The chapter "Yuki's Revenge" was cut from filming to accommodate a new chapter, "Massacre at Two Pines" that details the attack on The Bride. An outline of the chapter was to have Yuki Yubari, Gogo's sister seek vengeance on the Bride for killing her sister, Yuki was to be played by Kou Shibasaki who co-stared with Chiaki Kuriyama (who plays Gogo in Vol.1) in the Japanese movie Batoru rowaiaru (2000).
Also changed from the original script - the story of Pai Mei is no longer told in a Jeep on the way to the cruel master's temple. Rather, it is now unfolded in front of a campfire somewhere in the Chinese countryside, the night before Bill and The Bride arrive. With the aid of a flute (one of the silent flutes from Circle of Iron (1978)), Bill tells the tale of Pai Mei in a "Peter and The Wolf" type fashion.
The character Pai Mei appears in several Shaw Bros Kung Fu films from the 1970s-80s including Hong Wending san po bai lian jiao (1980) (Clan of the White Lotus). Pai Mei means "White Eyebrow". Ironically, Gordon Liu (Chia Hui Liu), who stars as Pai Mei in this film, starred as the protagonist in Clan of the White Lotus and fought Pat Mei/Bak Mei (played by legendary Shaw Brothers studio actor Lo Lieh).
At the film's first test screening in Austin, Texas the audience gave the film a five minute standing ovation. The reaction was so overwhelming that Harvey Weinstein did not have the research firm conducting the screening pass out response cards.
Choreographer Woo-ping Yuen was originally set to play Pai Mei but could not fit it in with his choreography, so Quentin Tarantino considered playing it himself for a little while before picking Chia Hui Liu for the part.
Quentin Tarantino pays homage to his first film Reservoir Dogs (1992) twice in this film: First, the Bride (Uma Thurman) pulls a single blade razor from her cowboy boot which is a direct homage to Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) in Reservoir Dogs, who pulls a razor from his cowboy boot in the infamous ear scene. Second, when the Bride and Bill (David Carradine) are talking, Bill says that he hears a gunshot to the kneecap is quite painful. In Reservoir Dogs, Mr. White (Harvey Keitel) says to Mr. Orange ('Tim Roth'), "Aside from the kneecap, the gut is the most painful area a guy can get shot in."
Quentin Tarantino originally intended to only have Pai Mei's lips speaking Cantonese, while his voice would be in English, imitating a bad dub job. Tarantino was going to provide the voice himself. In the end, Tarantino abandoned this idea and Pai Mei's voice is that of the actor, Chia Hui Liu.
The Bride never actually says anything to Budd.
The Character Pai Mei is based on Pak Mei, the originator of the "White Eyebrow" kung fu technique. According to legend, Pak Mei was one of the few masters left following the decimation of the Buddhist temples, and later sold out other masters to save himself and his team during an attack they had mounted that subsequently went wrong. For this reason, Pak Mei Kung Fu has always been known as the "forbidden technique," and Pak Mei himself has been a villainous figure in Chinese folklore and film for hundreds of years.
The car seen behind Bill when he visits Budd at his trailer is a De Tomaso Mangusta, an Italian concept car put into limited production by De Tomaso. Later De Tomaso developed a related vehicle, the Pantera, which was sold through Lincoln-Mercury dealerships in the late 1960s. Because of its speed, agility, timing, and thick coat, the mangusta (Italian for mongoose) is the only animal capable of killing a cobra in a straight fight.
There is no cemetery in the Barstow, California, city limits and the cross streets of Fuller and Guadalupe do not exists. The street Guadalupe is real and is one of the southern most streets to dead end in Barstow, The Mountain View Memorial Park is can be found just north of the city and is the northernmost landmark before entering the desert. There is, however, a cemetery on Fuller and Guadalupe in Austin, TX, where Chapters 7 to 9 were originally intended to take place.
In the script, Pai Mei is a master of the Ten-Point Palm - exploding heart technique, in the film Pai Mei is the master of the Five-Point Palm - exploding heart technique.
Warren Beatty was considered for the role of Bill.
Director Trademark: [Quentin Tarantino] [long take] The "Massacre at Two Pines" ends with the camera following The Bride down the aisle away from Bill to the altar. We then "float" away from the altar, down the aisle, past Bill, out the door to the awaiting members of the DiVAS. Once they enter, the camera cranes up off the ground where we hear the pandemonium inside the chapel until finally fading out. All in a single take.
After the fight between Elle and the Bride, Elle thrashes around on the floor kicking and screaming in a manner reminiscent of Pris from Blade Runner (1982), also played by Daryl Hannah.
When Budd shoots The Bride in Chapter 8, the music played is from Per un pugno di dollari (1964).
The spit-can that Budd (Michael Madsen) uses is labeled Oak Ridge Coffee. Oak Ridge is a town in Tennessee about 15 miles from Quentin Tarantino's hometown of Knoxville.
