Rating: Summary: Eclectic...But Not to Be Taken Seriously Review: I have never been a fan of Uma Thurman's work. Often times her demure, stone-like prescence in films pushes, not gravitates, me towards her. Likewise, Quentin Tarantino does not have my regards as being one of the best directors in the last decade or so. But what Uma and Tarantino do in Kill Bill could have finally changed my mind. Blending gratuitous violence, stilted-one liner dialogue, and highly stylized cinematography and fighting sequences, Kill Bill is an odd homage to stereotypical Kung Fu era films and spaghetti westerns.A little plot goes a long way for Tarantino in Kill Bill Vol.1. The Bride (Uma Thurman) is left for dead on her wedding day. She fell victim to a vicious crew of assassins, and ultimately received a bullet to the head after begging for her own life and that of her unborn child. Four years later, after awakening from her comatose state, she vows revenge. So begins her epic journey. The fight sequences in Kill Bill are delicious, spellbinding moments, only stilted by the sometimes VERY UNNECESSARY blood fountains that spray from dead goons severed limbs. Most engaging are the animated sequences. They are absolutely gorgeous, and happen to be one of the most poignant spots in this otherwise odd movie. In Vol. 1, viewers are introduced to Vernita Greene (Vivica A. Fox), and O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu-in one of her best performances to date.) Daryl Hannah also has guest appearances, mostly in the form of flashbacks. Bill Carradine is only shown in snippets, so as to add to his sadistic and cold demeanor. Uma Thurman may appear as an odd choice for such a film. Interestinly enough, she embraces the role of the Bride, giving the otheriwse obscure woman an identity that you either like or hate. While Kill Bill is a violent and sometimes silly film, there are plenty of poignant and serious moments that add balance and credibility to the film. In what could be the best action movie in a long, long, long time, Kill Bill may also be the most violent, and as stated before, this is not always a winning attribute. All in all, Kill Bill is a pleasing action-thriller. Uma's quiet demeanor, Lucy Liu's ice-cold agenda (she is also given the most background history in the film-animated sequnces and all), and Vivica's blackploitation-like attitude add another dimension to what could have been just another action film with good eye candy. Kill Vol 2. should be a great ending to odd and at times beautiful film.
Rating: Summary: Glorified Music Video Review: First off, let me say that like most people, I enjoyed Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction. In fact, I watched them several times without getting tired of them. I even watched Jackie Brown a couple of times. But I'm having a tough time getting through even my first viewing of Kill Bill. I have been watching it today 10-15 minutes at a time b/c it's just too damn BORING. This movie is basically an extended music video, interrupted by bouts of violence and the kind of dialog you would expect a 16-year-old to come up with. Anybody who's calling this movie "artistic" is seriously lacking in IQ. Tarentino basically took a random sampling of popular culture and made it into a "video"-- I wouldn't even call this a movie. All the Asian characters are caricatures of tired stereotypes. In fact, ALL the characters look and act like they belong in some lame-ass comic book your kid brother just drew up. To boot, not only does this movie lack a message, damn-near half of it is pure filler. By filler I mean half the time you're just looking at people sitting or walking or driving with music in the background. None of these montages advance the plot, so the only purpose they serve is to make the movie long enough for cinematic release. The fact that most people are giving this 5 stars is a testament to the stupidity of the American public. It barely even passes for a 70's B-movie, big budget or no.
Rating: Summary: Cinematically impressive homage piece. Review: Sunday, April 18, 2004 / 4 of 5 / Cinematically impressive homage piece. Incredibly, Kill Bill v.1 goes beyond suspension of belief to allow us to consider Uma Thurman an anti-hero, death dealing instrument of carnage. This hodgepodge homage to manga, anime, spaghetti westerns, and kung fu films works well and was great fun to watch on DVD and a bigscreen. The action is framed marvelously, particularly the showdown with Oren. Lucy Liu once again steals the show with her mouse that roars techniques, particularly her quick dash across a board table for some 'face time' with a dissenter. While not as supple and attractive as her appearance in Dangerous Liaisons, Uma comes off a lot better than the more recent Hysterical Blindness where we're asked to believe she's a barfly having trouble getting some action. Uma plays the pregnant 'Bride' who is shot and left for dead on her wedding alter by her ex-boss/lover and assassin squad co-workers. After four years in a coma she awakes and seeks revenge against all five. The violence is abundant and stylized, especially the arterial spurts from samurai sword cuts. The tributes to old-school kung fu and noir films abound and it all looks marvelous if a bit staged. Fans of the Lone Wolf and Cub manga will appreciate the final showdown with Lucy in a gently snowing park, the combatants run at each other as is the custom to make their final slices. One must fall. Pretty well all action and little exposition, this film sets the table for its more cerebral second part, hitting the theatres now. Slick and deadly, with great production values, Kill Bill will enter the upper pantheon of action thrillers just as Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction did before it. Recommended.
