I love everything about these movies. Every scene. Every frame. Every line. To me, they are the perfect films. They are in fact, my two favorite films of all time. Not just for their entertainment value, but for what they actually stand for. So rarely anymore do we get films that are made with such obsessive passion. With this epic saga, we have the masterful artwork of a man who took everything he ever adored and admired about film, threw it in the blender of his mind, and came out with the perfect mixture of action, dialogue, and homage.

The films themselves are a hybrid of arguably the two coolest genres of cinema: Hong Kong martial arts, and the spaghetti western; all spiked with the bloody theme of revenge. Uma Thurman plays a nameless (at least initially) woman scorned, lovingly referred to as The Bride, who is hell-bent on exacting painful, bloody payback for those who sadistically and methodically slaughter her, her unborn child, and her wedding party. The culprits in question are flawlessly cast as ringleader Bill (David Carradine), cunning O-ren Ishii (Lucy Liu), badass Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox), melancholy Budd (Michael Madsen), and finally the traitorous Elle Driver (Daryl Hannah).

The aforementioned wedding party bloodbath successfully murders everyone intended, except for The Bride, who ends up in a coma from the violent ordeal. After 4 years, The Bride awakens; consumed with the burning need for revenge and begins her quest to heal, retrain, and then meticulously hunt down and kill those who crossed her. To give away much more would ruin much needed surprises and treasures, which should be left for only the viewer to discover… but I’ll throw you a few bones.

What then follows is one of the most fun thrill rides of recent years, from one-on-one knife fights, to a cramped trailer brawl, to subtle mind games against enemies, all accentuated without blemish by Tarantino’s pop-culture laced, self referential dialogue.

There is a sequence that is completely and utterly implausible, yet equally brilliant and entertaining. The climax of the first film culminates itself into a one woman versus 88 (or so) vicious swordsmen in a violent, bloody battle topping 20 minutes. It is one of the best-choreographed, exciting and thrill-filled fight sequences ever filmed. It’s must-see for any action buff.

The only complaint I’ve heard about the film is it’s final ending confrontation between The Bride and Bill itself, where it is more focused on dialogue than actual combat. That is unfortunate, for the ending is perfect. Tarantino knows that the overall saga had enough action-packed gore, and ends on somber bittersweet note. It’s faultless.

Now, I am fully aware of the high praise in which I grant this film. By no means are these the greatest films of all time, in fact it really is nothing more than the perfect master of unblemished style over substance, because at it’s core the film really is a revenge flick. The best way to describe the film is being the most essential unessential movie ever made. It’s high art slumming it as a kung-fu western.

Note: If you truly loved this film as I did, you should scour eBay for the Japanese Region 0 version of this film; the final battle is in full glorious color as it was intended rather than a forced black and white to appease censors. I highly recommend it.

Grade: A+
Starring: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox, Sonny Chiba, Daryl Hannah, Michael Madsen. Written by: Quentin Tarantino Directed by: Quentin Tarantino

Matt can be contacted at yourfleetislost@aol.com