Plenty of cult material, although it's not quite as memorable as the first

Rating: 6/10 (10 August 2016)

Tarantino's hit sequel sees him taking the KILL BILL mythos in new and unexpected directions, with a non-linear plot that keeps you guessing all the while, elements of romance that are entirely unexpected, and a whole range of genres mixed together into one mildly satisfying and well-gelled whole. The film seems full of suspense, but the focus is on character here rather than action, as in the last movie, and it's a trick that works well; a simple repeat of the gory chaos seen in KILL BILL VOL. 1 may have been entertaining, but it would have been old ground, whereas this volume offers a different experience than before. Thurman has settled into her character now and her strong role model provides a pivot around which the rest of the story flows; stealing all of his scenes is David Carradine as the charismatic, strangely likable arch-villain Bill. Support comes from an excellent Michael Madsen (the best performance I've seen him give yet) and Daryl Hannah as an extremely dangerous assassin.
Although this film only contains three death scenes, it is very violent and gruesome. People are bitten by poisonous snakes and die graphically; eyeballs are popped from their sockets and the swordplay doesn't let up. There are many old exploitation/kung fu actors here, as well as Carradine; Bo Svenson pops up as a preacher, whilst the reliable Sid Haig has a cameo as a barman. Gordon Liu turns up again after his appearance as one of the Crazy 88 in the first movie, this time as kung fu stereotype Pai Mei, the old grumpy mentor who shows Thurman the ropes in some hilariously over-the-top training sequences. Others also appear, like a shadowy Samuel Jackson, making this a pleasing "spot the actor" viewing experience. For cult film fans, there's a whole slew of references, with nods at everything from spaghetti westerns to martial arts flicks, including loads of music tracks taken from some classics and some not-so-classics (including a great score from an Italian '70s polizia flick). At the end of the day, this is a film that offers up a pretty much well-rounded experience, offering all the violence, tension, and coolness that you've come to expect from a Tarantino flick, plus a whole lot more besides.