Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003)

"Revenge is never a straight line..."

Kill Bill (2003) is Quentin Tarantino’s first [well second if you count From Dusk till Dawn (1996)] tribute to the films of a “grindhouse” cinema. This film is a revenge story that’s jam-packed full of references to different films from all across the scope of cinema: different genres, cultures and styles.

The story of Kill Bill: Volume 1 revolves around a (thus far) unnamed assassin known only as “the Bride,” who is killed by other assassins but somehow survives and ends up in a coma. When she wakes up four years later, she has one thing on her mind: revenge on those who turned on her.

Kill Bill is a film that works far better than it really should. If anyone else tried tried to combine, tribute and homage so many different films in one it would not be as successful as this one. I personally think its Tarantino’s own bold and well defined style that makes all these different things work together so well under one roof. Just look at Pulp Fiction (1994), that film is not only a mash-up of 3-4 different stories but also different musical styles and time periods. But Kill Bill makes Pulp Fiction look like child’s play. This film seamlessly drops direct references to American, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, kung-fu & martial arts, anime, samurai, western and action films and even comics all over the place. Some of these are slight little nods [like the Bride's motorcycle jumpsuit that's patterned after Bruce Lee’s jumpsuit in his final and uncompleted film The Game of Death (1972)], others are the way a person gets killed or even just mirroring the way a shot is framed in another film.

I think some of my favorite ways this film uses different styles is the way the amazing soundtrack (almost all hand chosen from different films) combines with the stylish cinematography. You’ll hear western music over two people kung-fu fighting all the while telling it’s own original story. There’s far too many references in this film for me to dwell on it any longer but if you want a treat check out The Quentin Tarantino Archives, they have compiled quite a few references on their site. Its not a complete list because there were a couple things I noticed that they didn’t have listed, but they have a lot of stuff I had no idea was lifted from other films so be sure to go check that out, its a fun read.

Most of the problems with this film stem from the fact that its really only half of a story. The set up is great, but it doesn’t pay off on it’s own and without more answers or a decent conclusion the film seems like a stylish but empty action film. The ending in fact, makes an amazing mid point (revealing her daughter is still alive).

Now this is no problem if you look at the films as two parts to one film, but as it is right now Quentin Tarantino has never given the full film a decent release. If he wants to release Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair in wide release or even just on home video, I will revisit this film as one film. But until that day as it is now, I'm sorry its two films.

I usually don't care for Lucy Liu too much as an actor but I love her in this film because her backstory is told in one of the greatest anime sequences in film or television history. Its absolutely beautiful and very expressive with lots of really stylized action and great shot choices. The anime sequence is produced by Production I.G. the studio responsible for Ghost in the Shell, Neon Genesis Evangelion & FLCL. This is such a great way to incorporate another medium even one as drastically different as anime.

I love the fight choreography and cinematography in this film. The cinematography is made up mostly of homages to other films combined in really interesting and clever ways and Tarantino was smart to hire fight choreographer Yuen Woo-ping, who is well known for his work in the films Wing Chun (1994), Iron Monkey (1993) and Jackie Chan's Drunken Master (1978).

And lastly I gotta mention Sonny Chiba, I personally love Sonny Chiba and apparently Quentin Tarantino really does too. I love the way he uses him in this film as an almost Yoda-esque retired sword-maker. His performance in this film is cool, funny and super memorable all in one, and that's really something because apparently he can speak next to no English!

Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003) is probably Quentin Tarantino's most stylish and action packed film to date, but without it’s second half a large part of the film seems like it's just another emotionally hollow action film. 4/5 Stars.

Happy watching!

Check out this original minimalist poster design I did for this film, click through to buy prints/posters etc. OR check out other movie posters I designed here. :)

Want more Tarantino goodness? Check back all month for my Tribute to Tarantino in honor of his latest film Django Unchained (2012).