Michael Madsen stands in the doorway of his trailer and strikes the same pose as he does against the pole in Reservoir Dogs (1992).
The brand of cigarettes smoked in this film, as noted by the eagle logo below the filter seen in close-ups, is American Spirits. However, when The Bride meets with Esteban (Michael Parks), a pack of Red Apples, Quentin Tarantino's signature brand of fake cigarettes, can clearly be seen on the table.
Quentin Tarantino has hinted at two possible spin-offs, one being an all anime backstory of the DiVAS, the other being a spin-off in the future where Vernita Green's (Vivica A. Fox) daughter, Nikki (Ambrosia Kelley), goes on a quest for revenge against the Bride.
On the wall in Budd (Michael Madsen)'s trailer hangs a poster for Mr. Majestyk (1974). In True Romance (1993), written by Quentin Tarantino, Drexl (Gary Oldman) refers to Clarence (Christian Slater) as "Motherfuckin' Charlie Bronson. Mr. Majestyk." Also, 'Mr Majestyk' was written by Elmore Leonard, who also wrote 'Rum Punch', the novel on which Tarantino's last film prior to Kill Bill, (Jackie Brown (1997)) was based.
Daryl Hannah (Elle Driver) owns the car - a 1980 Pontiac Trans-Am - her character drives in the film. However, she owns the one that was used for promotional shots because Michael Madsen (Budd) got the working Trans-Am before she got to it.
In the final scene, Uma Thurman relaxes in the sofa using identical motions as in Pulp Fiction (1994).
Pulp Fiction (1994) references: In the flashback scene when the Bride finds out she's pregnant, and the assassin and her are at a stand off, The Bride says that she is the "deadliest women in the world". In the "Fox Force 5" pilot, Uma Thurman's character is said to be the "deadliest women in the world with a knife".
Robert Rodriguez scored this movie for $1. Quentin Tarantino said he would repay him by directing a segment of Rodriguez's project Sin City (2005) for $1.
In the final scene where Bill and The Bride are questioning each other, The Bride mentions that she would have once "jumped a motorbike onto a speeding train", which is in reference to the action stunt that Michelle Yeoh performs in Ging chat goo si 3: Chiu kup ging chat (1992) (a.k.a. Supercop).
Bill's apartment in Mexico is number 101, the same as Neo's in The Matrix (1999). The fights in both films were choreographed by Woo-ping Yuen. In addition, room 101 is a reference to George Orwell's "1984", the room where the thing you fear most resides.
The book that Esteban Vihaio (Michael Parks) reads is "The Carrucan's of Kurrajong" by Jasmine Yuen. Jasmine Yuen Carrucan is one of the crew members.
Budd's boss, Larry, mentions Budd being as useless as an "asshole right here", referring to his elbow. Larry Bishop said that same line in The Savage Seven (1968). In The Rules of Attraction (2002), directed by Tarantino's former creative partner Roger Avary, the character Rupert Guest says, "I need you like I need an asshole on my elbow."
Michael Jai White filmed several scenes in Volume Two with David Carradine, but these were cut from the final theatrical version due to pacing concerns. A lengthy confrontation between the two is the one and only deleted scene on the Vol. 2 DVD.
Though never revealed in the film, the production photos reveal Bill's license plate number on his car: JE2336
The cartoon that BB and The Bride are watching at the end of the film is The Talking Magpies (1946).
When the Bride first arrives at the hacienda where Bill is staying, she walks past several hotel clerks in the lobby who are all out of focus on camera. One of the clerks in the background is the film's producer Lawrence Bender.
Director Trademark: [Quentin Tarantino] [cereal] Quentin Tarantino features old boxes of cereal in his movies, in the final scene there is an old box of Lucky Charms on the table in the hotel room.
The film's entire first reel is presented in black and white.
Unlike every other Quentin Tarantino film (including Vol. 1), Vol. 2 doesn't end with "written and directed by". Instead, Tarantino shows his own credit at the end of the main credits, but before the crew credits for the various locations at which Kill Bill was filmed.
Two references to The Searchers (1956): - When the Bride exits the church before finding Bill on the porch - When the Bride limps off from the trailer after her encounter with Elle Driver. The latter is a version of the last shot from The Searchers - where John Wayne limps off into the desert before the door of the house shuts - which in itself was a reference to an earlier William S. Hart western - taking Tarantino's references all the way back to the silent era.
Early posters for Vol. 2 proclaimed it as "The Fifth Film by Quentin Tarantino". Subsequent posters have not used that blurb, while the film itself simply says "a film by QUENTIN TARANTINO". Kill Bill Vol 1. says "The 4th Film By Quentin Tarantino" at the beginning and Vols 1 & 2 two are supposed to be considered one film. The fifth film by Quentin Tarantino is actually ‘Deathproof’.
