Thurman seems to have accomplished that for which she set out.

Rating: Null/10 (10 July 2006)

Vengeance is never a warm subject. As we come to hear in the development of the film "Kill Bill", "vengeance is a dish best served cold." The theme, which is a central insight in the film, is clearly spelled out in the above statementand almost always, there is pain and anguish associated with the ones that vengeance pursues. Throughout the movie, Uma Thurman, the bride, pursues her enemies in the quest to eliminate their very existence. Accordingly, a lot of blood is spilled on account of the bride's revenge. There is enough screaming and moaning on the part of individuals who die at the hands of the bride all in the name of revenge. The framing employed in the film also depicts imprisonment and entrapment, events preceding death and revenge.
The subject of pain as a precursor of death is evident at the hotel and restaurant scene when the bride severs the limbs and dismembers the body parts of anyone who in one way or the other robbed her of any life with her family and anyone who caused her pain. Their waves of moans and groans would make a perfect song of pain. Additionally, at the hospital, it is observed that Buck's friend encounters a lot of anguish when the bride bites off his tongue as he screams away because of his abuse of her. Buck himself gets a feel of pain when his leg is cut with a sharp knife. We hear him scream with anguish and pain deserving of a molester.The pain encountered by Buck at the hands of Thurman goes to prove her vengeance upon Buck for taking advantage of her while she is unconscious.
The theme of revenge is bloody and depicts the color red. As seen in the development of the film, red is almost unavoidable in every scene. Red denotes bloodshed and a death of a painful nature. Thus, Uma Thurman's death list had names of her wrongdoers inscribed in red ink. "The nurse" wears an eye patch with a red "x" symbol and she carries a red umbrella. She also wears red lipstick on her way to commit the murder of the bride at the hospital. The wagon belonging to Buck also has the red motif depicting bloodshed, thus, enhancing the theme of revenge. We almost come to appreciate the black and white tone and the fade to black less begrudgingly because it helped reduce the bloodshed to make it more tolerable for the audience while accentuating the effect of detail. "Kill Bill" reminds me of "A Man on Fire", which stars Denzel Washington. There seem to be similarities between the character of the bride (Thurman) and Denzel's character as Crissy. They both avenge the life of their loved ones.
As already stated, revenge calls for entrapment and imprisonment. Obviously, the avenger needs to run down her enemies and put them in a vulnerable position. Through the bride's eyes, the audience captures a lot of tight framing. When the bride meets with Vernita Green, also known as Copper Head, at her home,Vernita is subdued by the stiff framing in the window, the cabinets in the kitchen and the framed wall hangings leaving no room for escape. The name Bill is trapped in the upper window of Hattori Hanzo's restaurant and steel shop. The stiff framing in the window implies that Bill too will die at the hands of the avenger, the bride. O-Ren Ishii gets a taste of tight framing when in the upper room. The wooden sliding doors behind her create a suspenseful atmosphere and it seems to be presented that O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu), although surrounded by an entourage of bodyguards is unsure of her fate with Thurman. She is locked in by the sliding doors behind her also indicating her inability to escape the avenger's sword.
I recommend that anyone who has not yet seen the movie should do so at once. The use of fade to black is very thoughtful and is done in an impeccable way. Although the audience understands the process of revenge, we are helped out a little more so that digestion of the spilling of blood does not become unbearable. The audience looks forward to the next scene with confidence, knowing that the director will employ fade to black in the bloodiest scenes to help condense the act of vengeance. It is evident that in the end, Thurman seems to have accomplished that for which she set out--vengeance. The death list that Thurman keeps is symbolic of the tombstones of the individuals she finally slays during her revenge. Red means danger, blood, pain, and revenge. These ideas are all very well accomplished in the development of the plot.