a martial arts movie fan's dream

Rating: 9/10 (9 December 2003)

fans of quentin tarantino might be disappointed by this latest release. anyone expecting another stylised crime caper with one of his trademark fast-talking, wise-cracking scripts, might not find what they're looking for here. non-tarantino fans meanwhile, will probably stay away for the same reasons.
but let's forget all about them, for this is a martial arts movie fan's dream come true.
the very straightforward plotline can be summed-up in a single word: revenge. the larger than life characters are colourfully realised and placed not in the real world, but in a magical world of blood, swords and violence. the story itself serves largely to set-up some truly mouthwatering fight scenes.
without wishing to give anything away, the last third of the movie is basically a great big fight scene. choreographed by the ubiquitous yeun wo-ping and beautifully shot, this was an absolute joy to watch. when uma thurman's character, 'the bride', arrives at the 'house of blue leaves', a breathtaking twenty minute samurai sword battle ensues, which is almost impossible to watch without having a big, cheesy grin plastered on your face throughout.
with it's air-compressed jets of blood and comic undertone, the stylised violence is easily palatable and becomes quite beautiful at times. combine this with another fine tarantino soundtrack, plus the hugely entertaining supporting performances of sonny chiba, gordon liu and chiaki kuriyama, this is by far the most entertaining cinema experience of the year.
quite simply, if you're a fan of the genre, you cannot fail to enjoy this film and will be left yearning for 'volume two'.