Obscure Kill Bill References
Kill Bill, like all Tarantino movies, is full of references to other films and pop culture, both obscure and obvious. Listed below are a couple of the more obscure references sent in by readers. Send in others if you know any.
1. In Reservoir Dogs, the radio DJ is from a show called
“K Billy’s Super Sounds of the 70′s. – from Jeff K (this may just be coincidence – ed.)
2. The opening scene in Kill Bill with Uma approaching Vivica’s bungalo is accompanied by a tune called, “Music Box Dancer” by Frank Mills. Here’s the cool part. The sign (or mailbox – I can’t recall which) on the lawn clearly indicates that this home belongs to “The Bells”. The Bells was Frank’s band before he went solo. They had a minor hit in the 70s called, “Fly Little White Dove Fly” and another hit called “Stay Ahwile”. I am not sure how many people would make this connection. I did because I am his son-in-law and married the daughter whose Music Box Dancer broke when she was a little girl providing the inspiration for this tune. – from John B
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about 8 years ago
In the kitchen scene with Vernita and The Bride, Uma mimicks her hand movement from Pulp Fiction…”Don’t be a square.” In this scene, she draws a square with her fingers. She does the same in Kill Bill. Also, I hope all QT fans noticed the Red Apple cigarette advertisement in the Tokyo airport. Red Apple was Butch’s cigarette of choice in Pulp…for which he only had to pay $1.40. Bastard.
about 8 years ago
I was told at a press junket that “The Bells” was done for the Uma’s stuntwoman, whose last name is Bell.
…it was only a reporter that told me. They’re notoriously stupid and misinformed, so I would go with your origin.
Mike
about 8 years ago
Obscure Kill Bill Reference:
Talking with Vernita Green, the Bride says the words “fair and square” while outlining a square with her fingers. The same motion Uma Thurman did with visible dotted lines in “Pulp Fiction.”
about 8 years ago
I don’t think this is a reference and i’m sure nearly everybody who has seen it noticed it. But I thought it was cool how the cerial (cant spell it)that copperhead poured for her daughter with the gun in it was called ka-boom. I only mention it because i thought some may of missed it. But then again i’m probably slower than most
about 8 years ago
Hey, I’ve been mulling this over, and it seems to me that the movie is teeming with Bruce Lee homage. The most obvious reference is The Bride’s outfit when she confronts O-Ren Ishii (It’s identical to the one Bruce Lee wears in the “Game of Death”) Next are the masks that the Crazy 88′s wear. The Bride comments that they look like the masks that Kato from the Green Hornet wore. Kato was played by none other than Bruce Lee in the 1970′s TV series (the theme song even appears in the movie soundtrack!). Finally, Bill himself is played by David Carradine who starred in the 70′s martial arts show “Kung-Fu” and later on in it’s mid-90′s sequel, “Kung-Fu: The Legend Continues”. The original concept for the show was penned by none other than Bruce Lee. In fact, he wrote the part of the lead for himself. I guess the networks weren’t ready to give Bruce his own TV show, but really liked the idea, because they pretty much stole it and gave the role to Carradine. Ooops.
about 8 years ago
Bill has 5 original assassins until Uma decides she wants out, right? Kind of like the pilot that Uma’s character in Pulp Fiction starred in, the Foxy Five or something to that affect. They all had a specialty, much like the killers in Kill Bill. A guy I know said that Kill Bill references that, but my take is that this was Terentino’s big idea for a movie all along, seeing as how it is based on “The Bride”, and that any reference you see in this movie from his other ones is actually the other way around, that they reference this one.
about 8 years ago
Fox Force Five. Yeah, I thought of that too.
What was Green Hornet? That theme by Al Hirt is killer.
about 8 years ago
i don’t know about the rest of the viewers, but i certainly was made well aware of a pervading theme of the color yellow throughout the film… the poster for the movie; the school bus; the pussy wagon; uma’s combat outfit; the cereal box; the knife verdina pulled from the drawer; much of the lighting was based on yellow tint; anything else you can think of? anyway, i’m not sure as to its significance, but then again, many of the subtleties and seemingly-important references found in Quentin Tarantino films are rather obscure, absract, and misleading, and therefore have no ready, set meaning to be inferred by the masses…furthermore, i’m not sure how many times this happens, but there are various transitions made from color to black and white and vice-verse: the transitions occur at what may be seen as breaking points in the photography, but with reference to the plot and the statements being made in the film, there is little to work with, and thus nothing to be concluded… any thoughts?
