Fight Clip Club: Kill Bill

Uma Thurman at her unhinged finest.

You guys, I have a confession to make. I don’t actually like the Kill Bill movies very much.

What?! How could I not? How could I, as a woman in the stunt fighting field, not like this glorious tribute to martial-artsploitation films, starring women?? Our protagonist is a badass woman in a Bruce Lee jumpsuit, and most of her equally badass opponents are also women. I know, I know, and if I watch some of these fight scenes separated out of the context of the whole movie, I can actually appreciate them a lot more. But.

I dunno, I love rewatching other Tarantino films, like Reservoir Dogs, but these just leave a bad taste in my mouth. Again, I do like and recognize the artistry of the fight scenes themselves, but the movies? I think it’s because they epitomize the Problematic Badass Female Trope that I call ‘Down the Rabbit Hole.’ It just sickens me a little. For details about what that trope is all about, go read it. I think you’ll see what I mean, if you do. Basically,

Down The Rabbit Hole is, quite plainly, torture porn. Specifically, a bait and switch tactic of counterbalancing the potential discomfort of a woman who kicks ass by giving permission to enjoy the sight of her getting tortured. It’s almost as though she’s being tortured *because* she’s badass—as a punishment of sorts, or a way to make her less threatening.

When you get back, let’s look at this fight scene from the first Kill Bill movie: it’s one of the more memorable ones, IMO.