Style over substance, sure, but is that a bad thing?

Rating: 10/10 (29 January 2006)

So what have we in this movie? A simple and rather silly plot, and lots and lots of blood. Normally this would spell disaster, but when Tarantino directs you know you can expect good things, and that's exactly what you get.
This movie has a lot of style, and it's style that drives it and style that builds it. The plot revolves around The Bride (her name bleeped out in this movie), once a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, codenamed Black Mamba. But she leaves her boss and boyfriend, Bill, to marry somebody else. Bill is upset, and kills everybody who attended the wedding, and has his Squad beat the pregnant Bride into a pulp, before shooting her in the head, only a second after she informs Bill the baby is his. She wakes up four years later, bent on revenge. And from there on, the movie is about her vendetta, going through the Squad before getting to Bill. The movie opens with a battle against Vernita Green, a.k.a Copperhead, but the main "villain" in this movie is O-Ren Ishii, codenamed Cottonmouth, and now the boss of the Yakuza. Uma Thurman as the Bride, and Lucy Liu as O-Ren are magnificent, and give strong performances, as does Sonny Chiba as the retired Japanese sword smith, Hattori Hanzo. But the true focus in this movie is not the amazing acting, but the amazing battle scene. Bloody, yet amusing. Quick and stylish. And accompanied by a magnificent soundtrack.
You will enjoy watching this movie, because it is entertaining, and nothing more. But therein lies its charm. And a certain revelation at the end of the movie will make you ache to watch Vol. 2.