Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)

"Kill Bill vol. 1" - Slices, Dices, Thoroughly
Entices
by Homer Yen
(c) 2003

"Kill Bill" is like the kind of high-intensity thrill ride you find at select amusement parks that subject you to g-force turns and death-defying speeds. Like those rides, this film should come with one of those signs warning certain people to avoid participation. Indeed, at the film's completion, you've experienced a new kind of rush and you utter to yourself a resounding 'wow.'

Beautiful to watch, and brimming with color and imagery, Quentin Tarantino has put together a masterful presentation that invokes shock and awe. It delivers intense combat sequences, choreographed by Yuen Wo-Ping (famed for his work in films like "The Matrix"). Moreover, it has created an ultra stylish environment that is as artistic as it is violent. It is a highly stylized display that pays homage to the genre of martial arts, yet simultaneously transforms what we know to a higher art form. QT is in the zone and to see it is to watch an accomplished craftsman at the top of his game doing the thing he does best. The average moviegoer is aware of QT's penchant for violence, which borders on the pathological. Here, he presents it in a multitude of artistic forms. There is the use of slo-mo, animation, silhouettes, and more. It is a veritable buffet.

The story itself is about revenge. Black Mamba (Uma Thurman) was shot and left for dead on her wedding day by a squad of killers. She miraculously recovers from a 4-year coma, and her will, her drive, and her seething hatred takes her fearlessly around the world so that she can dispense her own brand of justice, leaving even Red Cross volunteers queasy with all the blood that is spilled. Her travels take her to dangerous locations like the underworld of Japanese gangsters and even more ironic locations like the kitchen of a suburban home. Her ultimate goal is to finally kill Bill (David Carradine), and in this first installment, she hunts down assassin-turned-suburban mom Vernita (Vivica A. Fox) and Japanese crime lord O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu).

Very unique is the sequence involving Ishii's furious rise to power. It brings us into the frenzied, violent and sexual world of anime. It uses animation to diffuse the possibility of getting the harsher NC-17 rating. This sequence is much too wild to be filmed using real people and live action.

The film is all about the setup and the settings. There isn't a whole lot of dialogue. There's just enough exposition to lead us into the next scene, give us some basic background information, and slightly expound upon a character's motivations. It may not be as craftily written as, for example, "Pulp Fiction." However, it is emotionally powerful.

"Kill Bill" grows to such enormous proportions that it was decided that the film had to be broken in half. Audiences won't get to see what happens to Bill until next February. But, it's clear that QT has succeeded in creating a phenomenon that will redefine pop culture, will push the artistic envelope regarding sex and violence, and will leave an indelible impression in your minds. With "Kill Bill," QT has elevated filmmaking to a whole new level.

Grade: A-
S:        2 out of 3
L:        3 out of 3
V:        4 out of 3

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X-RAMR-ID: 36006
X-Language: en
X-RT-ReviewID: 1206813
X-RT-TitleID: 1126182
X-RT-AuthorID: 1370
X-RT-RatingText: A-