Three Cheers for Kill Bill 3

As far back as 2007, Quentin Tarantino had been hinting at a sequel to his much beloved and acclaimed chop-socky revenge flick, Kill Bill. Right now, there are just notes and tidbits being dropped on various websites that Tarantino is slated to direct at least two other projects before he can even begin to formulate a third installment of The Bride's Story. Uma Thurman has given the thumbs up to reprise her role as Beatrix Kiddo aka The Bride. As recently as December 2009, Tarantino reported on an Italian talk show called Parla Con Me that the movie won't be released until 2014, a full ten years after the first events in Kill Bill, Volumes 1 and 2. Of course, calling it Kill Bill 3 may sound like a misnomer since The Bride did in fact Kill Bill at the end of Volume 2, but if any cinephile can tell you about Quentin Tarantino, he rarely follows a straight line.

Possible plotlines discussed for the sequel have included the revenge of two Crazy 88's members who survived the Bride's rampage in Kill Bill 1. The Crazy 88's were Oren Ishii's (Lucy Liu) personal cadre of samurai bodyguards. Another storyline was to center around the revenge of Nikki Green, the 4 year-old daughter of Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox) who witnessed her mother's murder at the hands of the bride. In one of the cruelest and most honorable lines, the Bride stands over the little girl, wiping the knife she just plunged into her mother's heart and stolidly intones, "When you grow up, if you still feel raw about it... I'll be waiting." It would be a hell of a showdown to see the Bride's daughter, Bebe, possibly come to her mother's aid and square off with Nikki.

Those storylines certainly sound interesting but with Tarantino, however, it's never quite as simple or obvious, as he possesses the rare talent to upend cinematic cliches and completely defy viewer expectations. In Kill Bill 1, the promise of a nighttime knife fight with Vernita shatters in a head twisting split second. A nasty hatred between Elle "California Mountain Snake" Driver and the Bride was so built up that one expected Elle to suffer a rather painful and awe inspiring death, but the Bride decides to let her live after she plucks out her lone remaining eye, forever blinding her. A return of Daryl Hannah as the villainous Elle Driver would almost be a no-brainer, but that's ultimately Tarantino's call. Add his trademark slow burning scenes and measured, witty dialogue that actually allows for space and characterization, and it's a sure bet that Kill Bill 3, or whatever it may be eventually called, will deliver.

Sources: The Independent, denofgeek.com