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Kill Bill (Vol. 1)

If Disney is the House of the Mouse and New Line Cinemas is the House that Freddy Built ? than Miramax must be Tarentino Manor. The financing for the indie powerhouse production firm can be traced directly to one source ? 1994?s Pulp Fiction ? a minor-league budgeted film ($8 million) that went on to reap critical acclaim while filling the coffers for all involved. The ripple effects from that film, Tarentino?s sophomore (though not sophomoric) follow-up to his debut Reservoir Dogs, traveled far and influenced many. In a move that mimicked the early 90?s fusion of alternative music to the limelight, indie movies merged effortlessly with the mainstream ? bursting out from the dark confines of art house cinemas and jockeying for space alongside the formula fare at your local multiplex.

In the nine years since Pulp Fiction, Tarentino has struck just once more ? with 1997?s Jackie Brown ? an underrated rift on the 70?s blacksploitation melodramas that while heavy on Tarentino?s cool blue dialogue, failed to inflame the passions of the Pulp crowd. Q Fans, fret not. With the release of Kill Bill, the fourth film from the director, Tarentino is back with a vengeance.

Kill Bill follows the trail of ?The Bride? (Uma Thurman) ? a former member of the Deadly Viper?s Assassination Squad (DiVAS ? Think Pulp Fiction?s ?Fox Force Five? and you?re in on the joke). Left for dead at the altar, a duplicitous gift imparted by her former employer Bill (David Carradine), ?The Bride? enters a coma where she lies still for 4 years ? replaying the events of her blight wedding and filling her head with revenge fantasies. Once out of the coma, ?The Bride? drafts a hit list ? and the film follows her in Tarentino?s trademarked fractured temporal narrative fashion ? as she hunts down her former colleagues ? Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox), Elle Driver (Darryl Hannah), O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu), Budd (Michael Madsen) and the Grand DiVA of them all, Bill.

Just prior to the film?s release, Tarentino and Miramax honcho Harvey Weinstein made the curious decision to split the 3-hour Bill into two sections: dubbed Volume I and II. Volume II arrives in February. While on the surface it appears to be nothing but a cheap marketing ploy aimed at getting viewers to pay twice for the privilege of seeing one movie (not to mention the promise of multiple DVD editions) ? ultimately the division is wise. With Tarentino?s notorious leaps forward and backward in time, the split makes structural sense.

Volume I follows ?The Bride? as she tracks down Vernita Green and O-Ren Ishii. Ishii?s section bring ?The Bride? to Japan ? culminating in a samurai battle royale at The House Of Blue Leaves restaurant. This melee - where ?The Bride? in Yellow Track Suit faces down the mace swinging teenage bodyguard to Ishii, Go Go Yabari, as well as a posse of eighty-eight Yakuza swordsmen dubbed ?The Crazy 88?s? before finally facing Ishii in a duel to the death set against a hauntingly beautiful snow-covered garden backdrop ? takes up the entire 3rd act and act as a fitting cliffhanger. I can?t imagine following the events of the Blue Leaves sequence with another 90 minutes of film. After the exhilaration of these battles, the audience if primed for a break. Tarentino leaves us hanging ? tantalizingly so ? with a shot of Bill and his portentous last words. Masterful manipulation.

Those expecting to slice into Tarentino?s great ear for dialogue are going to be in for a slight disappointment. Where Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction allowed Tarentino to weave his pop cultural celebrations into the narrative ? with everything from Silver Surfer comic-books to Sonny Chiba?s Son of Streetfighter receiving props ? Bill eschews hard-boiled dialogue in favor of iconography. Here, action speaks louder than words.

Regardless Tarentino?s visual style remains true to his oral form ? he has dominated this film with references to pop-culture - both obvious (the film opens with a quote from Star Trek II ? ?Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold?) and obscure (an extended sequence in a hospital mimics Brian DePalma?s Hitchcockian Dressed to Kill ? right down to the split screen paneling and predatory tracking shots.) While some may accuse Tarentino of raiding the vaults ? I think his style comes across as a grand celebration of celluloid ? as he cribs from all corners ultimately concocting his own special brand of cinema. One thing these nine years has afforded him ? his films have never looked this good, with a masterful sheen applied to every single frame and a painterly touch to each composition.

Special mention must go to his inclusion of a thrilling piece of anime ? inserted as a chapter mark in the film ? that fleshes out O-Ren Ishii's back story. This segment, from the creator?s of the legendary Ghost in the Shell, provides us with a great hook to Liu?s villainous aspirations as well as compliments Bill?s comic book vibe. Scored to a piece of music ripped from Sergio Leone?s larger than life spaghetti westerns (i.e. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly) this modern myth comes to life in startling color and detail. It is a jaw-dropping segment in the film ? both brutal and beautiful in its visceral imagery.

Although Tarentino scripted Bill as his tribute to the martial arts extravaganzas that he grew up watching ? his sharp craftsmanship elevates and legitimizes the genre. Each of his actors steps into the shoes of their archetypes and finds they fit comfortably. In lesser hands they?d be mere ciphers guided from fight to fight.

To illustrate, I return to the House of Blue Leaves sequence. In one twenty minute shot of pure adrenaline ? Tarentino takes the Wachowski?s celebrated ?Burly Brawl? - featured in this past summer?s Matrix Reloaded - and swiftly kicks it to the curb. The Reloaded set piece, found Keanu Reeve?s Neo facing off against a horde of Agent Smith?s ? each digitized to pixel perfection. Too perfect in fact, as much of that sequence looked at home on my X-Box. ?The Bride?s? battle with the Crazy 88?s, while just as over-the-top as Reloaded?s brawl ? feels more important. Each hit feels like it hurts ? yet Tarentino never drags us away from his perfectly composed fantasy land. The battle sequence impresses because of the raw and real stunt work on display ? because of the visceral consequences to ?The Bride?s? actions. In Reloaded, Neo punched one Smith, and some techie geek punched up another one. In Bill, ?The Bride? cleaves ?88s? left and right ? leaving a crimson tide in her wake. The battle feels more intense and more personal because despite the knowledge that Volume II is around the corner ? we never feel ?The Bride? is truly invincible. For all we know, we could be falling prey to Tarentino?s circular logic and this final scene in Volume I could be the end-all-be-all of the entire movie. Thus, we back ?The Bride?s? battle and feel when she gets hurt. Credit goes to Uma Thurman for giving soul to a potential statue.

Ultimately, Kill Bill is one great time at the movies. As he?s done in the past, Quentin scores his scenes with some perfectly chosen nuggets of music (everything from the funk of RZA to the pan-flute of Zamphir is represented here) that make each gorgeous scene flow. Kill Bill is not meant to be a thought-provoking drama ? rather it?s a perfect tome of visual poetry set to a throbbing, vibrant beat. I haven?t been this energized leaving a film since Pulp Fiction.

Kill Bill? Most likey. Praise Q? Definitely!!!