Thursday, October 23,2003 — Page 9
GINNY DEFFENDALL
Staff Writer
Kill Bill Volume 1: A Review
Quentin Tarantino has done it
again.“KillBill-Volume r'isagor>’
spectacle for the viewer. With outland
ish a.)lors, graphic violence, and thrilling
battle scenes, “Kill Bill" appears more
1 ike li ve-action anime than anything else.
The story stemmed from an idea
shared by Tarantino and lead actress
Lima Thurman of a character known
only as “The Bride."’ The character is
left for dead after a shootout on her
wedding day. After spending four years
in a coma, she awakens to find herself
in the hospital and her unborn child
missing. There’s only one thing on The
Bride's mind- revenge. So she heads
off to settle the sa>re with her assailants
(who used to be her compatriots), the
Deadly Viper Assiissination Squad.
If you’re looking for a linear
stor\'. this is not the movie for you. Very
typiail of Tarantino, the film is told out
of sequence which al lows him to open
up with a wicked knife fight between
female ;tssassins Veniita Green, a.k.a.
Copperhead (Viviai A. Fox) and The
Bride, alias Black Mamba (Thunnan).
This is no aitfight; these girls are out for
JONELLE KIMBROUGH
Opinions/Entertainment Editor
0
bloo.i.
While the non-linear approach
to storytellingain be refreshing, it
makes me wonder how Miramax
intends to relea.se this film in two
volumes. See, film executives believed
that an American audience wouldn't sit
through a movie that was three houR
long, Tanuitino wouldn't compromise
his picture by cutting it, so the film hits
been split into two parts. Volume 1 was
released October 10; Volume 2 hits
theaters February 20,2004.
So will the publicbe willing to
photo copyright Miramax Films
pay not once, but twice to see this
picture? My bet is yes. Just as the story
really finds it momentum, we hit the
hour and a half mark - time to end the
movie. We’re left with an exciting
cliffhanger, a small hint of the action to
come, and the strong desire to see the
lace of the heartless Bill who has thus
far remained a disembodied voice.
Besides, Volume 1 really
delivers. Thurman turns in a perfor
mance like none other she's given. She
is one no-nonsen.se, heartless, female
assassin hell bent on revenge. Despite
her grisly purpose, 1 found myself
w'ishing for her success. The real gem in
the film, however, is Lucy Liu as the
villainous 0-Reii Ishii. Dressed in
traditional Japanese costume, she
appears like a fr agile little flower, but is
in actuality a cold, cmel a iminal.
Cottonmouth is the perfect moniker for
her character; she is quick and her bite
is deadly.
After hearing nimors of
Tarantino’s unabashed stealing from
other filmmakers. 1 w;is won ied the film
would not even be worth the price.
After all. if 1 wanted to see someone
else’s work, 1 can stay at home and rent
the originals. But after seeing it. I find
“Kill Bill” more of an homage than a
rip-off. I'here are scenes reminiscent of
m;my mmtial iut films, and Tarantino’s
anime inspiration is obviously felt. But
his scenes are his own. With so many
“Matrix” imitiitors in theaters, I’arantino
hasn’t just thrown his hat in the ring;
he's taken everything he’s learned and
made it his own. It’s not a rip-off. but
an original, and further proof that
Tarantino is one of the best directors
this generation will ever see.
Measure of a Man Proof Of Immeasurable Talent
ciayaiKor’.
photo by Jonelle Kimbrough
A bieath of fresh air has blown thiDugh the worid of popular masic, and his name is Qay Aiken. His full length CD,Measurcofa
Mew;. is a Vv’ondeillil display of the Raleigli native’s amazing voice and yersatili t)'.
Clay is to the 21 st century what Rick Astley {Never Gonna Give You Up, Together Fore\ 'er) was to the 1980 s generation. In
other word.s. one would never Lxjlieve that such powertlil pipes could come out of a lanky, unassuming led head.
Regaidinglx)th the album and Clay himself, what you see is what you get. Tliete ate no references todrinking, paitying, or other
shameleasesaipctcks.Tliere is noviolence orgratuitouslyfbul language. All youwillhearLsaclean.crispvoicesingingaboutthc bright
sideofhumajiity.Thevoail gems aiepiDngedby lively instmmcntalsandpoeticl>iics.HLsretrcstiinghs'ist on Uiedefinitionotapopstar
and his i ncredible talent (okay... and his Southern chaim) have given Clay the wide appeal that sold over200,(XX) copies of the album in
twodavs.
' This is the Night the single that rocketed Clay to stardom, is one of 12 tracks that stir up a variety ot emotions in the li.stener. In
the tradition of Bi>an Adams, th"e voice behind some of rock’s most memorable love songssuch as Eve,ytlmg I Do I Do It For Ym
^yiHeaven Clay’sballadsareromanticwithoutbeingsynipy.r/K'Htt>',Pe^£«Da>’,/?«/7toA/£.',and(my personal favorite)/VVttf
C«r,yfe«areperfectchoicesifyouarelookingtosettherightmoodforadateorifyouareplanningthcsoundtracktoryourweddmg. , , ,,
Goingthroufihaheaitbixjakoraoenerally roughtime?.V«Mo/e5«JSo«g.and/5«mWK>»areanthemswithaquietattitude. Thetitletrack,A/mv«/-c'o/«,Wa/Msathought-
prDvokingjoumeyintowhattmlymakesahumanteingwhoheis.'ibucouldevengetyourgrooveonwithtwotracksthatcombinemisch.evouslyncswith..Tesi,stiblyauchy
rlivthms.Bclievcme...onelistento/m'Ki/)/£'and7’o»c/!andyouwillnotlTeabletogetthemoutofyourhead.
Fanswhoarekx)kingfortheBioadwav-csqueandeasylisteningpiecesthatClaypertbmiedonA/.™/iWo/willnotlindanysudifareonthisalbum.However,aay
proves thathisvoicelendsiLselftoothergennxsaswelKEvenifsqueaky^leaii,bubblegum melodiesaren’tyourideaofgcxxitune.s/V/™cv>y«Wa»hasat leas, one track that will
caase even the most haixloremusiccritics to fi^ltheincxplicalMeurgetolaptlieirtoesorslow dance. Andityou do thinkClay Aiken isthegreiite.stthingtoa«i^tot North
Caroliiuisincetarheelsanddogwoods.thengooutandpickupacopyoftliealbumandsuppitourhometownhero. ^ ^ iinf
Withastyle that conjuics the sophisticationofFrankSinatra, the sensuality ofEnnqueiglesiasmid his ownquirkine.ss.Clay Aiken isabrccdapartmanindiLsti>thatislullot
talentleassell-ouLsmoldedfromthesameshiipelessax)kiecutterandtastelessdough. -.u ,u • . i.., t
Ttieverdict:Mcm/«Kf/«Atons not without iLstlaws,butClay’silr^if'ft-ortisadmirableandDleasiintenou2htoa-ank upon yoursteico without havingtowoiryabout
pressingthe skip button every othertrack.