Kill Bill Vol. 1

Kill Bill so far is about what I expected, but a touch more meaningful. I avoided it all these years as an ostensibly self-indulgent pleasure picture riding on gore and camp. It's more than that. First, Tarantino and Thurman make an honest effort to sympathize the character. Without this, Kill Bill would be martial arts porn worth my avoidance. Second, while Tarantino's signature is unmistakable, it isn't excessive. I rolled my eyes a couple times in Django. I haven't felt that at all in Kill Bill. It has that flavor that makes everything more entertaining, but not so much that I'm hyper-conscious I'm watching a movie. I was immersed. Time flew by. I was surprised to discover only 20 minutes remained. It helped knowing there's a second volume, but the Tarantino sparkle combined with the sympathetic characters drove the movie well. I'll add one caveat: I did become hyper-conscious I was watching a movie during the final fight scenes. It wasn't from the Tarantino sparkle, but from the absurd mass fight sequence and Zoe Bell's astonishing but ridiculous stunts. These are so central and climactic it may feel sacrilegious to question, but I wonder how the movie could turn out without the absurdity of the mass fight. Everything else in the entire movie works for me, is mutually consistent. Nothing else stuck out, including the fighting before and after this scene. But during that scene things got temporarily ridiculous, and I was torn from the world of the movie. Her odds were improbable and her stunts fantastical. In one sense this scene rounds out the movie, topping off the gore/camp/porn cup I mentioned earlier, for any yet-unfulfilled aficionado; it also elevates the character, it's epic, and it's entertaining. But I'd argue it compromises the film. It compromises my sympathy for her: she's a god now. Every other fight scene was thrilling and fearsome because I could feel her humanity. Here it became clear she couldn't lose. I feel far less affection for an invincible character. Thankfully the final fight pulled her back down, but I think the quality of this film depends on its humanity, and its humanity was seriously undermined in the mass fighting. It was cool, but I started caring less about the movie.

So I guess that scene crystallized what I expected of the movie all these years. I'm thankful the rest wasn't like that, and I was surprised how much I cared. He did a good, genuine job. It's not just a... what do they call artwork created for the artist's own self-indulgence that particularly eschews audience and criticism? Anyway, for Tarantino's extravagant reputation, he has depth. This movie is intoxicating, no surprise, but also affecting and artistic. For my interest in cinema I'm glad I tried it. I'll probably watch Vol. 2.

Note: I had some social justification in watching this. I wonder whether I ever would have otherwise. I liked it, and it's good for reference. But it's not the kind of premise I seek.