Entertaining But Overrated

Rating: Null/10 (23 October 2003)

I'll say this about QT - he's one of the most stylish directors to ever work in the movies. He approaches things from skewed angles, picking up stories in progress and then going back and filling in the blanks. His movies are never boring; but I do think they suffer from a definite lack of substance. I realize substance was one thing KB wasn't really going for, but his other films don't have a lot of depth either. They come on strong and fascinate, but they don't exactly make you think. Not that every movie has to, but I think if QT wants to have a lengthy career, he needs to break out of his seventies fixation and show some variety.
Seventies fixation is what KB is all about. From the "Shaw Scope" opening to the snap-zoom close ups, much of Kill Bill is violent, colorful fun. Uma is great in the lead, and the supporing characters are cool. I have to say that I was disappointed by the final battle, though. I looked forward to it the whole time, and when it finally came, it all just seemed...average. There's better sword-fighting and wire-work in Crouching Tiger, the fight with the Go-Go girl is unexceptional, and the highly touted bloodbath is mostly in black and white! This really annoyed me because I know it was just done to get an R rating. To me, the b & w took most of the fun out of the scene. Hopefully the DVD will restore it.
Overall, KB was pretty cool, and I was ready to watch part 2 when it was over. I think now that QT has done his ultimate homage to kung fu films he should tackle another of his passions and do the ultimate comic book movie.