Magnificent Tribute to the Movies

Rating: 10/10 (19 December 2005)

"Kill Bill, Volume 2" confirmed for me that I will never, in my entire life, ever be able to see as many movies as Quentin Tarantino has already seen.
While "Kill Bill, Volume 1" convinced me that I would not in fact want to see the zillions of samurai, chop-sockey, anime, etc. genre films that he had seen and was joyously reenacting in every chapter, "Volume 2," a.k.a. the second half of really one movie, is an extensive tribute to movies which I have seen, from John Ford and Sergio Leone Westerns to Billy Wilder comedies and noirs and on and on. In a recent interview with Charlie Rose, the voluble Tarantino made his case as a film historian by claiming that Uma Thurman is his visual muse like Josef von Sternberg's inspiration was Marlene Dietrich, but that was just one calculated explanation for the older demographic who watches PBS as their violent collaboration may make Scorcese/DeNiro comparisons more apt.
In "Volume 2" the other movie references are astounding and breathtaking -- every note of music (the extensive actual samples and the connectors by Robert Rodriguez), every setting, prop and article of clothing on screen, camera angle, actor cast, through all the nostalgic credits, let alone every clip any character is watching on their TV, is a loving tribute to another film (we will have to wait for the super deluxe collector's edition DVD that combines Volumes 1 and 2 to communicate the footnotes with multiple eggs).
Yet it manages not to be a pastiche or a parody, but a masterful, post-modern work of art culminating in a passionate expression of love of movies as the ultimate bed time story (as accompanied by one of my favorite songs, Shivaree's creepy take on "Good Night Moon"), even if it cannot stand on its own to be enjoyed by the kind of person who only sees a couple of movies a decade. Tarantino may be a motormouth but he is in complete control of all these references, cutting them up like a collage and lovingly transforming them within his vision.
To the disappointment of the kid in the back row who didn't shut up, "Volume 2" has far less sock 'em violent set pieces, cartoonish or otherwise, than the earlier chapter, and far more very funny humor and marvelous dialog, especially as delivered by an iconic David Carradine (others will connect him to this film via the TV series "Kung Fu," but I first loved him in the TV version of "Shane," which is also recalled here). From the planes of his craggy visage, to Uma's gleaming eyes and lips, to the cinematography of Robert Richardson, this is also a strikingly beautiful film.
It is certainly not necessary to have seen "Volume 1" to appreciate the second part, but that adds to the power of the unexpectedly cathartic change that The Bride undergoes on her quest, redolent of "The Wizard of Oz."
Tarantino emotionally yet ironically makes the case that violent movies are fantasies that don't turn people into killers, rather they can bring families together.
And now I do want to catch up on samurai movies!
(originally written 4/30/2004)