Kill Bill Vol.2
Aug. 11th, 2004 07:30 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
muck_a_luckWe bought and watched Kill Bill Vol. 2 yesterday.
Firstly, I should point out the Husband's argument. You can't really expect much more from Quentin Tarantino than a post-modern collage of beautiful violence, campy humor, and melodrama.
That said, in this movie, QT didn't try to go so far as to discard plot completely. He chose a plot and motivated his characters.
I have a big problem with how he did that.
Secondly, you could say, well, there's no point getting worked up about this movie. It's just a violent thrill fest. You might as well get worked up about the themes of a slasher film or a spaghetti western or a George Lucas movie. Well, bite me, whole doctoral dissertations have been written on those subjects. I spent at least 2 hours of my life watching that movie, and we all know about my brain's desperate attempts to give meaning to everything, even Sean Bean and Jolie Ricardson doing it doggy style. We all know what to expect from me.
Thirdly, you could say, well, there's not point getting all worked up about this, becuase the things you think this movie is trying to say, it's not really saying. QT didn't mean that. Yeah, well, I dismissed that argument as uninteresting long ago. Occasionally, particularly with movies, you get plenty of information about what a creator "meant" to say with their creation. But usually, you pick up a book/movie off a library/video store shelf, and you, the reader/viewer have to find meaning in it yourself. Does the fact that you found meaning in it without knowing what the creator "meant" mean that what you understood is false. No. It means that once a creation is out there to be consumed by other human minds, meaning no longer belongs to the creator. The creator may not even have a very good view of what their own work means.
All that said, I was very, very unhappy with Kill Bill Vol. 2, because of what it says about women, womanhood and motherhood.
This is a fantasy world, inhabited by super-warrior-women. They are nearly indestructible, except by each other. Our Heroine, Kiddo, is the most incredible of these women. She is the most successful student of the most respected master of their warrior art. She is multilingual. She is beautiful. She is respected and feared. She accepts pain as part of her existence and overcomes it, even defies it. She rises from the grave. Twice.
This woman, who is all these things, gets pregnant. Finds out she is pregnant. And denies her warrior self. Immediately. Without question. Pregnancy/motherhood is the magic thing. Suddenly, what she is no longer matters to her. Only motherhood is important.
Here is the first thing I hated about this movie. This is how men have viewed women for centuries. This is what modern American women really are fighting against. This is the excuse Engineering and Law and Medical schools used to deny admission to women. This is the reason women have had to fight for the right to serve in the armed forces. This is the reason there is a glass ceiling in corporate America. Because this is how women are viewed. No matter how successful. No matter how well schooled. No matter what they have achieved. They will sacrifice it all on the alter of motherhood.
But CK, you say, this woman was a cold-blooded killer assassin. She decided she should not bring her unborn daughter into a world of cold-blooded killer assassins. *rolls eyes* Oh, great! What an uplifting meaning to this story! Motherhood is the cure for being a cold-blooded killer. Great! That makes me feel better. And lovely. I'm glad that pending motherhood let Our Heroine see that she was an evil bad person. But even *this* is a fantasy about motherhood. Does motherhood really make people good? Become good? Give up their evil ways? No. Maybe the occasional individual changes her life because she is pregnant. But consider how many women can't even quit smoking and drinking for the direct benefit of their unborn child. I find this version of QT's moral of the story extremely condescending. Just get all the bad women to be pregnant and suddenly there would be no evil women in the world.
Another thing that bothers me about this movie is WHAT Our Heroine decided to do with her life, when she realized she could no longer be a cold blooded killer. She didn't choose to take all her martial arts skills and wisdom to a mountain-top and teach students. She didn't choose to fight for good. She was hiding from Bill, but she didn't choose to try to Kill Bill then, when she would have had the benefit of surprise to help her. She probably could have killed every person who was a threat to her. As a trained assassin and cold-blooded killer, why not? But she chose to run away and hide in the record shop of some OK guy who would marry her. Now, as The Husband pointed out, the movie itself looks down on her for thinking that hiding with the guy could work. Even she admits she doesn't think that could work. But that's what the character did, under the influence of her new state of pending motherhood. Apparently pregnant women are stupid and lose their ability for long term planning and just need a man to look after them.
Kill Bill Vol. 2 says to me that motherhood trumps everything in a woman's life, reduces her to being a mother, turns her into a mother, throws away everything else that ever made up her character, and possibly even makes her into an idiot.
And please, please don't take this as an attack on motherhood. I describe myself as a born again mother. The Small Boy is one of the most amazing things that has ever happened to me, he has changed my life, and I am proud to be his mother. I also respect people who make life-changing decisions to benefit their children (though I haven't really made any, personally).
But motherhood hasn't really made *any* fundamental changes to my personality. Let's see. No bodily function grosses me out anymore. I am slightly more in favor of the death penalty than I used to be because there are certain things that if they were done to The Small Boy I would kill the person with my bare hands. I am much more willing to eat after people and let people take food off my plate. I am slightly more prudish than previously about what comes on prime time TV. I have much less awareness of personal space.
Other mothers who read this might feel a greater impact from motherhood, might have seen greater changes. I completely respect that.
