Kill Bill Vol. 1 (DVD, 2004)

Tarantino was the main reason for the purchase.His movies are totally off the wall.This was no evception.But i was almost ready to hit eject before it started.The opening song almost drove me nuts.It got on my nerves.As with any of Tarantino's movies you do not start at the beginning.There is a lot of flashback so as to keep you on your toes.The japanese spoken then the white translation underneathe made it difficult to stay on track sometimes.I figured it was important so I hit rewind a couple of times.As his norm he mixed violence with comedy.You don't stop a vicious knife fight between 2 "hot" looking chicks because the young daughter comes home for school.You are hiding the knives behind your backs,the living room is in shambles and glass all over the place,and blood and cuts are on both the women.Then they ask the little girl how her day was at school.There are certain chapters for this plan of revenge.Certain people must die.You ask how all this started 9 people "the bride'UMA THURMAN" are killed in a small town.They even kill the piano player.Then total shock the the characters are cartoon like.Animated people with excessive blood coming from the limbs.back to the real people a sword fight.One against 300 ninjas.you guessed it she kills them all.She says "her fight is not with them so everydody that can walk or crawl can leave.But leave your limbs on the floor."When a limb was cut off the blood would spray so much other warriors would be slipping on the blood.Oh yes this is a bloody,gory,legs severed,heads rolling around,arms used for battle scenerio.At one point you hope you die before the dvd blunged you to death or worse.The songs in the back ground will destroy what ever your taste for music you possess.The profanity is expected in Tarantinos movies.It si not as frequent as "Dog Day Afternoon" but when you drive around in a bright yellow truck wagon with the words in red"PUSSY WAGON" across the tailgate,well you get my drift.Then the most horrifying event happens you must rent or buy a volume 2 to see how she "KILLS BILL."Call me a mascosist but I have the 2nd one ready to put in.The only social redeeming value I can bring to this great world after watching this dvd is that I have watched another Tarantino movie.First it is not for the squeamish.It uses cartoon figures.Uses subtitles.It uses flashback.It uses profanity.Tons of kung fu fighting.Insane plots and sayings.Then pure white driven snow when you least expect it.Then if none of this strikes a cord of out of the ordinary in your brain than this is the most wonderful movie for you.Any one that watches a Tarantino movie knows what they are in for rather the script be good,bad or Tarantino.On a scale from 1-10 where 10 i would highly recommend and zero get your money back even if it was free.I would give it a 7.Step lightly and carry a mop bucket to just clean up the blood spewing from the eyeball socket she yanks durning one of the fight scenes.Did I mention at one point she convinces her big toe to wiggle that it was in a coma state.

In every single one of Quentin Tarantino's films, he adds the elements of fantastic Shakespeareanesque dialogue, ultra-violence, and one hell of a time. From the moment the Bride gets shot in the head, until even after the credits roll, the shock stays with you.

Though this is violent, it is stylized enough so that we know it is just a movie. And in the tradition of old school samurai flicks, Kill Bill Vol. 1 pays homage with great respect for the pictures he so dearly loves.

Once the Bride (Uma Thurman) wakes from a 4 year coma, she goes on a "roaring rampage of revenge," taking out the first two names on a five name death list (Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox) with her Hattori Hanzo sword. Blade clanking, sword swinging, and lots of blood make for a good time here. One of my favorite movies!!!

Part martial arts, part western, part graphic novel, part grindhouse (hey, that's the name of his new movie with Robert Rodriguez!) this movie has it all. Quentin Tarantino has a knack for groundbreaking films that change filmmaking as we know it. He is creating tomorrow's classics and I for one am soooo happy to have seen all of his movies on the big screen!

The Bride is shot on her wedding day and left for dead. But in fact she is in a coma, and one day she wakes up. Thing is The Bride is not your average girl, she is in fact a professional killer, the best of the best. And now she is a bit upset because the man who shot her - and killed her entire wedding party - is her ex-boss/boyfriend Bill. What hurt her the most was not the betrayal or that she had been repeatedly raped while in a come, but the fact that she had been pregnant when shot.

So The Bride makes a list and checks it twice, she knows who has been naughty - no one was nice. And so she makes her way across the US and Asia looking for weapons and the people responsible for her tragedy. She knows she cannot get even, to get even-steven she would have to kill the people who shot her, their significant others and their children, so revenge will have to be enough.

Super smart, funny and violent. You know Tarantino, he does not pussy foot around. He makes a point by making people bleed. Many people cannot get past the violence to see that in THIS case all that violence is an integral part of the story. It is The Bride's journey to self discovery and her destiny to bathe the world in blood before she can find peace.

Highly recommended, but if you are easily offended then stay away you wimp!

Tarantinos' love of the action movie is long known,but, this is a star in his crown. With tounge firmly in cheek he tells a story in detail adequate to be sure you know why what is happening is happening. This is done in a way to be sure that even if you think you know whats coming next you cant turn away. This masterwork is a blend of anime (which I dont like),martial arts (not crazy about)eastern fantasy (LOVE it)and action (we all love that), sprinkle some exploitation with a nod to the one man alone western and presto you have a masterpiece. Despite the massive use of fake blood, the obvious surreality of this flik has you accepting it with a grin. Despite the carnage (second to none!)they deserved it! The teacher stands on the brides sword blade and while your eyes widen you accept it. The bride flies through the air ala eastern fantasy and you continue to grin. In K.B.2 the bride (BRAVO Uma Thurman)un-buries herself.This is mature escapism at its absolute best.As I said this entire movie (both of'em)is done given an odd sense of humor and must be watched tounge planted firmly in cheek.The actors (all of them)will,in the future use this flik as a point of pride. All of the actors gave truly stellar performances but the best were Thurman,the bride, Michael Madsen,Bills brother, and tho' he's not seen till K.B.2, David Carradine as Bill. I could write a book about the two movies but it's all been said before. Performances were spot on but in truth BRAVO,KUDOS,Hooray to Quentin Tarantino. Hollywood and motion pictures are much better because of this flik.

Fans of Tarantino know that he grew up watching movies constantly, from spaghetti Westerns to old Japanese classics to samurai movies to cult horror films. Fans also know that, while shooting Pulp Fiction, Uma Thurman and Tarantino started to come up with a compelling story about a character named "The Bride." Many years later, we have the final product: Kill Bill, Volume 1.
The movie's storyline is very interesting in and of itself. However, no director other than Tarantino could have executed this film so flawlessly. This is because he has poured all his encyclopedic movie knowledge into Kill Bill (aside from writing a highly developed and precise screenplay, and relying on his unique directing style). He has combined an infinite number of genres, exploiting them and taking them to the extreme. Another filmmaker attempting to do the same thing would've probably come up with a shallow, cheesy, and transparent imitation of classic movies. Tarantino, on the other hand, came up with a brilliantly executed masterpiece that will most likely become a cult film itself.
Many people complain of Kill Bill's graphic violence and gore, but it should not be viewed as excessive or unnecessary - it's really quite the opposite, where this violence is presented in a sophisticated and cinematic way.
Most true fans of Tarantino will fall in love with and defend anything he makes to death. Movie-goers who are not particularly fond of his style will probably not enjoy this film very much, but they should at least give it a try. Perhaps Tarantino will fail to win them over, but Uma Thurman's explosive performance will do the trick instead. One thing is for sure: this movie will never put you to sleep.
Many thumbs up!