[Movie]: Kill Bill Vol. 2, reviewed by wljohnso (4/4)

[RPGnet Reviews]

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/10/10264.phtml

Wes Johnson's Summary:

Where Kill Bill Vol. 1 was violence punctuated by plot, Vol 2. is plot punctuated by violence. Vol. 2 is a different film, but more of the same might not have worked as well.

Go to the full review (http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/10/10264.phtml) for more information.

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by Aka-Chan at 2004-04-21 18:06:05
Converted from Phorums BB System

A great review, but you didn't mention one thing that kinda bugged me about vol. 2.

Okay, you remember in film 1, when a new DVAS member was introduced, they'd do that thing where they'd freeze, and their name, info, and code name would flash on the screen?

Well, only Vernita, Elle, and O-Ren got that. Budd got NOTHING. Not in the first movie. Not in the second movie. Bill didn't get anything either, but I didn't really expect him to.

The writing was so small on The Bride's notepad that one time you see it that you can't even make out Budd's code name. So I basically had to wait until the end of Vol. 2 to finally find out what Budd's DVAS codename was.

I loved Kill Bill vol. 2. I loved that it was different. But I wish they had at least given Budd a proper "freezeframe" introduction the way they did the girls.

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by Wes Johnson at 2004-04-21 21:43:56
Converted from Phorums BB System

Right you are.

I honestly did not notice that one tid bit. The only thing I would think as to why not is that freeze frame and codename thing was much more in tune with the omage to action movies that Vol. 1 was... Best I can come up with.

Thanks for the nice words!

--Wes

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by wyrdlyng at 2004-04-21 21:46:30
Converted from Phorums BB System

All the major characters were named and codenamed during the end credits. It's the only place where you learn Bill's codename, I believe.

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by Aka-Chan at 2004-04-21 23:22:44
Converted from Phorums BB System

Yeah, I remember that. The Bride didn't even write a code name on her death list. Just "Bill." She did write Budd's code name, but I just couldn't read it.

Since he never got a freezeframe like the rest of them, you had to wait until that one section during the credits where they list everyone. It's always the male members of the group that get overlooked. *sigh*

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by J. H. Frank at 2004-04-23 01:07:48
Converted from Phorums BB System

I think Budd's lack of Ironside-sting was mostly an artifact of an earlier draft of the script where The Bride had actually staked him out at the titty bar before waiting to jump him at the trailer.

The same thing is going on when Pai Mei makes a comment about "not being here to study the mysteries of linguistics." That line doesn't flow very well with the rest of the scene because The Bride's original response in the script was slightly different.

While I'm on the subject of annoying little gaffes in the movie, I hateHateHATE the Pai Mei campfire story because Tarantino had to get wacky and describe the burning of the Shaolin temple as occuring in "one double-knot three," which David Carradine pronounced "one double-'ought three," thus moving it 880 years into the past. Grar.

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by Wes Johnson at 2004-04-23 09:38:45
Converted from Phorums BB System

I thought that dating in the Pai mei stoty came off as odd. I forgot to ask my wife if longevity is part of the Chinese martial arts mythos, but if I get a reasonable answer from her I will pass it on.

One more continuity error was a bit of the plastic sheeting from the grave scene as the bride pulled herself out was visable and obvious.

Anyways, every movie is rife with these sorts of things and wierdness due to script changes.

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by Larry Lade at 2004-04-24 17:07:08
Converted from Phorums BB System

Thanks for the observation. I actually thought that Pai Mei was SUPPOSED to be one thousand years old, which seemed plausable considering the far-out nature of his abilities, but still a little weird.

[RPGnet Reviews]

Post originally by camazotz at 2004-04-25 04:54:23
Converted from Phorums BB System

Yeah, I just figured they were hinting at Pai Mei being a good alchemic Taoist or Buddhist; old world Chinese mystics were all very interested in the secrets of immortality (and in the mythology of China, the Eight Immortals are key figures, all enlightened men and women who reached that plane), so I assumed that the intention was to imply that he was an immortal, as well.