KILL BILL: VOL. 1
Directed & Written by: Quentin Tarantino.
Produced by: Lawrence Bender.
Director of Photography: Robert Richardson.
Edited by: Sally Menke.
Music by: THE RZA.
Released by: Miramax.
Country of Origin: USA. 111 min. Rated: R.
With: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Sonny Chiba, Vivica A. Fox, Daryl Hannah, Lucy Liu & Michael Madsen.
DVD Features: The Making of Kill Bill: Vol. 1. Bonus musical performances by The 5,6,7,8's. Tarantino trailers. French audio. Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish subtitles.

Though chockfull of director Tarantino's trademark verbal and visual wit, Kill Bill also works as affectionate homage, doing for martial-arts films what director Sergio Leone's "spaghetti Westerns" did for the quintessentially American cowboy genre. A woman known only as the Bride (Thurman) seeks revenge after her boss, the titular Bill (Carradine), attempts to kill her as a consequence of her trying to leave his crime organization. Bill and his Deadly Viper Assassination Squad - of which the Bride was a part - gun down her wedding, causing her to lose her unborn baby.

Kill Bill is about as close to a cinematic cultural appreciation as a film can get. This is reflected in not only in the many kung-fu action sequences, but also in the use of mind-body meditation, and the mysterious drive behind such lofty notions as justice, honor, and punishment that motivate the characters.

Besides having a non-linear narrative structure, much of the exact details of the relationship between the Bride and Bill are left ambiguous - as is what transpired at the event that is the impetus for the story. Even how Bill looks is left to the imagination. Additionally, at one point, the Bride's name is bleeped out. Moreover, Tarantino mixes genres, including an amazingly beautiful anime sequence.

The dialogue is written - and delivered - in typically quirky Tarantino fashion. In particular, Vivica A. Fox, as Vernita Green, one of the Bride's former cohorts, displays her penchant for talking in the director's style - equal only to fellow Tarantino thespian Samuel L. Jackson - in a set piece that is one of the film's highlights. The role of the heroine is a tour de force for the charismatic Thurman - to be expected, since she originally conceived the character along with Tarantino. There is one moment in which the Bride wakes up from her coma that is devastatingly heartbreaking.

The rest of the ensemble is just as strong: Hannah gives what could be her most ferocious performance as assassin Elle; Liu is perfectly dead-pan as killer O-Ren; and Chiba hysterically pokes a bit of fun at himself as the archetypal Hattori Hanzo. Finally, there is the wonderful music. Tarantino's choice of Nancy Sinatra's rendition of “Bang Bang” as the virtual theme song is emblematic, transforming an item from the pop-trash bin into what he envisions to be its potential as the foundation for a work of art.

DVD Extras: The "making-of" featurette provides some informative moments, such as Tarantino's description of how technicians at Beijing film studios have lifetime contracts. Some segments with the Wu-Tang Clan's RZA, who provided much of the film's original music score, are also worth watching. The featurette, though, is more of a promotional tool than anything else. The musical performances by The 5,6,7,8's, where the footage looks like coverage for the film, are lame novelty items. (Tarantino intends to release both volume one and volume two, in current release, as a special edition DVD with additional special features.) Reymond Levy
May 9, 2004