brilliantly (and brutally) innovative or one of the most blatant acts of plagiarism ever conceived. Either way, it's hyperkinetic eye-candy from a passionate film-lover who clearly knows what he's doing. --Jeff Shannon
Bon appetit, good buddy... -The greatest pure action flick ever made-
This is the cinematic weapon of mass destruction, the dream girl orgie of film ecstasy, the Tiger Woods of action-driven movie mania. Kill Bill is in a class all its own, an experience like you've never witnessed before. Tarantino pays homage to many of his favorite films, directors, and genres while incorporating his own distinct style. I'll use my W.U.S.S.training (Whiteboys Understanding Samurai Sensibilities) to write my first novel.
The story is simple--a lady samurai seeks to avenge the murders of her husband and unborn child. her name is Beatrix Kiddo, aka Black Mamba. She's also referred to as The Bride, which was a character from Q & U. The plot was also inspired by the movie Lady Snowblood, an outstanding female samurai flick.
Other obvious influences:
SAMURAI FICTION--The silhouetted warriors duel with a bright colore background. QT extends this scene drastically, and the results are amazing. This contrast of colors and swift, elegant swordplay make for an awesome visual implosion that will blow your senses away.
HARAKIRI--An undeniable gem of Asian cinema, QT draws heavily from the astounding bloody climax. The Bride fights valiantly against nearly insurmountable odds. She also scales walls and railings with impressive acrobatic agility. The choreography is utterly brilliant as the blood sprays in excess. You will not see a more exciting, dramatic melee in samurai cinema ever. Bold statement, but oh so true.
SHADOW WARRIORS--A T.V.show from the 80's starring the great samurai Hattori Hanzo. In this movie, Hanzo(played by the legendary Sonny Chiba) breaks a blood oath and crafts another deadly blade of steel.
JAPANESE ANIME--This animated sequence totally rules!!! There is some top notch artwork with unique, clever angles. Plus a plethora of blood, murder, and mayhem. Awesome.
GIALLO/DEPALMA--There is a sweet split screen sequence, ala Brian DePalma, that completely kicks butt. There are some closeup shots of the murderer approaching the comatose Bride. With the powerful sound effects blaring the tension is elevated and a dark, desperate atmosphere takes over. A nice touch.
YAKUZA--There are some Japanese mobsters sitting at a table having a meeting. I'll admit, mixing samurai and yakuza seems odd. With the gangstas packin' heat, a samurai chick might not last too long. But hey, this is an action flick, so you can't think too deep into it.
SPAGHETTI WESTERN--There's a brief scene shot in Texas. It involves tumbleweeds, a sheriff, and a bloody shootout. No Clint Eastwood though.
Now, this movie does have some questionable components. Like all the members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. Quite a ragtag group. None of them are overly convincing as deadly samurais, but still the story somehow works. QT also overdoes it with the American pop culture references (silly rabbit, Trix are for kids). They sometimes seem out of place. But still this doesn't hamper the entertainment value. All in all, it's a wonderfully shot, incredibly action packed motion picture. The 5,6,7,8's provide some perfect songs, and Wu Tang Clan does some spectacular sound effects. There's also humor, wit, great character development and dialogue, shots of womens feet--all of QT's trademark stuff. And the action sets the bar sky high.
Tarantino shows he's more than just some film geek. He's an expert at his craft.
Now, I encourage any of you, always in a respectful manner, to question my logic. I assure you, no topic will ever be taboo. Unless of course you bring up this movie as a negative. The price you pay for such an action is--I collect your freakin head!!!!!!!! Now if any of you have anything to say, now's the freakin' time.
A Must Have This movie is a must see and a must have for all you Tarantino fan. This movie to overly violent and bloody. Normally I don't like movies like that. However, it ranks among one of my favorite movies.
The Definitive Tarantino Film!!! Kill Bill Vol. 1 sets the bar for the genre of violent, action films. Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, David Carradine and others did a spectacular job in their roles. And a special appearance by 1960's J-Pop band the 5678's was really part of the films best moments. Quentin Tarantino should have won an Oscar for best director for Kill Bill Vol 1. I love it and I am look forward to buying Vol. 2.
The mother of gore movies Much to violent. This is a sick glorification of both untrammeled and pointless killing and maiming. The picture ought to be banned. Even I myself felt gloomy and irritable the next day.