Go back to Tarantino's first film with Reservoir Dogs (1992), check out the first script he wrote (but didn't direct) True Romance (1993), The smash hit that really put him on the map Pulp Fiction (1994), another film written by him but in the hands of another director From Dusk till Dawn (1996), or his blaxploitation-influenced crime film Jackie Brown (1997). I got films planned all month so be sure to check back!



Like this blog? You can support it by buying this film (and 8 other Tarantino hits from his 20 year career) in this new set (now on Blu-ray) through these links:

Jackie Brown (1997)

"Half a million dollars will always be missed."

Jackie Brown (1997) is a crime film directed by Quentin Tarantino and based on the book Rum Punch by Elmore Leonard. The film is Tarantino's tribute to blaxploitation films of the 70s. It follows a 47-year old flight attendant named Jackie Brown who is caught bringing cash into the country for a gun dealer named Ordell Robbie and the many different parties that would like to run off with Ordell's half a million dollars.

This film has an absolutely amazing cast. There's nothing better than a film with a character-driven story where every character has a great actor behind it. It's no surprise that this film revitalized Pam Grier's career because she is really great in this film. The only character I didn't really care for is Robert De Niro as Louis Gara, a bankrobber recently released from prison. He's not bad in it, but this is a pretty minor role and I kind of feel like its kind of a waste for Robert De Niro's talent.

A majority of this film uses actual lighting, in a world where every movie has fake "Hollywood lighting" this really stands out to me. Not just in mall scenes where it would have been hard to affect the lighting, but I love how Tarantino uses the very dark lighting inside apartments to it's full effect. This is such a simple way to increase the suspense and intensity in a film, but I'm completely blown away by its use in this film.

The plot in this film is too convoluted and complicated for my taste. It took me a couple viewings before I really appreciated how much is actually going on. But with so many characters and so many different plans and plots I just feel it could have been a lot simpler.

The film also seems incredibly long winded. I'm not sure if this is just because we effectively watch a money heist/exchange four different times or what. Also the structure is unusual to this film in that it takes almost an entire hour to set up all the different characters and their separate plans.

Also the cinematography seems a lot less meaningful and more random in this film than most other Tarantino films. For example this film has a lot of random close ups for seemingly no reason.

This film does a thing where it shows a money exchange three different times. Each takes place at the same time, nothing actually changes in the exchange, but each is shown with a different perspective and each gives the viewer more insight into what actually happened. It's kind of like Rashomon (1950) except the events don't actually change from each character perspective, it just takes advantage of the fact that not every character is going to see the same thing because they all enter and leave at different times. This is something that must have taken a long time to plan, but its masterfully executed really seamless and surprisingly easy to follow and figure out while you're watching.

And if for no other reason you see this film, I recommend you see it just for Samuel L. Jackson's character Ordell Robbie. Samuel L. Jackson hit's all the major ranges of emotion with this one character. I love how funny and humorous (and even dumb) he can be in one scene and yet completely menacing and sinister in another. He's really a treat to watch and makes a really convincing antagonist for the story.

Jackie Brown (1997) is probably Quentin Tarantino's least "flashy" film, but its a very solid film and has a great cast and amazing characters. 4.5/5 Stars.

Happy watching!

Check out this original minimalist poster design I did for this film, click through to buy prints/posters etc. OR check out other movie posters I designed here. :)

Want more Tarantino goodness? Check back all month for my Tribute to Tarantino in honor of his latest film Django Unchained.

Go back to Tarantino's first film with Reservoir Dogs (1992), check out the first script he wrote (but didn't direct) True Romance (1993), The smash hit that really put him on the map Pulp Fiction (1994), or another film written by him but in the hands of another director From Dusk till Dawn (1996).



Like this blog? You can support it by buying this film (and 8 other Tarantino hits from his 20 year career) in this new set (now on Blu-ray) through these links:

Pulp Fiction (1994)

"Say 'what' again."

