The Film Reports

FILM REVIEW

3 stars

Action, Crime, Thriller

Even though Kill Bill: Vol 2 is the sequel to Vol 1 and employs many of the same cinematic techniques, it just doesn’t quite live up to Vol 1. 

The film starts with a chapter dedicated to the infamous wedding four years ago, when the Bride was attacked. Bill is finally shown on-screen and how exactly the massacre was carried out. Bill is then shown warning his brother, Budd, who is the next member of the Assassination Squad that the Bride is going after. When the Bride does reach Budd, the tension is ramped up. It’s these scenes that Kill Bill, and Tarantino, excels at. 

However, the storyline felt contrived. Whereas Vol 1 had a straightforward plot, Vol 2 jumped past to present and then back again in an effort to get the Bride out of her predicaments. This was the single worst drawback of the film and why I’ve rated it 3 stars compared to Vol 1’s 5 stars. Even the introduction of the Bride’s child was anti-climatic and really just strange, I felt so confused at the nature of it and the explanation offered. It really did feel as though Tarantino had written certain scenes and then had tried to pull them together in a cohesive story.

Just stick to watching Vol 1.