Quentin Tarantino is a legendarily infamous director. The mastermind behind several classic films that revolutionized the movie industry, he has made himself a household name thanks to his inventive but exciting movies. And right now, two of his most famous films are blasting up the streaming charts.
According to FlixPatrol, Kill Bill: Volume 1 is currently the 2nd most popular movie on HBO, and its sequel, Kill Bill: Volume 2, is currently the 10th most popular film on the same service.
Kill Bill: Volume 1 was released in 2003. A love letter to grindhouse cinema, especially kung-fu and exploitation movies from the 1970s. Kill Bill sees Uma Thurman play a character called the Bride. On her wedding day, the Bride is gunned down at the altar by the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, a group the Bride was formally a member of. The downed Bride tells the Deadly Viper’s leader, Bill, that she is pregnant with his child, but he responds by shooting her in the head.
However, the shot doesn’t actually kill the Bride. After waking up from a four-year coma, the Bride embarks on a quest for revenge. The Bride starts working her way through the gang’s lower members as she tries to track down Bill and, as the title suggests, viciously murder him. Then in 2004, Kill Bill: Volume 2 was released. This film picks up where the first ended, following the Bride as she resumes her quest for vengeance.
The films were hugely popular when they were released, and they quickly became cult classics. Volume 1 made $180.9 million worldwide, and Volume 2 made $152.2 million worldwide. Both films were highly praised at the time, as shown by their stunningly high Rotten Tomatoes scores.
Volume 1 has an 85% critic score and an 81% audience score, and Volume 2 has an 84% critic score and an 89% audience score. In fact, the reviews for both movies are very similar, with critics and viewers praising the stylish fight sequences and well-paced plot. However, there was some criticism, with many reviews pointing out that the film is a very standard revenge film. And, while it does have emotional moments, it doesn’t have a lot of depth, especially when compared to other movies in the same genre.
However, the film did well during awards season, with Uma Thurman winning three awards for her performance as the Bride. On top of this, both films won the Best Action/Adventure Film award at the Saturn Awards.
It isn’t hard to see why Kill Bill has become a cult classic due to its exciting plot and amazingly stylish action scenes. Because of this, it will likely reappear on streaming charts regularly as people go back and rewatch these popular films.