“Kill Bill Volume 2,” the much-anticipated conclusion to “Kill Bill Volume 1,” came out with a bang at the box office last weekend. With an opening weekend gross of $25.5 million, “Kill Bill Volume 2” was first in the box office with “The Punisher” trailing at $14 million.
The story of “Kill Bill” follows the war-path of “The Bride,” who was shot down at her wedding by the “Deadly Viper Assassination Squad” as punishment for leaving the assassins organization.
Uma Thurman, who played a starring role in Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 hit “Pulp Fiction,” stars as the main character, “The Bride” (a.k.a. Black Mamba). She wakes up from a four-year coma caused by a gunshot to the head, and takes vengeance on those who ruined her reformed life as a mother and wife.
With over-the-top violence and classic Tarantino one-liners, “Kill Bill Volume 1” is a punchy masterpiece worthy of any DVD collection. The first installment details The Bride’s vengeance on both Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox), and O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu).
Hand to hand combat, hokey visual effects and even an animated portion make the first installment a completely unexpected pleasure. Tarantino really steps outside the box to entertain and amaze movie-goers.
What makes the movies amazing as a whole are the small details. Like “Pulp Fiction” and “Reservoir Dogs,” both “Kill Bill” movies are hard to place on the timeline. While the movies feature some modern lingo and music, the overall feel is something out of the 1970s.
While “Kill Bill Volume 1” was action based, the second installment works to fill in the blanks, and includes an extensive back-story as well as the much anticipated character Bill, played by David Carradine. That’s not to say that there isn’t any action. Trust me, there is.
In the true style of the Kung-fu masterpieces of the 70s, the movie is complete with samurai swords and flying ninja kicks. The astonishing fight choreography is reminiscent of Bruce Lee.
Gordon Liu Jia-hui stars as Pai Mei, Kiddo’s martial arts master and teacher. Liu has starred in and directed a number of movies in the Hong Kong cinema, Drunken Monkey being the latest (with the exception of “Kill Bill 2,” of course).
The special effects are clearly overcooked, and the experience is a great time for even a scrutinizing moviegoer. Blood shooting out of a severed body about seven feet into the air is by no means realistic, but compared to the violence in other movies, I’ll admit it is pretty funny. The effects were obviously done this way intentionally, and because no attempt at reality is made, the effects are difficult to criticize.
Being a college student and all, money can be tight. However, “Kill Bill Vol. 1” is definitely worth renting, and the second installment is worth making the trip to the theaters.