The KILL BILL series (debatably 10 films, 5 chapters per volume) is a kickass superhero origin story made for genre nerds. A wildly inventive, brutally bloody wet dream dedicated to grindhouse kung-fu and sword pictures, one that gushes girl power like an open artery, fights past formidable opponents like the Mega Man game franchise, and ultimately reflects nothing but QT's cinematic obsessions. This ten-part revenge epic fucks like no other.

Pulpier than PULP FICTION (1994), artier than JACKIE BROWN (1997), KILL BILL is a genre mashup dream come true for cinephiles and exploitation lovers alike. VOL 1. injects the heroin directly into your eyeballs —a highly artificial world of flash and trash, gore and cartoonishly absurd mayhem. It's high-concept violence with a purpose: it surrealistically sets the stage for every woman who's ever wanted to garishly assassinate their terrible ex-boyfriends. Kinda cool, right? Down and dirty feminists will have a riot with this one.

VOL. 2 is where shit gets super emotionally satisfying, dare I say endearing, as it tones down the showiness of its predecessor and develops characters (and social commentary) you actually feel pulsate in your bones. Slower, deeper, and ultimately more redemptive, VOL. 2 takes the blade-flashing comic book tradition of VOL. 1 and gives it the emotional heft needed to not only upend genre conventions, but more importantly give this untamed beast a legitimate heart and soul.

I love this film and all its wicked, mythic simplicity, even if QT never fesses up to lifting the idea from Truffaut's THE BRIDE WHO WORE BLACK (1968). It's a wild ride through B-movie history, a ridiculous premise covered in blood and surprising grace, and made with the kind of hyper-moxie only QT knows how to vengefully spin.

Tarantino Ranked