When the first grade teacher (Venessia Valentino) takes roll, she calls out one real-life name: Marty Kitrosser. Martin Kitrosser has served as script supervisor on all of Tarantino's films.
The white Honda that Butch crashes in Pulp Fiction (1994) and that is driven in Jackie Brown (1997) is seen at the parking lot of the strip club Budd (Michael Madsen) works at as the title of Chapter 7 appears.
Director Trademark: [Quentin Tarantino] [body view] Once Budd is bitten by Elle's Black Mamba we see the camera through his eyes at Elle looking down at him.
Bill's truth serum, "The Undisputed Truth", is the name of a 70s soul group.
The dialogue from the movie Shogun Assassin (1980) which Beatrix and B.B. watch, is featured on the Wu-Tang Clan member GZA's album "Liquid Swords". "Liquid Swords" was produced by RZA, who did incidental music in both Vol 1 and Vol 2.
The climax of the film was originally written as a sword-fight on the beach under the moonlight between The Bride (clad in her wedding dress) and Bill. When the production ran long, Harvey Weinstein insisted Quentin Tarantino cut the scene back. All that remains is Bill's brief reference to such a fight while The Bride sits on his sofa, and the poster for the film with The Bride in dress holding her sword.
Quentin Tarantino confirmed in an interview that Elle Driver is based on Christina Lindberg's character in Thriller - en grym film (1974)). Thriller is also a revenge epic and the first ever movie to be banned in Sweden.
Esteban (Michael Parks) tells the Bride that Bill's villa is on "the road to Salina". This a reference to the Rita Hayworth film Road to Salina (1970).
On her way to Budd's trailer (after escaping the coffin), The Bride is walking through a sun-bathed desert out of focus, then slowly comes into focus, just like Henry Fonda in C'era una volta il West (1968).
When starting off the Legend of Pai Mei, Bill says, "Once upon a time in China..." the English title of the Jet Li film, Wong Fei Hung (1991).
The brothers played by David Carradine and Michael Madsen are named Bill and Budd. Billy Budd was the title character of a novel written by Herman Melville.
In the scene where Uma Thurman is being buried alive, the master shot has the pickup's headlights illuminating the graveyard. On the right of the screen, the exhumed body's gnarled hand casts a bunny-shaped shadow on its coffin.
The gun that Bill uses appears to be a Colt Single Action Army, or "Peacemaker", it has a bird's head grip (a modern innovation). It is obviously chambered for .45 Colt as seen on the back of the bullet fired in the internal gun shot in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003).
Elle says, "Now, you should listen to this, 'cause this concerns you." Samuel L. Jackson says the same line in Jackie Brown (1997).
At the wedding rehearsal, Bill says to the Bride, "I'm more or less particular who my gal marries." This is a reference to His Girl Friday (1940), in which Cary Grant's character by says the same thing. Howard Hawks, the director of His Girl Friday, is one of Quentin Tarantino's favorite directors.
Quentin Tarantino has the "Pussy Wagon" parked in the driveway of his home.
When The Bride walks outside to get some fresh air during the wedding rehearsal at the beginning of the film, the music being played is from Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo. (1966).
Bill's speech about Superman was in part inspired by "The Great Comic Book Heroes" a book by Jules Feiffer.
Among the options Bill offers the Bride for the final fight, he includes an "old-school" style sword duel on the beach at sunrise. This is a reference to the final fight of Hiroshi Inagaki's Samurai Trilogy from the end of Miyamoto Musashi kanketsuhen: kettô Ganryûjima (1956), in which Toshirô Mifune wins the honor of greatest samurai partially by taking advantage of the position of the setting sun.
The music heard during the Bride's escape from the coffin is from the climatic duel between Jack Palance and Tony Musante, in Il mercenario (1968).
The reason that The Bride no longer has the "Pussy Wagon" in Vol. 2 is because in the original script that included the character of Yuki Yubari, Go-Go's sister, Yuki had destroyed it soon after the killing of Vernita Green.
Wait after the credits for an alternate take of The Bride ripping out one of the Crazy 88's eyes.
Was the first Oscar DVD to arrive in Academy mailboxes in 2004.
When Budd's boss is cutting shifts from his roster, he is quoting the strip club manager from the documentary Strip Notes (2001) (V), a film directed by Daryl Hannah.
Although Quentin Tarantino is known for never using real brands for products like cereals and cigarettes, the brand of the bread he uses to make the sandwich during the "Emilio's killing story" scene, BIMBO, is a real and very popular brand of bread in Mexico.
The music that plays during Bill's (David Carradine) death scene is the theme from the film Navajo Joe (1966). It can also be heard in the film Election (1999) during the scene where Tracy (Reese Witherspoon) tears down the posters in the school's hallway.
