Lady Snowblood: What would Quentin have done without her?

Filmbrain finally had a chance to see Lady Snowblood, the 1973 Toho film that was a huge source of inspiration for Quentin Tarantino when writing Kill Bill -- though Quentin took more than just the storyline. The film shares quite a bit with the Lone Wolf and Cub and Zatoichi series, which were made around the same time -- all are period pieces with strong characters, lots of close-ups, and geysers of bright red blood that ejaculate from those that taste Yuki's (aka Lady Snowblood) blade. The story takes place during the Meiji restoration, a rather chaotic period in Japan's history (the film includes a brief history lesson for those not in the know), and tells of a woman who was born with and for one purpose only -- to complete the roaring rampage of revenge that her mother could not. Unlike Kill Bill, there is a strong political subtext to the inciting event -- the murder of Gou and rape of Sayo (Yuki's mother) by a band of brigands occurs when they mistakenly identify Gou as a government official. Sayo, determined to take revenge, kills one of her attackers, but is sent to prison. There, she beds every prison guard possible so that she may give birth to a child that will complete her task. Enter Yuki. Trained as a child to be a killer, her lifelong quest becomes the hunting down of the remaining three. The most interesting thing about the film is the way in which Yuki is portrayed. Like a machine programmed to perform only one function, there is nary a moment where Yuki is shown doing or thinking about anything else, and actress Kaji Meiko plays her to stoic perfection -- so much so that her one big emotional outburst at the film's conclusion feels like a pressure valve being released.

With Kill Bill, Quentin turned the Lady Snowblood story into a more personal tale of individual revenge, with both The Bride and O-Ren taking qualities of Yuki and her mother Sayo. But the similarities don't end there. There are visual elements in Lady Snowblood that found their way into Tarantino's film, including the use of close-ups, an anime section (manga in Lady Snowblood), and, well....the shot shown on the right. Both films are told in non-linear fashion, though that's something that Tarantino has used in almost all of his films. The use of chapter headings was also lifted, although Tarantino settled for simple descriptive titles (The Origin of O-Ren) instead of something more poetic (Crying Bamboo Dolls of the Netherworlds.) Both films feature climactic fight scenes in snowy courtyards, use the song Shura no Hana, and end with a perfect opportunity for a sequel. (A Lady Snowblood sequel exists, though Filmbrain hasn't seen it yet.) Unlike Reservoir Dogs, which is an un-credited port of Ringo Lam's City on Fire, Tarantino has been very forthcoming about the films that influenced Kill Bill, and this review is not about accusing him of any shenanigans. However, Filmbrain's biggest gripe with Kill Bill is that Tarantino spent so much time paying homage that he got lazy with the screenplay. But let's not open that can of worms again. . . Lady Snowblood isn't a great film, but it is a fine example of the type of films Toho Studios was producing in the early 70's. Besides the aforementioned performance by Kaji Meiko, one of the best things the films has to offer is a super-cool psychedelic free-jazz score that works, even though it's far out of place in a Meiji restoration period film. (Available on Netflix.)