I thought Bud was the only refreshing thing in part 2. Almost every other scene was drawn out and boring and just something to put between fight scenes because the plot was minimal. ALL of the dialogue was boring, and the "Grand Finale" involving David Carradine was the dullest thing I've seen in quite some time. The ENTIRE film should have been an hour and 1/2, without all the worthless crap, and it would have been a much better film.

sounds like Titantic or Gladiator when put that way. If anything I will wait until the DVD is available for rent in the dollar range. Might not even go out of my way to watch it then; I seem to to have 'missed' many of the popular/cult films from the 10+ years and have been fine with it so far.

What a lot of people are missing is that these movies weren't made for action. They were made for the characters. And every piece of dialogue in Volume 2 is rich with intent and meaning. If you go to see the movie for the entertainment value of car chases, fighting 88 people at one time, or explosions, you've come to the wrong place. Those who actually care about the characters will cherish every moment of dialogue in this movie, and not want it to end.

again, QT dose want to do a vol 3. I saw this come up a few times. do a google search for Kill Bill vol. 3 and you will get interviews with QT and other articles.

Ok, I have a rather odd question.

When we first see Beatrix tied up by Budd, the screen changes from widescreen to a tv-like aspect ratio. Why is this?

I didn't notice this particular change, which is odd considering how major it was. But I did notice over 5 significantly different styles of cinematography and photography thru out the film. Compare for example the scenes with Pai Mei and the scenes with Bill and BB.

My guess is that QT was just trying to convey a certain mood with different styles of film.

that is good.Cheesy action/fight movies that focus on the not-so-special effects at the expense of any kind of plot or the "main hero fighting 100 people at once" scenarios lose my interest very quickly. Two big reasons that the first Matrix sequel (watched most of it on DVD two or three months back) was mostly dreadful IMO.

The Mask is one of the few recent films (only one off the top of my head actually) that I love that focuses on eye candy with just enough plot to hold it together.

the aspect ratio switch was made to help provide a sense of the claustrophobia of the situation.

That opinion is made with the belief that the Kill Bill movies are action movies. They aren't. They're movies that are based around a simple plot, totally driven by dialogue and character development. If ya go to see Kill Bill to see an action movie, damn, I'd be surprised if you *weren't* disappointed. None of the action scenes in Kill Bill 1 or 2 are bad, but they're simply not designed to be the basis of the movies. I was personally relieved when volume 2 had less action and more dialogue. And as I said before, the end of Bill was simply perfect. I wouldn't have it any other way.

-Lasereth

i found the movie was the complete opposite of dull i was on the edge of my seat the whole time for both movies.

To each, his own opinion. I simply didn't like it, for the reasons stated. I thought it was dull. I loved part 1. I thought part two was bloated.

Loved part two.. Absolutly loved it. David Caradine was perfect!

You can get the unedited version in Canada as well. Thats where I got mine ;)

I just saw Vol.2 last night, and I have to say that the switch in style was startling. Though title Vol.1 and Vol.2, and basically being 2 halves of the same movie, they felt like two completely different films. The momentum in Vol.1 was fast and relentless. Vol.2 went from 5th gear to 2nd gear, slowing way down and turning more into a character driven movie.

I think the big difference I saw here as opposed to other QT films was that in movies like RD and PF, the long dialogue scenes can be carried off because they are always filled with tension. I mean Reservoir Dogs had me on the edge of my seat the entire time because you never knew what was going to happen next. You were never allowed to sit back and relax.

Conversely, several of the scenes in Vol.2 allowed you to do just that. The story at the campfire, the first half of the wedding rehearsal scene, etc. were a little long and were not filled with tension. When Bill showed up at the church, however, the tension was ratcheted up and I was back into it.

All that said, I enjoyed Vol.2. It just took me a while to get into it considering what my expectations were of it.

Gordon Liu, the actor who plays Pai Mei and the leader of the Crazy 88, does have many movies of his own. He was hired for the role because Tarantino really enjoyed his movies. The character Pai Mei also has movies of his own, though he is played by a different actor.

