Bang Bang My Baby Shot Me Down And there starts Kill Bill
Now he's gone I don't know why
And till this day some times I cry
He didn't even say goodbye
He didn't take the time to lie
Bang bang he shot me down
Bang bang I hit the ground
Bang bang that awful sound
Bang bang my baby shot me down
I was five and he was six
We rode on horses made of sticks
He wore black and I wore white
He could always win the fight
Bang bang he shot me down
Bang bang I hit the ground
Bang bang that awful sound
Bang bang my baby shot me down
Seasons came and changed the time
When I grew up, I called him mine
He would always laugh and say
Remember when we used to play
Bang bang I shot you down
Bang bang you hit the ground
Bang bang that awful sound
Bang bang I used to shoot you down
The music played and people sang
And just for me the church bells rang
Now he's gone I don't know why
And till this day some times I cry
He didn't even say goodbye
He didn't take the time to lie
Bang bang he shot me down
Bang bang I hit the ground
Bang bang that awful sound
Bang bang my baby shot me down
Count the Minutes after the song ends, and what follows is Slashing Swords, Human Heads, Deafening GunShots, Pouring Blood, Glistening Knives, Dismembered Limbs....
All these go in an effort to get a kill of a name that says Bill. There certainly is a face behind every name. So there surely must be a face to a gentleman named Bill.
Kill Bill Vol-1 as the name says, is the first part of the revenge tale. A revenge tale or better say a fundamental revenge tale with nothing else but revenge running in the veins of the tale. To be very precise, Kill Bill is a ''You did this to me, so wait till I do that to you.'' But the difference truly lies in the way the plot is spiced up with the gravity defying stunts, blade running action sequences, stylized goriness, animated violence and lill' twists here n' there in the story telling way, but no twists in the basic story as such.
The Story of The Bride:
Kill Bill undoes itself through a character called ''The Bride's'' point of view. The Bride played by Uma Thurman is to be married when a group of assassins attack the venue and turn the marriage celebrations into a funeral procession. It is then dawned on us that our protagonist was once one of the members of this group of assassins which is named Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. The Bride was then called by her codename Black Mamba. The other members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad who are shown as the targets to be killed include Bill (David Carradine), O-Ren Ishi codename Cottonmouth (Lucy Liu), Vernita Green codename Copperhead (Vivica A. Fox), Budd codename Side Winder (Michael Madsen), and Elle Driver codename California Mountain Snake (Daryl Hannah).
Bride's wedding ceremony has been gunned down. She has lost her unborn baby. And she herself has been shot in her head, when the bullet runs scratching her scalp leading her in coma for next four years. After four years when she is stung out of the coma, she runs high n' dry around the world in search of her assassins. That's what Kill Bill has in store on the story front. Quite Disappointing; Ain't it? But as I have written somewhere in one of the above paragraphs, it is the way things are presented is what seriously matters. Never has it been disclosed as to why she was ever attacked? The question remains unanswered pointing it's sharp nailed finger towards Vol 2. Vol. 1 follows Bride on her revenge journey, which halts at Copperhead and Cottonmouth, thus leaving the remaining trail for Vol. 2.
Kiss Of The Bride:
When the flick starts, mouths fall open as credits run. Heads turn to check if they are in the right hall. The movie opens in a crapy fashion that looks very much like a C - Grade flick.
Kill Bill runs as homage to Hong Kong movies, which have been Tarantino's all time favorites. So much of blood flows, showers and springs in the flick that at one point of time, it grows repetitive and to our own embarrassment we find ourselves laughing at the most goriest of scenes. For a while I myself was left pondering, ''Did the human being inside me gave way to the devil within? But whatsoever, Kill Bill turns out to be entertaining and enthralling with it's stylized action sequences, tight script and fast paced screenplay. Many a times, heads are thrown in air, limbs are cut and left alienated on floors, blood flows as freely as water through out the movie. The Bride slices through whatever and whoever stands between her and her revenge targets.
My personal favorite part lies in the tale of O-Ren Ishi. This part is creatively picturised in form of an animated episode. It is best experienced rather than read in a stupid review like this one.
The movie ends rather abruptly. It gives a feeling as if, the electricity gave way in midst of the movie's runtime. Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 is infact a single long movie slit into two. Hence the abrupt climax.
On the brighter side, the flick is bound together in form of chapters. It gives a novel like touch to the proceedings of the flick. Each chapter deals with The Bride's encounter with a major character of the story. Didn't I say, ''The fun lies in the way a straight plot is handled?''
The Warriors:
Uma Thurman easily cakewalks through the role. Not much is demanded by the jump n' chop role. But her body language does wonders to The Bride. Uma Thurman delivers the goods perfectly with her grimace and a well toned body.
Lucy Liu as Cottonmouth makes her presence felt with her graceful moves and that 'Don't mess with me' look.
Vivica A. Fox as Copperhead doesn't have too much to do. She just appears on screen and after a runtime of five to seven minutes, she is found in a pool of blood.
Sony Chiba as the Japanese sword maker makes an effective cameo.
(contd. in comments)
