Tarantino fuses genres with nostalgia in 'Bill'

Before the release of Quentin Tarantino's first volume of the epic "Kill Bill" film, comic books and kung-fu movies were the domain of the pale-skinned nerd. "Kill Bill: Volume 1" changed all of that, making excess the norm and pushing the boundaries of tasteful kung-fu cinema. Yes, kung-fu cinema. "Kill Bill" is the story of the unnamed Bride (Uma Thurman), a former assassin seeking revenge on her boss/lover Bill (David Carradine) for killing her entire wedding party and leaving her for dead. In Volume 1, the Bride hacked her way through two of the assassins on her list; suburban mother Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox) and Triad boss O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu). Now she returns to bump off the remainder of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. Still on the list is Bill's brother Budd (an excellent Michael Madsen), Bill's new love Elle Driver (Darryl Hannah), and of course, the man himself. While the first volume was a bloodbath of excess, the second installment finds Tarantino exploring the relationship between Bill and the Bride. While the action and bitterness isn't a bit diminished since the first movie, the second part of the story is more tinged with love, pain and regret. As the Bride drives toward her eventual destiny, the background story is told through a series of flashbacks. The plot points filled in include the massacre at the wedding chapel, the Bride's training under the brutal Pei Mei, and the Bride's decision to leave her life of killing behind. The audience is also finally treated to the Bride's real name - a secret Tarantino gleefully held onto for the entire first volume, and does for most of the second. Tarantino may be a visionary director, but the real power of "Bill" lies in the cast. Uma Thurman plays the Bride with a haunted intensity and masked fury. Madsen gives perhaps his best performance ever as the down-and-out alcoholic Budd. Hannah delivers with a bang as the villain that the audience can't wait to see killed. Liu, playing both Johnny Mo and Pei Mei, steals every scene he's in with a satanic sort of power in his action and dialogue, reminiscent of the glory days of chop-socky movies. When "Bill" was originally cast, Warren Beatty was to play the title role. It was seen as a major setback when he dropped out of the production and Tarantino cast former "Kung Fu" star David Carradine. Watching Carradine play such a subtle villain leaves no doubt to his owning and wearing the role of Bill with stunning accuracy. It's impossible to even imagine Beatty in the role, and Carradine deserves credit for such brilliance. The soundtrack is the most underrated aspect of the movie. The feel of the movie is enhanced by the faux-retro music, particularly the original compositions by RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan. Tarantino has made his best film so far, but only insofar as he's made it out of the movies of others. The influence of westerns, samurai movies and the glory days of kung-fu movies are apparent in every scene, line and note of music throughout the epic. Rather than regrettable, "Kill Bill"'s borrowing turns into a transcendent homage to genres that no one appreciated until now. Grade: A+