But this movie just sticks in my craw. I dislike what it is saying about women and motherhood. QT should have picked some other stupid character motivations for his festival of beautiful violence.
Firstly, I should point out the Husband's argument. You can't really expect much more from Quentin Tarantino than a post-modern collage of beautiful violence, campy humor, and melodrama.
That said, in this movie, QT didn't try to go so far as to discard plot completely. He chose a plot and motivated his characters.
I have a big problem with how he did that.
Secondly, you could say, well, there's no point getting worked up about this movie. It's just a violent thrill fest. You might as well get worked up about the themes of a slasher film or a spaghetti western or a George Lucas movie. Well, bite me, whole doctoral dissertations have been written on those subjects. I spent at least 2 hours of my life watching that movie, and we all know about my brain's desperate attempts to give meaning to everything, even Sean Bean and Jolie Ricardson doing it doggy style. We all know what to expect from me.
Thirdly, you could say, well, there's not point getting all worked up about this, becuase the things you think this movie is trying to say, it's not really saying. QT didn't mean that. Yeah, well, I dismissed that argument as uninteresting long ago. Occasionally, particularly with movies, you get plenty of information about what a creator "meant" to say with their creation. But usually, you pick up a book/movie off a library/video store shelf, and you, the reader/viewer have to find meaning in it yourself. Does the fact that you found meaning in it without knowing what the creator "meant" mean that what you understood is false. No. It means that once a creation is out there to be consumed by other human minds, meaning no longer belongs to the creator. The creator may not even have a very good view of what their own work means.
All that said, I was very, very unhappy with Kill Bill Vol. 2, because of what it says about women, womanhood and motherhood.
This is a fantasy world, inhabited by super-warrior-women. They are nearly indestructible, except by each other. Our Heroine, Kiddo, is the most incredible of these women. She is the most successful student of the most respected master of their warrior art. She is multilingual. She is beautiful. She is respected and feared. She accepts pain as part of her existence and overcomes it, even defies it. She rises from the grave. Twice.
This woman, who is all these things, gets pregnant. Finds out she is pregnant. And denies her warrior self. Immediately. Without question. Pregnancy/motherhood is the magic thing. Suddenly, what she is no longer matters to her. Only motherhood is important.
Here is the first thing I hated about this movie. This is how men have viewed women for centuries. This is what modern American women really are fighting against. This is the excuse Engineering and Law and Medical schools used to deny admission to women. This is the reason women have had to fight for the right to serve in the armed forces. This is the reason there is a glass ceiling in corporate America. Because this is how women are viewed. No matter how successful. No matter how well schooled. No matter what they have achieved. They will sacrifice it all on the alter of motherhood.
But CK, you say, this woman was a cold-blooded killer assassin. She decided she should not bring her unborn daughter into a world of cold-blooded killer assassins. *rolls eyes* Oh, great! What an uplifting meaning to this story! Motherhood is the cure for being a cold-blooded killer. Great! That makes me feel better. And lovely. I'm glad that pending motherhood let Our Heroine see that she was an evil bad person. But even *this* is a fantasy about motherhood. Does motherhood really make people good? Become good? Give up their evil ways? No. Maybe the occasional individual changes her life because she is pregnant. But consider how many women can't even quit smoking and drinking for the direct benefit of their unborn child. I find this version of QT's moral of the story extremely condescending. Just get all the bad women to be pregnant and suddenly there would be no evil women in the world.
Another thing that bothers me about this movie is WHAT Our Heroine decided to do with her life, when she realized she could no longer be a cold blooded killer. She didn't choose to take all her martial arts skills and wisdom to a mountain-top and teach students. She didn't choose to fight for good. She was hiding from Bill, but she didn't choose to try to Kill Bill then, when she would have had the benefit of surprise to help her. She probably could have killed every person who was a threat to her. As a trained assassin and cold-blooded killer, why not? But she chose to run away and hide in the record shop of some OK guy who would marry her. Now, as The Husband pointed out, the movie itself looks down on her for thinking that hiding with the guy could work. Even she admits she doesn't think that could work. But that's what the character did, under the influence of her new state of pending motherhood. Apparently pregnant women are stupid and lose their ability for long term planning and just need a man to look after them.
Kill Bill Vol. 2 says to me that motherhood trumps everything in a woman's life, reduces her to being a mother, turns her into a mother, throws away everything else that ever made up her character, and possibly even makes her into an idiot.
And please, please don't take this as an attack on motherhood. I describe myself as a born again mother. The Small Boy is one of the most amazing things that has ever happened to me, he has changed my life, and I am proud to be his mother. I also respect people who make life-changing decisions to benefit their children (though I haven't really made any, personally).
But motherhood hasn't really made *any* fundamental changes to my personality. Let's see. No bodily function grosses me out anymore. I am slightly more in favor of the death penalty than I used to be because there are certain things that if they were done to The Small Boy I would kill the person with my bare hands. I am much more willing to eat after people and let people take food off my plate. I am slightly more prudish than previously about what comes on prime time TV. I have much less awareness of personal space.
Other mothers who read this might feel a greater impact from motherhood, might have seen greater changes. I completely respect that.
But this movie just sticks in my craw. I dislike what it is saying about women and motherhood. QT should have picked some other stupid character motivations for his festival of beautiful violence.
