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While Kill Bill Volume 1 & 2 came out months apart in the movie-theater, I do not consider them to be separate movies. Instead, I perceive them to be two distinct parts that come together as a whole similar to Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket. From what I have heard director Quentin Tarantino originally intended Kill bill to be a single film, however because of creative and possibly monetary differences with Miramax Films, Kill Bill was release in two volumes. The movie begins with the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad savagely executing a bridal party and leaving the Bride, played by Uma Thurman, for dead. However she survives the ordeal and wakes up from a coma four years later with only one thing on her mind: to kill Bill. From that point on the story line of the movie revolves around the idea of the Bride getting her revenge on the people who tried to kill her. The story is told out of order through a combination of flashbacks and current happenings. As the film progresses we slowly begin to put the pieces together of what the film is about, and most importantly, the Brides’ and Bill’s motive to kill each other. Tarantino has an amazing knack for combining humor and violence; as noticed in his previous films like Pulp Fiction. Kill Bill is essentially a spoof on martial arts movies, as it pays tribute and makes fun of stereotypical elements that make up martial arts films.

In Volume One, the Bride seeks out the first half of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad comprising of Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox) and O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu.) While Thurman, Fox and Liu are nowhere close to being Oscar worthy actresses, they do a surprising good job in this movie. Unlike the typical action flick all of the major characters in this movie, except for Bill and his brother Budd, are women and they do a remarkable job showing that they can kick ass as good, if not better than your classic macho guy. In addition to being able to fight and do stunts, these ladies also have to act. This becomes more apparent in Volume Two - which is more of a continuation than a sequel to the fist part. Volume Two picks up where the first left off with the Bride hunting down the rest of the squad and finally getting to Bill (David Carradine) in the end. The Bride’s first encounter is with Budd (Michael Madsen,) who does a convincing monologue while Thurman uses only facial expressions to display her fear and helplessness in the scene. After Budd is out of the way, the Bride faces the one eyed Elle Driver (Daryl Hannah,) who also does a very good monologue. It’s surprising how well the actors in this movie are able to pull off Tarantino’s quirky dialogue so convincingly. The final encounter is, of course, with Bill himself - as you might have suspected. The scene is very emotional, because the two have feelings for each other and it becomes questionable whether the Bride would actually Kill Bill.

A particularly memorable sequence in Volume One is when the Bride single-handedly defeats a band of 88 sword wielding fighters. The scene is a magnificent display of martial arts and swordplay as blood and body parts fly across the screen. In the middle of the fight the lights go out and all we see are dark silhouettes taking swipes at each other, which turns the typical slice and dice fest into an artistic display of acrobatics. The sheer volume of fighters, gratuitous amount of blood, amazing choreography, and most importantly a sense of style makes this scene stand out not only for this film, but also in the whole genre of action films. Another surprise was the insertion of an Anime sequence into the film. In this sequence Tarantino is once again able to depict an extremely bloody and gory scene in an artistic fashion. The flashback of O-Ren’s childhood depicts how her mother and father are savagely murdered right in front of her eyes by the Yakuza and how she gets her bloody revenge years later. The second volume concentrates more on story telling than on grand massacres like the first volume. However, it still contains some very entertaining fight sequences as the Bride receives her martial arts training from a legendary Asian master Pai Mei, a remarkable one on one sword fight with the one-eyed Elle Driver, and of course the showdown with Bill himself.

I would like to warn any viewer who is considering watching this film that it is extremely gory and violent. Despite the fact that Tarantino attempts to show the violence in both a funny and artistic aspects some of the scenes are not in any way appropriate for kids and may even make some adults queasy. As previously mentioned, I believe that Kill Bill Volume 1 and 2 should be considered as one film, since each half is required to understand the whole. With some skillful editing the two volumes could have been cut down to a single 3 hour film, however having the two separate volumes can still be considered to be an acceptable alternative to some. The movie Kill Bill stands out because it is unique in a couple of way. First, it is a film that empowers women. Sure, you have movies like Charlie’s Angels where women play the lead roles and fight the bad guys, but those kinds of movies are just silly skits turned into feature length movies. In Kill Bill almost all of the leading roles are played by women and the viewer truly perceives how powerful and dangerous these female assassins really are. Secondly, Tarantino is a master at creating memorable and quirky dialogue. Here is a sample exchange between the Bride and O-Ren:
O-Ren Ishii: You didn't think it was gonna be that easy, did you?
The Bride: You know, for a second there, yeah, I kinda did.
O-Ren Ishii: Silly rabbit.
The Bride: Trix are for...
O-Ren Ishii: ...kids.

As you can see, the dialogue is eccentric, puzzling, and humorous all at the same time; and that is what it makes it so unique. The oddball conversations combined with a somewhat unpredictable plot and awesome action sequence make this a truly memorable film. Lastly, I would like to address the issue of many viewers who do not understand the movie, and many of its eccentric scenes. First of all, you have to understand that this movie is fiction and most importantly a parody/spoof on martial arts films. It is true that blood doesn’t gush out like that, and it’s quite impossible for one woman to kill 88 sword wielding fighters. However you have to understand that this film is intended to be over the top and crazy. The dialogue is quirky and the plot doesn’t always make sense. Nevertheless, this movie is original and stands out from all the other stereotypical action films put out by Hollywood.

After watching a movie, we often forget about the music or songs that were used in the film. A movie soundtrack plays an important role in creating the atmosphere and mood for each scene in the film. Most of the current Hollywood blockbusters employ a combination of recent pop hits, overused mood music (like Marvin Gay’s “Lets Get It On”) for love scenes, and techno tracks for fighting and action sequences. However the movie Kill Bill has a truly original soundtrack that deserves some special attention.

The music for Kill Bill is both diverse and unique, comprising of rap, Japanese music, Spanish flamingo, rock and roll, cool sound effects, and a lot of other tunes that are hard to categorize. All the songs were new to me and all of them were entertaining to listen to during the movie as well as outside the context of the film. The factor that makes the soundtrack of Kill Bill so good is that it is so unusual and musically pleasing. You would never be able to hear these songs on the radio, or buy them at the store; however they are truly amazing and deserve to be listened to. My only hope is that more directors would follow in the steps of Quentin Tarantino and try to use more unique music for their films; because just as the moves itself, the soundtrack makes an important artistic statement.