Double Bill #17: Kill Bill Vol. 1 & Kill Bill Vol. 2

Posted on 14 februari 2026 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

After Jackie Brown, Tarantino took a long break (six years), but when he returned, he did so with a vengeance. If you’re going to compare a Tarantino movie, you compare it to every other movie ever made that wasn’t made by Quintin Tarantino. By that standard, the two-part Kill Bill saga stands among the finest pieces of cinematic art of the century so far. Here, Tarantino does what he does best – lifting fragments from forgotten genre and exploitation cinema and fusing them into something wholly original – better than ever before. It’s a double-edged sword in many ways: a bold blend of Eastern and Western influences, effortlessly shifting between comic-book ultraviolence and moments of genuine emotional weight. This tonal balance works largely thanks to Uma Thurman’s superb central performance as The Bride, which anchors the madness with real feeling. The story itself is simple, yet utterly captivating. The characters are fascinating and endlessly quotable. The style is unmistakable and unmatched. Volume 1 plays like the ultimate samurai/yakuza/action movie of your childhood – the one you could watch endlessly – only somehow even better. Volume 2, by contrast, leans into the rhythms of a spaghetti western, offering more of Tarantino’s signature dialogue and a terrific performance by David Carradine, who reimagines his Kung Fu character Kwai Chang Caine as a pop culture loving and psychopathic mentor. Structured in ten chapters and told out of chronological order, Kill Bill unfolds as a true epic, packed with all of Tarantino’s hallmarks: razor-sharp humor, wax-museum characters, stylized violence, brilliant music choices, and a Pussy Wagon–load of pop culture references. The only Double Bill I actually experienced in theaters – back when Volume 2 was released in 2004 – and one I’ll never forget. Whenever The Whole Bloody Affair finally arrives in European theaters, I will be there for sure.

Double Bill #16: The Punisher & Showdown in Little Tokyo

Posted on 5 februari 2026 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Okay, these are not the best movies I’ve ever reviewed for this section. Still, they’re classic actioners from my favorite movie era: the glorious nineties. What they have in common is Dolph Lundgren taking on the Yakuza. Both films also feature a torture scene, and in both cases Lundgren escapes in much the same way, before giving his torturer a taste of his own medicine. In The Punisher (1989, Mark Goldblatt), based on the Marvel comic, the presumed-dead cop Frank Castle hunts down members of the Franco crime family for the murder of his own family (he’s already killed 125). The Francos, led by Giovanni Franco (Jeroen Krabbé), are under pressure as well from a ruthless Yakuza clan eager to take over their territory. In Showdown in Little Tokyo, Lundgren’s cop is likewise driven by revenge for the murder of his parents. This time he teams up with L.A. cop Brandon Lee of the Asian Task Force, and together they take on a Yakuza faction known as Tetsu No Tsume, or the Iron Claw. Frankly, Lundgren and Lee were B-choice action stars of this period, and these films are unmistakably B-style entertainment. That said, the villains are very well done. Lady Kanaka (Kim Miyori) in The Punisher especially leaves a strong impression. Furthermore, the non-stop action and violence are delivered in generous doses. In the end, this Double Bill may not be prestige cinema, but it’s a solid blast of grimy, old-school ’90s action that knows exactly what it is and never pretends otherwise.

Cult Radar: Part 6

Posted on 12 december 2009 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

FilmDungeon is glad to explore the video trenches to find that oddball treasure between the piles of crap out there. Of Course, a treasure in this context can also be a film that’s so shockingly bad it’s worth a look, or something so bizarre that cult fans just have to see it. Join us on our quest and learn what we learn. Hopefully we’ll uncover some well-hidden cult gems.

Researched by: Jeppe Kleijngeld

Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman (USA, 1993 TV)

Directed by: Christopher Guest
Written by: Mark Hanna, Joseph Dougherty
Cast: Daryl Hannah, Daniel Baldwin, William Windom

‘She is a female colossus, her mountainous torso, skyscraper limbs, giant desires.’ Daryl Hannah plays Nancy in this remake of the original Attack of the 50 Foot Woman from 1953. Nancy is the girl who always eats shit from everybody. During a lonely drive in the desert, she is laser beamed by an alien spaceship. Initially there are no effects, but after her cheating husband (Daniel Baldwin) and her bastard father piss her off for the millionth time, she grows 50 feet tall and goes apeshit. This is a movie with obviously a lot of cult potential, but the story takes too long to take off. The revenge mayhem does not start until the final 20 minutes! When it does take off it is pretty cool. Not in the least bit because of the amusing special effects.

The Big Bird Cage (Philippines / USA, 1972)

Directed by: Jack Hill
Written by: Jack Hill
Cast: Pam Grier, Anitra Ford, Candice Roman, Teda Bracci

Terry Rich (Anitra Ford) is sent to a women’s prison camp, because she slept around with too many men (?). The camp is a nightmare. Hundreds of woman are forced to work a sugar cane mill under supervision of gay guards. Off course there are loads of catfights, scenes of torture and some sexual content. It ends in a cliché: a massive escape. This exploitation film is an addition to the ‘woman in prison’ subgenre. Writer/director Jack Hill has certainly done better, for example on this film’s predecessor The Big Doll House. This is boring and the atmosphere is just plain unpleasant. Pam Grier brings two great features into the mix though, so let’s not write it off as complete failure.

Awakening of the Beast (Brazil, 1970)
OT: O Despertar da Besta

Directed by: José Mojica Marins
Written by: Rubens F. Lucchetti. José Mojica Marins
Cast: José Mojica Marins, ngelo Assunção, Ronaldo Beibe

Weird and incomprehensible exploitation film by the Brazilian Argento Coffin Joe. It’s an attempt at social commentary, but completely fails to deliver a message of any significance. All we see is a bunch of people degrading themselves, resulting in a very unpleasant viewing. What makes it worse is that it attempts to be artsy, while it’s plain trash of the worst kind. It will be a while before I watch another Coffin Joe flick, because this one sucks monkey balls.

Gonin 2 (Japan, 1996)

Directed by: Takashi Ishii
Written by: Takashi Ishii
Cast: Ken Ogata, Shinobu Ootake, Kimiko Yo, Maj Kitajima

Also known as Five Woman, this is the sequel to Takashi’s Ishii’s extremely violent Gonin. The plot is kind of similar. The wife of an old man is raped by the Yakuza because he is late paying of his debt. After she has committed harakiri because of the shame, he forges a sword and starts slaying the responsible Yakuza men. At the same time five women, who have never met before, take off with the proceeds of a Yakuza heist. These developments lead to gore, lot’s of gore in this stylish and surrealistic gangster film.

Alien Nation (USA, 1988)

Directed by: Graham Baker
Written by: Rockne S. O’Bannon
Cast: James Caan, Mandy Patinkin, Terence Stamp

A police movie with a sci-fi twist. It’s about an alien race, similar to humans, who have landed on earth. Like immigrants, they have to fit in with the rest of the population. This creates racial tension, as some humans are prejudiced against the newcomers. James Caan plays one of these prejudiced people. He is a cop, who teams up with one of the aliens after his partner is killed. Initially they are trying to solve this case, but they soon stumble upon a bigger threat to society. This is about as entertaining as it sounds. The aliens look like they have come right out of Star Trek, the deeper layer of the film is very subtle (not) and the jokes are pretty lame. Altogether, it is still a reasonably entertaining cop movie. But unfortunately nothing more.