Kill Bill Vol. 2

At one point in Quentin Tarantino’s concluding chapter to the epic saga that is Kill Bill, hit man honcho Bill (David Carradine) injects The Bride (Uma Thurman) with a special serum he likes to call “The Undisputed Truth.” The purpose of his interrogation tactic is to extract honest answers from a woman he once tried to kill, and hence could not believe a word she said without this artificial upper hand. Bill’s questions deal with the couple’s relationship, their romance and why she decided to leave him, and their international espionage, years ago to pursue an undercover life as an average wife and mother in rural El Paso.

This narrative sketch may not sound like what you would expect in a Tarantino film, ex-lovers dealing with relationship issues and parenthood, but it is this emotional base that all of the ultraviolent sword swinging and pistol wielding action of Kill Bill is rooted in.

Bill and The Bride are not your average couple and their relationship woes are not caused by typical domestic disputes. Bill is the leader of a ruthless band of professional killers, the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad (aka the DiVAS), each member of the team named for a venomous snake. The Bride (aka Black Mamba) was his top student and eventual lover, but an unexpected pregnancy forced Black Mamba (aka The Bride) to re-evaluate her life and the future of her unborn daughter. She decided to leave the DiVAS and disappear into a life of normalcy. But when Bill and his gang of thugs finally track her down, on the day of her wedding rehearsal, they take out their anger by mercilessly massacring the entire wedding party, ending with Bill putting a bullet in The Bride’s white-veiled head.

We get a glimpse of this butchery at the start of Kill Bill Vol. 1. The battered Bride, wounded but not dead, was comatose for five years before waking up and vowing vengeance against her attempted murderers. Her grocery list of death notes soon allowed her to cross off Vernita Green (aka Copperhead, played by Vivica A. Fox) and after a relentless bloodbath in Japan, O-Ren Ishii (aka Cottonmouth, played by Lucy Liu). This left Budd (aka Sidewinder, Michael Madsen), Elle Driver (aka California Mountain Snake, Daryl Hannah) and The Snake Charmer himself (aka Bill).

Vol. 2 presents a much more toned down film than Vol. 1. The stylistic excess of ultraviolent limb-hacking gives way to interpersonal relationships and individual psychology. This half displays a more patient Tarantino, allowing scenes to unfold naturally, driven by character rather than physical action. This isn’t to say that Vol. 2 is devoid of action, intensely choreographed fight scenes are scattered throughout and definitely pack a visceral punch (especially entertaining is the showdown between The Bride and Elle Driver in Budd’s trailer, this is the catfight to end all catfights, or is it?), but this focus on character is a luxury Tarantino can afford with the group of actors he has assembled. Each character was written precisely with the specific actors in mind and never do we doubt their authenticity. Uma, who was nominated for a Best Actress Golden Globe Award for her work in Vol. 1, delivers another powerful performance as the renegade femme fatale of revenge. Madsen’s Budd, Bill’s younger brother, now a washed-up bouncer at a desert strip club, is played with the same smarmy indifference towards humanity he so brilliantly captured as Mr. Blond in Tarantino’s first feature Reservoir Dogs, and Hannah inhabits the role of Elle Driver with cold-blooded antagonism. Add to the mix the talents of Michael Parks as a Mexican brothel patriarch and martial arts screen legend Gordon Liu, whose kung-fu master Pai Mei can knock opponents to the ground with the flip of his feathery white whiskers, and you have an ensemble for the ages.

The standout in this talented company is Carradine, whose role was virtually non-existent in Vol. 1 despite being the nominal character. Here Carradine is allowed to showcase his talents, dominating the screen with an ethereal confidence. His Bill is elevated above the cares of generic humanity to a realm of calmness and spiritual relaxation unexpected for a man of his profession.

But the true star of this epic tale is Tarantino. The eclectic director proves once again why he is one of the most creative and talented individuals in contemporary filmmaking. Never has there been a more natural and honest infusion of post-modern style and spot on cinematic homage. Tarantino’s unique brand of witty dialogue, referencing everything from Chinese mythology to the origin of Superman, is immersed into a voyage across several of film’s most iconic genres. In Vol. 2 Tarantino takes the viewer on a ride through the Spaghetti Western, Kung-fu actioner, and heart-felt melodrama. The film is broken into chapters, each following the precise aesthetics of the appropriate genre. Elements of shot selection, cinematography, and sound (with original music by The RZA and Robert Rodriguez) are so well constructed, the cine-literate crowd will smirk in admiration.

Tarantino has raised the bar yet again. He needs not a vile of “Undisputed Truth” serum to pour his soul onto celluloid, his love for cinema and the act of filmmaking gleams like the blade of a Hattori Hanzo sword and the result, just like Hanzo’s steel, is priceless.

photos courtesy of Miramax.