Violence for violence's sake...a pointless movie

Rating: 3/10 (10 October 2003)

I'm a big fan of Tarantino's movies, Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction were masterpieces and Jackie Brown to a lesser extent was still an enjoyable flick. So it was with great disappointment that I was presented with his latest offering in the form of Kill Bill. After all the hype it was always going to be difficult for this movie to live up to expectations, but in the end, it didn't come close.
The single, most accurate word to describe Kill Bill would be "pointless". Whereas Pulp Fiction was interesting on more than just a visual and stylistic level, Kill Bill does not venture past being a violent movie for violence's sake. It is style above substance, and violence without a point to it. The characters are drastically underdeveloped (don't take this to mean that the acting is bad, as it is not) and the audience is not really led to identify with the characters in any way.
The movie, whilst being visually splendid, relies far too heavily on the fact that it is a "Tarantino Film" to gain the critics applause, rather than concentrating on developing an interesting and compelling story (as was best achieved in Pulp Fiction.) Of course you will not find a "critic" who will stand up and expose the film for what it really is - a senseless portrayal of violence - for fear of not understanding Tarantino's "underlying message" or what have you. On that front all I have to say is that after several years of studying film, the only point of relevance Kill Bill makes is in exposing the level to which society has become accustomed to violence. The audience in the cinema laughed out loud at the sight of people getting their limbs severed and screaming in agony...yes, hilarious.
Another point I would make is that the inclusion of a tacky Pokemon-esque sequence does not make Tarantino an artistic genius. It is pure self-indulgent pretentiousness that tries to further the myth that if you "don't get it" you're somehow not intelligent enough to enjoy Tarantino's genius. Pure rubbish. It is quite simply a gimmick employed by someone who obviously considers himself to be an "artiste".
Of course having read this (and if you've got this far, I thank you!) it may be argued that I simply don't "get" this type of film. To that I would say that violence in context is one thing and I can accept that as valid, but violence as an entire movie is quite another. This is where Kill Bill and the rest of Tarantino's films differ.
Let me clarify - there is nothing wrong with this film. It will be enjoyed by those who want to see mindless violence, and that's fair enough. But it is not a masterpiece by any means, and the Tarantino label cannot change that. 4/10, purely for its visual aspects (which it rips off from Crouching Tiger) and some inventive cinematography.