Day 149 Kill Bill: Volume II [2004]
Screenplay Quentin Tarantino
Director Quentin Tarantino
Cinematography Robert Richardson
Music The RZA & Robert
Rodriguez
Leads Uma
Thurman, Michael Madsen, David Carradine, Daryl Hannah, Gordon Liu
Production A Band Apart
IMDb 8/10
Rotten Tomatoes 84%
After
a trip down memory lane with Volume I (Day 100) I thought it would be
rude not to watch the second instalment of this Tarantino epic. Rated the
tiniest bit lower by critics and public alike and I can probably guess why –
Bill (Carradine) does drone on a bit. Of course, this is a lot to do with his
mystical ‘boss’ persona as ‘Snake Charmer’, the man who controls the Deadly
Viper Assassination Squad. Thurman is again brilliant in this homage to
Westerns, Bruce Lee and Pak Mei Kung Fu. She is perhaps even more superwoman than
the first film, surviving numerous situations and still having the energy to
fight and to kill. Her supporting cast are also fantastic, Daryl Hannah as Elle
Driver and Michael Madsen as Bud in particular. This film has more references
than a good CV and I particularly enjoyed the ones referencing Reservoir
Dogs. If you can spot them all I’ll give you a prize. The soundtrack isn’t
quite as good as the first one but that’s probably due to the aim of making it
more of a Western than a Kung-Fu movie. Tarantino originally wanted Kill
Bill to be a four-hour epic and that is clear in the continuous nature of
this film and in the end credits. That would have been a mistake as no-one can
attentively sit through four hours of anything, no matter how good it may be.
You could argue that this was Tarantino’s breakthrough moment (both movies). Yes,
Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs are Hall of Fame films, and still
probably his best, but I think Kill Bill hit the mainstream audience
harder and really cemented Quentin’s place in the directorial history books.
Acting 4 / 4
Writing 3 / 4
Cinematography 3.5 / 4
Music 3 / 4
HWF rating 3.5
/ 4
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