Before Chapter Six was changed from "Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?" to "Massacre at Two Pines", Samuel L. Jackson's wife, LaTanya Richardson, was supposed to play a character named L.F. O'Boyle, a casino owner who Bill personally dispatches after toying with her.
Julie Dreyfus suggested two popular pieces of music for the movie. The first one being "The Chase" where Elle drives to Budd's trailer. The second one being "The Sunny Road To Salina" where The Bride walks through the desert to Budd's trailer. Julie's father is a record producer who owns the rights to the soundtrack of Road to Salina (1970) where the pieces of music are from.
As he leaves the Bride with Pai Mei, the license plate on Bill's Jeep reads "THX 1169," a reference to George Lucas' first feature, THX 1138 (1971).
The turquoise car that The Bride drives in Vol. 2 is a Volkswagen Type 14 "Karmann-Ghia", named after its German/Italian designers. Judging from design details, it seems to be manufactured in about 1970 by Volkswagen's Brazilian branch.
During the scene in which Bill shoots the bride with truth serum and then interrogates her, he refers to her as "a natural born killer," a film written by Tarantino. He also calls her a "renegade killer bee," referencing projects of the Wu Tang Clan a member of which ('RZA') wrote much of the original music for the two films.
Pai Mei punching through a wooden plank, leaving a round hole as opposed to "regular" wood splinters, may be a reference to this ability, attributed to several martial arts masters - among them Masusatsu Oyama (founder of the Kyokushin school of karate) who, in martial arts folklore, is said to have punched such a hole in an oak door to grab the wrist of a burglar trying to enter his house
Pulp Fiction reference: Near the end of Pulp Fiction, Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) tells Vincent (John Travolta) that he will no longer work for Marcellus Wallace, and instead be like Caine from "Kung Fu" (1972) and just walk the earth. Caine, in Kung Fu, was played by David Carradine, who plays Bill.
Pai Mei's three inch punch is a reference to Bruce Lee's three inch knockout punch.
In the original script, the fight between The Bride and Elle Driver was supposed to resemble her fight with O-Ren Ishii. Quentin Tarantino revealed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he changed it the day after catching a showing of _Jackass (2002)_ at the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas.
The Lonely Grave of Paula Schultz is Chapter 7 of Kill Bill. There is a movie with the title The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz (1968), a romantic comedy starring Elke Sommer as Paula and Bob Crane as Bill.
The large wooden flute played by Bill (David Carradine) actually is the exact same flute that David Carradine plays as Kwai Chang Caine in "Kung Fu" (1972). Carradine brought the flute to rehearsals and Quentin Tarantino decided to find a way to put it in the movie.
Elle Driver's eye-patch references/is influenced by the Patch in Jack Hill's film The Jezebels (1975). A frequent collaborator of Hill's, Sid Haig, has a minor cameo as the bartender of the strip club where Budd works.
If Bill was five years old when he went to the cinema to see The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) he can't have been born before 1941. David Carradine was born in 1936.
Ricardo Montalban was cast to play Esteban. Unable to make an early read through of the script, his lines were read by Michael Parks, who impressed Tarantino so much that he recast Parks instead.
Perla Haney-Jardine's film debut.
At the end of Pulp Fiction (1994), Samuel L. Jackson's character (Jules) explains that he wants to be a sort of bum or "drifter." In Kill Bill Vol. 2, Jackson's character (Rufus) claims to have been a drifter.
In the documentary, "A Man Can Do That," Quentin Tarantino notes that Budd in Kill Bill was a nod to director Budd Boetticher. Budd's sense of morals is certainly an homage to those of 'Randolph Scott''s in Boetticher's 'Ranown' films.
When Budd shoots Beatrix with the shotgun you can see the petrol can from Reservoir Dogs (1992).
In the scene at the church where The Bride talks to Bill, the street sign says "Agua Caliente" which means "Hot Water" in English. This is the name of a town in Per qualche dollaro in più (1965) starring Clint Eastwood.
The film is a departure from most of Quentin Tarantino's films in that a number of actual products/brand names/etc. appear in the movie. Tarantino usually makes an effort to avoid product placement in his films.
This movie reveals that 3 of the 6 members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad are not named after any species of Viper. Bill is Snake Charmer. The Black Mamba (appropriately the most dangerous of all land snakes) is of the Elapidae family. Ellie's codename is California Mountain King Snake, a completely non-venomous constrictor, famous for its ability to eat other snakes, particularly rattlesnakes like the Sidewinder (Bud's Codename).
Bill refers to The Bride as "a natural born killer". Quentin Tarantino wrote the first script of Natural Born Killers (1994) although the final film was largely wrote by the director Oliver Stone.
Although "Kill Bill" was meant to play as one whole movie, "Vol. 2" is unofficially Quentin Tarantino's first sequel.
