Case Study: 'Kill Bill: Vol. 1'

Explain how Tarantino establishes Thriller conventions in the opening of 'Kill Bill: Vol. 1'

   

    In the opening of Tarantino's 'Kill Bill: Vol. 1', the first thriller convention  to be established is with the character of Bill - the greedy, malevolent character with a dark, corrupt past; which is a generic character type explored in thriller texts. In the short, close-up tracking shot of Bill's feet; we see that they are clad in a pair of 'cowboy boots'. As part of his costume, these boots could have been used to make the character seem as if he is trying to make himself look taller; physically putting himself above everyone else - possibly trying to instate his own apparent feel of authority over others. We later see Bill wipe the blood off of The Bride's face, with a handkerchief with his name on it. The fact that he has a handkerchief with his own name embroidered on it would suggest that Bill is a fairly vain and conceited character; possibly with a great feeling of ownership over certain things - and probably people too. In this shot, we are also able to see that Bill is wearing jewellery; which makes him appear flashy and pretentious. 

    The use of black and white not only helps to create an atmospheric feel; but also helps the audience to differentiate between  'flashback' scenes like this one, and 'real-time' scenes which soon follow. The use of black and white helps to create an atmospheric feel by contrasting the binary opposites of the colours; which could be reflective of the dark, deplorable character of Bill - who shoots someone when they are most defenceless, and the vulnerable, 'anti-hero' type character of 'The Bride'. The use of black and white could also be referencing the sub-genre of 'Noir Thriller'. 

    The cliff hanger at the end of this opening is very effective in keeping the audiences interest and attention. This could be due to the main character - The Bride- being shot in the head at the very beginning of the film, as many would doubt anyone could survive taking a bullet to the head at such close range. This helps to intrigue the audience and engross them into the events about to unfold, as they would want to know how she survives it; and what will happen next. This would therefore be a very appealing opening to the audience, as it would absorb them in the film and elicit their curiosity from the very beginning. 

Inter-textual reference between Tarantino's 'Kill Bill: Vol. 1' (Chapter 2) and the opening sequence of David Lynch's crime noir drama 'Blue Velvet'.

    In this scene, we see a shot of a street decorated with very bright, friendly looking houses. The use of bright coloured houses - similar to those in the opening of 'Blue Velvet'- could have been used ironically; as they look very aesthetically pleasing, but dangerous things are happening inside - such as the fight between 'The Bride' and Vernita. This, along with the idyllic American suburb front helps to add a falsity to the scene; making it feel as if the people there have something to hide. This could be reflective of the fact that both 'The Bride' and Vernita have a fairly dark past, in reference to their involvement with Bill and the 'Deadly Viper Assassination Squad' that they have both tried to move on from.

    During the fight between 'The Bride' and Vernita, the school bus pulls up infront of the house, and Vernita's daughter arrives home. This reinforces the idea of falsity and concealment of truth, as when her daughter walks in, Vernita and 'The Bride' put on a front and pretend to be old friends; keeping their dark secret of how they became acquainted from the young, oblivious girl. This could be linked to the opening of 'Blue Velvet' where we see the young school children be ushered across the road, which -in both texts- could be symbolic of peoples seemingly innocent ignorance of the true, sinister events that are occurring in their neighbourhood unbeknown to them. 

    This sense of fake appearances and heightened colour in both 'kill Bill: Vol. 1' and 'Blue Velvet'  also have clear links to 'The Truman Show' and 'The Wizard of Oz'. In 'The Truman Show', they use the idea of brightly coloured, idyllic suburban houses to enhance the feel of a false reality - making everything feel uncomfortably 'perfect'; fitting of the narrative as Truman is an unsuspecting insurance salesman who finds out that his whole life is a reality TV show.

    In 'The Wizard of Oz', very similarly to 'Kill Bill: Vol. 1', 'Blue Velvet' and 'The Truman Show'; the use of bright, garish colours help to create a sense of falsity and surrealism - creating the illusion of a utopian surrounding in which everything is perfect. Much like 'The Truman Show', this effect is very fitting for the narrative of 'The Wizard of Oz' as the land of the munchkin's is fake, the wizard is fake; and they all exist only in Dorothy's imagination, due to her desire to escape reality.