Pulp Fiction (1994) is Quentin Tarantino's crime anthology film. Pulp Ficiton is actually 3 different stories (about 40 minutes each) with a fourth story (the diner scene) that is split into a prologue and epilogue for the film. Each story crosses over at some point and characters from other stories walk in to other stories (primarily Vincent Vega). The stories are about a couple that decides to rob a coffee shop (prologue/epilogue), two hitmen that have a the strangest day of their lives (The Bonnie Situation), a hitman who has to take his boss' wife for a night out on the town (Vincent Vega and Marsellus Wallace's Wife), and a prizefighter that's trying to outsmart and escape gangsters (The Gold Watch). Each story seems to revolve around the craziest things that could happen on a otherwise seemingly normal day.

This film makes for a really great follow up to Reservoir Dogs (1992), it has the same bold style that I really liked about that film, but it all feels a little bit bigger and more comfortable. This is the first film of Quentin Tarantino's films that I think he really hits his full stride on his style. His quirky writing, great music choices, unique storytelling, and stylish scenes really all come to full bloom in this film. And much like Reservoir Dogs, some of my favorite things about this film are the simple but stylish little quirks he puts in that show he's really thinking about interesting ways to make a film, for example: Mia Wallace's "don't be a square" gesture complete with on screen diagram, I like how the camera moves over at the end of Zed's "Eeny, meeny, miny, moe" to further show who his first victim will be, and who could forget the creativity of Jack Rabbit Slim's? ..."a wax museum with a pulse."

I also just really like the humor in this film, and not just the humorous dialogue there's lots of awesome viusal gags (like hitmen dressed in beach volleyball clothes!)

It's not bad so much, but I don't find Bruce Willis' story about a boxer named Butch trying to outsmart the mob really as strong as the others. It's still a strange tale, with a really weird couple of occurrences but it's just not as interesting as the other two (or even the diner scene) to me. The core story about a boxer trying to outsmart a promoter is also completely ripped off of one of the greatest boxing films of all time, Body and Soul (1947). That being said, it's no surprise then that this is the one segment of the film that Quentin Tarantino didn't write, I feel it shows.

I gotta mention how much I love the structure of this film. I feel like this is one of those films, that shouldn't have worked as well as it really does. Aside from being multiple stories (as I've already mentioned) the film also tells the stories out of order, characters die in one story and then their alive in the next! Although these are separate stories I love that they are somewhat circular and the things that are set up in the very beginning come full circle by the end. In fact, like how you wouldn't notice this on the first viewing, but the film sets up every single story and at least mentions each character in the first twenty minutes, some of them more obviously than others. Each story really works on it's own as a great short film, each with an amazing climax. But the way the film works together as a whole is a lot better than Tarantino's next anthology project Four Rooms (1995).

I love that the film has a great all-star cast but this doesn't get in the way of each of the characters really seeming like real people. Much like Reservoir Dogs (1992) I love how this film even makes dreaded hitmen argue and converse like your best friends do.

The film's writing is absolutely amazing to me. Tarantino's style is fully exemplified here and I love how he drowns exposition in so much minute and obscure detail that you have no idea what you are hearing is actually going to be very important later on.

Pulp Fiction (1994) is one of Quentin Tarantino's best films, it's very stylish, "cool" and probably one of his most creative storytelling-wise. 5/5 Stars.

Happy watching!

Check out this original minimalist poster design I did for this film, click through to buy prints/posters etc. OR check out other movie posters I designed here. :)

Want more Tarantino goodness? Check back all month for my Tribute to Tarantino in honor of his latest film Django Unchained.

Go back to Tarantino's first film with Reservoir Dogs (1992) or check out the first script he wrote (but didn't direct).



Like this blog? You can support it by buying this film (and 8 other Tarantino hits from his 20 year career) in this new set (now on Blu-ray) through these links:

True Romance (1993) [The Quentin Tarantino Cut]

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