Amazing on many levels

Rating: 10/10 (20 April 2004)

***Minor Spoilers***
I was absolutely floored by this movie. When I wrote about Kill Bill Vol. 1, I wrote a lot about the themes (maternal, feminist, violence as catharsis, etc.), and neglected to also point out the sheer FUN of the movie. That movie was the
most enjoyable experience I've had in a theater in years. Now that I've seen Kill Bill Vol. 2, I have to say that the bar for both levels of enjoyment have been raised. Vol. 2 takes the motifs of the first movie and complicates them, making what was black and white in the first volume shades of gray. We see villains with humanity, and we see the Bride grow to realize the weight of what she is doing. Philosophically, her journey becomes more and more complex as she
nears its completion. Where in the first movie, she could make the statement about revenge "It seems irrefutable proof that not only does God exist, but you're doing his will," in the second that moral certainty is no longer so simple. The film ends with Bill's revelation--in two beautiful monologues--that she is no better than the ones she kills; She is a killer, and will never be able to hide from that. She knows that she will have to suffer as much as the ones she kills, and that her actions may have incalculable consequences. And she still does it, so committed is she to her goal. All of that said, the movie is just plain fun to watch. Tarantino puts music, dialogue and images together to create such a cool effect that it is almost impossible to sit through the film without a great big goofy grin on your face. The acting is phenomenal, the writing amazing, the
cinematography (and old movie allusions) breathtaking. 10/10.