Artistic and Brutal in One From the moment when the b/w Bride swam into view, drawing desperate gasps of breath, black blood splattering her face and neck, I knew that Kill Bill would be a rollercoaster ride from start to finish. This homage to kung-fu and spaghetti-western movies is more than just a two-hour smash-fest, however. It's a prime example of artistic cinematography and story build-up, taking what seems like a linear and predictable revenge-plot and constantly surprising the viewer. In fact, I don't think there are many movies out there that centre on revenge and violence and still manage to hold such an artistic quality.
Kill Bill started out as a premise shared by Quentin Tarantino and Uma Thurman on the set of Pulp Fiction. An ex-assassin (Thurman), on her wedding day, is brutally beaten by her ex-coworkers and shot to death by her ex-boss... or so it seems. She survives by the smallest of margins, falling into a four-year coma. When she wakes up - and discovers that she's no longer pregnant - she intends to make them all very sorry. Thurman deserves all the credit she gets for her performance; she is heartwringingly convincing as the heartbroken but unwavering warrior. Her dialogue often takes the backseat to her sheer emotional acting. Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox and Daryl Hannah are also inspiring in their characteristic, while diverse, roles.
When watching the movie, I'm constantly torn over whether I should feel bad or fascinated. The theme is a ruthless, brutal one, yet presented in such an aesthetic manner that I can't help but appreciate its beauty. Indeed, the flick is quite a cunning piece of art. I'll leave others to interpret the various connections to old marial arts/spaghetti western movies found in Kill Bill, but I think it very much succeeds as a modern-day version of such a film, enhancing the beauty and brutality of both. Volume One of the Kill Bill saga mostly pays homage to the old kung fu movies. The big fight scene goes from colour to black-and-white in a really satisfying manner, adding to the film's ambience as both old-school and modern. And the climax of the movie, of course - the confrontation with O-Ren Ishii - has to be one of the most beautiful fight sequences I've seen. The soundtrack compliments the entire movie perfectly; whether its the bouncy rock-funk of the 5-6-7-8s, the beautiful piece of hymnic Japanese music as the Bride looks at swords, or the classic "Urami-bushi", not a song in the movie feels out of place. This is not to say that Tarantino doesn't keep his humour up - indeed the fight scenes (the last excluded) are not always so serious. Blood gushes to an insane amount (anatomy is to no importance here) and chuckling slapstick moments frequently pop up.
The choreography of almost every scene is spot-on, as well; and I don't just mean the downright dance the Bride makes as she cuts her way through the Crazy 88. A particularly clever piece of camerawork is an almost two-minute long uncut shot at the House of Blue Leaves, transitioning from the Bride to the proprietor to Sofie Fatale to the Bride again. This sequence is so seamless and spotless, it's downright hard to believe it.
The character introduction is flawless, too. The prime example, of course, is the Japanese animation (not really anime, though) chapter dedicated to O-Ren's past. Her backstory adds to the sympathy of her character, and as such to the power of the confrontation between her and the Bride. O-Ren's isn't the only example, though. The hospital scene where the one-eyed Elle Driver 'visits' the comatose Bride is one of my favourite scenes in the whole movie, if not my absolute favourite. It is a very important, profound scene as it introduces what will be a key character in vol. 2, and the significance of her character. From the tune "Twisted Nerve" to the very cinematography of the scene, it couldn't be more obvious that Elle is one of the most significant characters in the story. As soon as the scene was over, I wanted to see her again, and knew she had a large role in what was to come.
My only real beef with the movie is that I have a hard time connecting to the Bride's motives. Is she getting back at her ex-coworkers (and all who stand in her way to them) for the wrong they did her? Is she avenging her daughter? Or the people who died at the chapel? All of these, perhaps? I feel it could have been presented better. On the other hand, perhaps Tarantino wishes the Bride to develop as a character as well, maybe even show just how ugly revenge can make you. Who knows?
Kill Bill is, on all accounts, a terrific film. It succeeds and exceeds at everything it attempts to be. Tarantino has a real talent in showing us beauty in even the most ugly things. And in my opinion, Elle Driver emerging from the ladies restroom in her nurse's outfit with her white, red cross eyepatch is one of those iconic female moments in cinema, like Ursula Andress rising from the sea in Dr No. A brutal film it may be, but you'd be hard put to find one with a more artistic edge.
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