Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2005, UMD)

Here comes The Bride again - and she's not necessarily wearing white. The Bride (Uma Thurman) is out to conclude the movie's stated mission in "Kill Bill Vol. 2," which brings her face to face with the surviving members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. Now that she's awakened from her coma, Bill (David Carradine) has given the DVAS permission to finish the massacre they stated in a small Texas chapel. At the end of "Vol. 1," the audience learns something that The Bride doesn't know. In fact, in "Vol. 2," they also learn the real name of the woman whose DVAS name is Black Mamba. Eventually, Black Mamba will learn that the baby she thought she had lost was alive and living with Bill, who had fathered the baby. This discovery will add importance to her mission. We also learn the real name of The Bride. Meanwhile, Budd (Michael Madsen) and Elle Driver (Daryl Hannah) do what they can to prepare for the showdown they expect.

Black Mamba confronts Budd, who's now a disgruntled bouncer at a bar, first. Budd not only overpowers Black Mamba, but he buries her alive. While she uses her assassin training to make her way out of situation, Budd contacts Elle with the news. Elle, who was ordered by Bill to leave a comatose Black Mamba alone, still wants to be the one to get the credit from Bill. Elle kills Budd, only to discover that The Bride has emerged from her coffin. When she discovers that The Bride has cheated death, Elle and Black Mamba proceed to nearly destroy Budd's trailer in a duel which ends in a sudden and unexpected way. Bill has taken great pains to place himself and his daughter in the most secluded spot he could find. However, he knows that no amount of seclusion is going to stop a determined warrior - especially one he recruited and had trained.

Writer-director Quentin Tarantino seems to enjoy telling tales in a non-linear fashion, and "Kill Bill Vol. 2" is no exception. While Tarantino tells a tale that's more linear than the one he told in "Pulp Fiction," he also gives us flashbacks of Black Mamba's training, and the mission that led her to end her association with the DVAS. Tarantino gives us the most colorful character of "Vol. 2" in Pai Mai (Gordon Liu), an aging teacher of martial arts who doesn't like women and doesn't like people who question his methods. Yet, Pai Mai respects Bill's wishes to train his women. Pai Mai, who's fond of stroking his long white hair and beard (in a manner that imitates the head samurai in Kurosawa's "The Seven Samurai"), discovers something special in Black Mamba. Everybody in the DVAS also realizes the special nature of Black Mamba, and quietly respects her abilities. They know her nature, and they know how she earned her DVAS name. They also know she's perfectly capable of taking care of herself.

Thurman becomes a more sympathetic character in this film. She is a killer, but she is a killer seeking redemption. The DVAS stands opposed not only to redemption, but to any normal existence for their former colleague. Bill, on the other hand, creates a world of make believe for his child, a world where everything is safe and good. Carradine delivers a calm and collected performance as Bill, a man who acts who acts swiftly when he feels the need. The scenes between Thurman and Carradine at the chapel show just how calculated Bill can be. He puts Black Mamba at ease, then waits for just the right moment to summon the other DVAS members to carry out the massacre with him. Madsen and Hannah also deliver strong performances, but the person who stole the series was Lucy Liu as O-Ren Ishii, the fearless samurai from "Vol. 1" who was on the losing end of her duel with The Bride.

The action, though, wanes as Black Mamba gets closer to her goal. The biggest fight was in "Vol. 1," with O-Ren and the Crazy 88s. Black Mamba is determined to achieve her goal, or die trying. Tarantino does create fine action sequences and a good story. However, in "Kill Bill Vol. 2," Tarantino is telling a variation of the story of Samuel L. Jackson's Jules character in "Pulp Fiction." Like Jules, The Bride has reached a point in her life where she wants to put the fighting behind her. The fighting has cost her too much personally. One incident for each character makes both of them want to leave their way of life forever. The inspiration for the "Kill Bill" movies, in fact, came during the filming of "Pulp Fiction." Even Jackson's Jules was more colorful than Black Mamba. Still, Tarantino succeeds because of the action and the storytelling, but not because of the story itself.

The two parts of the "Kill Bill" saga run approximately the same length as film epics such as "Gone With The Wind" and "Ben-Hur." Tarantino's movies are a fitting tribute to the samurai movies, with their fast-paced action and an engaging story line. After seeing this series in two parts, I'm not sure if these films would have been as good had they been released as one picture. I have a feeling that "Kill Bill" would have been a little long for anybody. The Bride is a good character, but she's not the character of epics. "Kill Bill Vol. 2" also borrows a story from "Pulp Fiction" to finish its tale. "Kill Bill Vol. 2," like "Vol. 1," is good storytelling, but epic storytelling still lies with films like "The Seven Samurai." While "Kill Bill Vol. 2" may focus on redemption, "The Seven Samurai" was a portrait of courage and cunning against all odds. Tarantino may have endeared himself to many viewers, but I'm one of those who'd like to see if this gifted writer and director will mature with age.