about 8 years ago
I’m not sure about this one. During the scene in El Paso when the head cop arrives at the church, in the background you hear the radio say something like “This is KTRN in Wichita Falls.” Wichita Falls in something like 600 miles from El Paso so I wondered at the time why they would use that. I think this might be a reference to The Last Picture Show. I think there is a similar if not identical radio snippet in The Last Picture Show. Does anyone know?
about 8 years ago
Just some of my thoughts: Well everybody knows from RDogs the radio station K-Billy’s super sounds of the seventies, right? Well in Pulp Fiction you could hear that the the same radio station was on advertising Jack Rabbit slim’s. It was in the scene were Butch was going to get his watch. Also in True Romance(written by QT)you could hear a radio station that was KB and something…KB as in K-Billy’s. And also KB as in Kill Bill. Is there a connection? Maybe…maybe not. I have seen Jackie Brown only once but I think that there might also be something like this…
about 8 years ago
I was watching Tokyo Drifter again the other day after seeing Kill Bill. I know Tarantino is a fan of Seijun Suzuki (or at least bits of his films). While it has been pointed out somewhere that the glass floor in the House of Blue Leaves is a reference to Tokyo Drifter, I think there is a lot more to it.
The entire plot of Tokyo Drifter is about a hitman and his bodyguard who decide to go straight, but the other gangsters want to keep them in the life of crime and so punish them (reference number one). The opening scene of the film is shot in black and white, while the rest of the film is colour (reference number two – although Tarantino used black and white again. Also, in the opening scene of Suzuki’s Tokyo Drifter, Tetsu (the bodyguard)- because of his decision to go straight (like Thurman) – is beaten up by a group of four men. When someone hits Tetsu and he stumbles back, the person he is closest to then has a go at punishing him (much like the scene in which Thurman is beaten up by Liu, Fox, Madsen and Hannah). What does everyone else think?
about 8 years ago
Does anybody have an idea why Mike felt it neccessary to post his comment. He comes across as kind of dumb.
about 8 years ago
there is all a reference in kill bill to an old captain america comic book. the assasin group, The Viper squad, also appeared in the comic book as villains. each of the villains had the same name as in the movie (black mamba, copperhead, etc…)
about 8 years ago
http://nextdch.mty.itesm.mx/~plopezg/FFF3/merchandise/merchandise.html
Fox force five
about 8 years ago
K Billy’s supersounds of the 70′s … K Bill .. Kill Bill ?
about 7 years ago
kill bill
about 7 years ago
Elle Driver kills Pai Me with a poisoned fish, and Kiddo’s daughter kills her own fish by squashing it with her foot.
Then Kiddo later squashes Elle Driver’s second eye by squashing it with her foot. An interesting circle of events.
about 7 years ago
It was not until after I rewatched pulp fiction after watching vol.1 that I noticed a damn truckload of connections. But most recently and most blatent, was after watching vol.2. When Uma gets buried alive in the grave, she is burried with Buds(Madsen) cowboy boots. She reaches in his boots to pull out a shaving blade, and cuts herself loose. Now, everyone who has watched RDogs recalls the scene where Mr.Blonde(Madsen) turns on KBilly, reaches into his boots for a Shaving Blade, and cuts off the cops ear. That one I am surprised not many have noticed.
In pulp fiction there is the foxforce5 recollection and Butch’s assault on the rednecks with the Samurai sword. Also, John Travoltas character is named Vincet Vega. In RDogs, Mr.Blondes real name is Vic Vega. In the coffee shop scene where Travolta and Jackson discuss quiting the hitman buisness. Jackson says he would do something similar to Caine from Kung-Fu (David Carradine). Tim Roth plays a robber in pulp fiction, and pretends to be a robber in Rdogs. I might have over analyzed everything a little to much, but so far my favorite is the KBILLY. This I think proves that Tarantino had the idea for Kill Bill for some time, and the connections are definitely purposeful.
about 7 years ago
Elle Driver’s name is same as “L. Driver” who produced “Full Tilt Boogie” the classic Dusk To Dawn documentary. Anybody have thoughts on Madsen first appearing wearing a suit (at the church) similar to the one in R Dogs.Also what’s the Uma’s hand poping out of the grave from…I’ve seen that somewhere.
about 7 years ago
Younger members in the audience, younger than 40, may not recongnize the TV themes played at various times. As The Bride touches down in Tokyo, we’re treated to “The Green Hornet Theme.” Whenever the Bride comes in eye contact with one of her targets, there’s the grating, LOUD theme from Raymand Burr’s show, Ironside, in which he solved murders from a wheelchair. Burr was always hunting down the man who’d shot him which caused his paralysis. I was also hoping he’d catch the person who wrote that theme and deal with him, as well.