'Kill Bill Volume 1': opening scene analysis

There are many key features in the opening scene of 'Kill Bill Volume 1' that establish it as a thriller film.

Firstly, there is a sound bridge, connoting suspense, panic and tension. This anticipates the action in the next sequence, immediately putting the audience on edge and making them wonder what is happening in the scene.

The first shot is a high angle shot of a woman, who has been beaten and is bleeding. She is breathing heavily, which shows she feels threatened and frightened. This shot makes the audience want to know what happened to the woman, why she was beaten and who or what it is that she is threatened by.

During this shot, footsteps are heard on floorboards, seeming to be getting closer. This heightens the anticipation of the scene as the audience is unaware of who the person is, but assumes that they are a threat. Also, the footsteps are quite rhythmical, almost mimicking an increasing heartbeat.

The second shot is a low angle tracking shot of someone's feet walking across floorboards. This connotes a threatening character, as we are not shown the characters face. In fact, in this film, Tarantino creates an enigma, as the audience is not shown Bill's face throughout the whole film. Tarantino also does this in several of his other films, such as not revealing the contents of the briefcase in Pulp Fiction.

The scene then cuts back to the same shot as the first, and the threatening character speaks, saying “Do you find me sadistic?”. This makes the audience immediately aware that this character is the villain.

He wipes blood from the woman's face with a handkerchief with the name 'Bill' on it, signifying the importance of the character and reinforcing that he is the villain of the film. This action also seems quite patronising and degrading, reflecting his words as he speaks of how what he did to her was masochistic rather than sadistic. This also shows how he feels no remorse for what he has done.

There is a surprise element at the end of the opening, as the woman tries to speak for the first time, there is a gun shot and blood is sprayed onto the floorboards behind her head. This shows how Bill has no respect for anyone else. The fact that she says “Bill, its your baby” before he shoots her shows that he can shoot anyone with no remorse, as it is implied that she is the mother of his child.

The whole opening sequence is in black and white. Tarantino has chosen to do this as a tribute to classic thriller films, and also as an indicator of the fact that this scene is a flashback.