People kept saying Kill Bill would be better as a merged movie and you'll be hard-pressed to find someone who disagrees. In reality, the vast majority of the movie-going population does not like to sit through a four-hour movie, no matter how much they think they do. Furthermore, it was the Weinstein brothers who split up the movie not Tarantino. If the movie was released as one the release date would have been pushed a few months back as it was not complete at its original release date.

Bonus Trivia: The name 'Beatrix Kiddo' shows up uncensored in Volume 1. They are on the plane tickets.

I personally found Pei Mei to be a dirturbingly funny character. Kong Fu is popular is northern China, so why the hell is Pei Mei speaking Cantonese? Also the hair stroking thing is a bit stupid though I laugh my ass off everytime he did it. Was that a trade mark from imported kong fu movies?

pai mei was in a whole bunch of 70's and 80's jung fu movies.

I'm mostly with docbungle on how Vol.2 turned out. I'm all for movies with plot and character development but a lot of it seemed forced and drawn out. Were the actors told to speak slowly and put heaps of attention-grabbing emphasis on every word? It seemed that way most of the time.

I think the dialogue could have used a bit of trimming. The actions scenes were fine. The part with Pai Mei was great, but I would have liked to see some more of it. the one single biggest problem I had was with her name. What kind of name is Beatrix Kiddo? Now I know why they kept it a secret. It instills a mingled sense of laughter and horror all at once.

*SPOILER*

No way could she have escaped from that coffin. Okay, the short-range punch might just have been do-able, but that spiral jump she did through 6ft of earth was just silly. Have you ever been even partially buried in sand at the beach? QT obviously hasn't.

The Mamba in the case was, I think, the single scariest thing I've ever seen at the cinema. I confess that I yelped like a little doggie. Exhilarating.

The one major disappointment for me was...Uma's baps. Where have they gone? They even get a mention in the script, and there was a time (circa Dangerous Liaisons ) when they would easily have merited such attention. Not here, and I had half a mind to ask for my money back. Too much working out, say I, and not enough chocolate.

the film's great.
go-go yubari's sister, yuki was cut from the film though, it would have been interesting to see that

SPOILERS!!! SO BUGGER OFF AND WATCH IT!


OK a few things.

1:Yes I saw the rabbit puppet, weird.

2: I thought I was the only freak that loved the references (cowboy boots with razor, Natural Born Killer etc)

3: Samuel was in True Romance, technically not QT (Tony Scott directed from mind?) I count True Romance, NBK, Reservioir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, 4 Rooms, From Dusk Till Dawn, Jackie Brown and Kill Bill as QT movies (To some extent) but there are more (which i wont remember) but include Desperado (actor) and Crimson Tide (uncredited script writer)

For super fans out there, I own his scripts (which I love!) but better still is the BOOK of NBK by Joan August and Jane Hamsher, based on a script by QT based on a movie by Oliver Stone. Excellent read.

4: I believe the aspect change was to increase the tension anc claustrophobia sense.

5: She could have escaped that coffin. Just. The earth wasn't compacted, and underneath there were pockets around the tree roots of air and what not. Technically, if all the dirt fell as she moved it, she may have escaped.

Now some gripes.
1: WTF was with the whole not saying the name thing?

2: I didn't like the ending. I thought that after all the setting up they did with Bill, there should have been at least a little more swordplay.... before the 5 point exploding heart technique, of course.

ah well..
9.5/10 for me. 8.5/10 for non QT fans.

PS. Amy I the only person that thought Uma looked the best in this that i've ever scene!? There were some parts in Kill Bill 2 where he face just radiated. Not in the nice rack nice ass lets go f^$%. More the Audrey Hepburn glamous style. Of note: After being shotguned with salt (her face looked like a porcelin doll) and when she was in the coffin. She just kept changing appearance! I hadn't seen something like that since Claire Danes - Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (der)

The name thing was a tribute to old Japanese samurai movies where they wouldnt say the main characters name until the final fight.

I loved the ending, i wasnt expecting it to be so short so it caught me by surprise and i loved it.

And yes Uma did radiate. She is now on my list of hottest actresses because of that movie. like you said not in the slutty kind of way. More elegant and graceful.

I thought she looked beautiful when she was talking to Esteban Vihaio.