Rating: Summary: Uh, wait.. Review: To anyone reading this: DON'T BUY IT. RENT IT FIRST! Don't spend too much money on this. You won't regret it, trust me. It has very little special feautres. No commentaries. That sucks.
Rating: Summary: Not for me Review: The acting is good, but the plot is weak. As a writer, I prefer a movie with a stronger plotline and character development. However, if you're big on action, you may like it.
Rating: Summary: it sucks bad Review: i didnt like the scene changes from color to black and white where 'the bride' starts slashing the bad guys. why was that necessary? well i dunno but i really wanted to like this movie but it failed to win me over. i dunno about you but the animation was ok for me. but the flashback and narration chapters kinda confused me. im glad i rented this movie. i wont bother seeing volume 2. i'll just download it, see it, delete it, and forget about it. get matrix revolutions better. have a nice day, bill-- i mean buddy. :)
Rating: Summary: Decent Flick, Worth A Look Review: I'm not sure where to start, this film left me kinda confused about the quality of movie Tarantino is capable of.Firstly, the violence was hyped in this movie and really there isn't much of it. It was looks pretty fake. So i dont know why everyone is so grossed out by this movie. The Plot was OK, typical revenge plot, not many twists, straightforward. The high point of Kill Bill Vol1 was the fight choreography and the music. Dialogue was cheesy, profane typical of Tarantino movies. I'm personally a big fan of Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs. Four Rooms and From Dusk Till Dawn. This offering however left me somewhat dissapointed. I dont think i'll be rushing to the theaters to see Kill Bill Vol2 and i certainly won't be bying this DVD.
Rating: Summary: Quentin Tarintino's Blood Feast Review: This is the movie you get when there is no plot, no story line, no meaningful dialogue and you have to fill 2hours worth of film. It's bad enough that the director has to tell you what time line you are currently viewing and that ain't much help after all. Let's see, we were 4 years ago, 4 years later, two days past 4 years later and tomorrow 6 months ago. HUH? And don't forget the all important subtitles and animation he added to make sure you "got it". I think at the very least he could have spent a little extra money on the English translation of the English dialogue because otherwise I can not tell what the H--- is going on! I finally "got" Pulp Fiction after the 12th viewing. I even managed to keep up with "Resevoir Dogs" even tho there were no subtitles and no Englsh to English translation. The actors even had characters to match their given nicknames! I loved that movie and have probably seen it ten times! BUT.......... I guess it's me, apparently this is a Testosterone flick and since I don't have that particular hormone this movie could not get past my brain sensors. I swear if I could have found where Amazondotcom hides the 1/2 and 0 stars I would have made good use of them.
Rating: Summary: Cool movie, Decent DVD Review: This movie is awsome, one of the best of 2003. It brought us back to a time where you didn't need great special effects to make a great movie. All you needed was Uma Thurman, a few swords, and an excellently executed plot line. This is the bloodiest movie EVER. It seems extremely unrealistic how much blood comes from someones dismembered limbs. However, I have never seen someones arm chopped off so it could look like that. Now that we know how cool the movie is, lets talk about the DVD itself. At first I was dissapointed with the lame cover art and only 3 special features. But then I realized that this movie is based on old movies from the seventies that didn't have any special features and had very simple cover desiegns. So the movie and the DVD fit togethor nicely. Defenetly worth at least a rent.
Rating: Summary: Don't Bother Review: This movie was dumb. Some cool stuff, but not worth the hype.
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