Kill people who compare this to The Matrix

Rating: Null/10 (11 October 2003)

First off, critics write this off as a movie with little story and all action. Not that this is a bad thing but but they are wrong. It is not action all and throughout like all the critics say. There is almost too much story being told for there to be comments about their being no story. they have seemed to forgotten that this Quentin Tarantino and his big movie was Pulp Fiction in which it was not really one large story but a lot of little stories all connected through characters. Kill Bill is made in a similer fashion but a little modified. He makes it very clear that he is only telling you what is essential for every CHAPTER. And each chapter has an incredible amount of story to tell considering that they are mere parts of the entire story. Also, the chapters progress with the amount of signifigance that it holds and clearly, the killings weren't done in order of signifigance. As for the stories being told, the route story of The Bride's revenge is pretty much left at face value, she is p*ssed and people will pay for it;however, the side stories being told have an incredible amount of depth, mainly Cottonmouth's. Obviously, the focus at the start of the Kill Bill is not really The Bride but her enemies which adds further layers to the overall film because now she is not simply killing faceless killing machines, the Bride is killing living and breathing human beings who have their set of beliefs and fears (especially Vernitta Green). If anything, this really hints at the brutality of the attempt at the Bride's death (in fact, The Bride actually describes to Vernitta Green what it would actually take for her to get even and it is not pleasant). Speaking of Vernitta Green, that sequence is pretty much is metaphoric of how the movie will move after that point (only in reverse). Now the scene literally kicks off (or more accurately punches off) and they are fighting no holds barred and then they are interrupted and it returns to the slow Tarantino pace with his snappy diolgue and slow movement. Again, that pretty much summurises the rest of the movie's movements (again in reverse) because after that, the movie slows down and we can really see the pain, both physical and emotional, that the Bride is going through has well as her preperations for her next (or actually first) kill. The action picks up a little bit with the anime sequence explaining Cottonmouths history and then it returns to the slow pace once again. Remember, this is Quentin Tarantino so the slow pace is not really a bad thing at all and allows him to simply show the humanity of these characters (mainly the Bride). And since he pretty much knows that we know what will happen, he worries more about showing us what is happening in the moment then what will happen eventually. Now, the performances were superb, especially Uma's because it was more physical then vocal and why would she really want to talk when she has 5 people that need to be killed. Everyone else plays their roles equally well but not really as physical (only exception being maybe Vivica A. Fox becuase she doesnt have anytime to say anything and starts off defending). i would say the big suprise, to me at least, was Sonny Chiba. Now i have all his Street Fighter Films and think of him as that crazy assassin who pokes out eyes, and rips off people's nuts. in Kill Bill, he has a more homely type role and it is more hummorous then anything else. And he plays the part very well, it was hard to believe that this was the same guy who brutally and slowly broke a guys arm bone by bone in the Street Fighter. However, the standout performance (in this first part) would have to be Lucy Liu's. She is almost the Polar opposite of her character in Charlie's Angels. In Kill Bill, her character is no one to mess with (which she makes very apperent in the film) but at the sametime, does not freak out or get overemotional. She is really cold and calculating and every action she does is planned out in her head before she does it. Now to talk about the action (and to refer to the one line summary). Without a doubt, simply becuase this movie has martial arts, wire-stunts, and Yuen woo-ping as the choreographer, it will be compared to The Matrix. the big problem with this comparison is, well, they have absolutely nothing in common with each other. Now enough abot the Matrix. Yuen Woo-ping is known for his fantasy-like choreography that makes fight scenes more like dances then actual fights. In Kill Bill, this is not neccessarily true. It looks more like an actual fight then a dance. he has been known to say that when choroegraphing a fight scene "keep the swords banging to keep people interested". in kill Bill this is a bit modified (in the final 200 man battle at least). It is now, apprently, keep blood gushing and and slashes deadly and the people will stay interested. there are only brief moments that are genuine Yuen Woo-ping but the majority of the fight scene is almost entirely different then what we (at least me) are used to seeing from him.
As for the climantic Duel between Cottonmouth and the Bride, it is somewhat apparent that this is where Sonny Chiba made is other contribution to the film. It is rather slowly paced when compared to the fight scene preceding it but it is no less entertaining.
sidenote: everybody seems to assume that the fight scenes are anything but realistic. this is because of the blood special effects and the way the fight scenes are shot at certain moments. However, it is far more realistic then past american efforts at martial arts (again like the Matrix). there is very little so called "flying" and when people get punched or kicked, they feel it. When some gets slashed by the samurai sword, they either die or bleed profusely. The wound is not passed over like a simple scrape.