KILL BILL (Tarantino, 2003/4): Cartography of death

Quentin Tarantino and cinematographer Robert Richardson are usually careful to keep us oriented in space. In KILL BILL, the results of the stylized violence are often shown from high angles. This increases the distance to the victims. Flat compositions also tend to feel more comical than staging in depth.

Quentin Tarantino und Kameramann Robert Richardson bemühen sich meist um eine klare visuelle Orientierung im Raum. In KILL BILL sehen wir das Resultat der stilisierten Gewaltausbrüche oft aus der Vogelperspektive. Dies distanziert uns von den Opfern. Zusätzlich wirken flache Kompositionen weniger emotional als tiefenbetonte Konstellationen.

[RV]

KILL BILL (Tarantino, 2003/4): Match cut conversations

In shot - reverse shot conversations, Quentin Tarantino likes to put his characters' heads right in the middle of the cinemascope frame. Often, he even matches head positions within groups. Match cuts also provide orientation in rapid action sequences. According to cinematographer Robert Richardson this kind of center framing is requested by Tarantino himself.

In Schuss-Gegenschuss-Konversationen platziert Tarantino gerne die Köpfe der Figuren in die Mitte des Breitwandbildes. Oft arrangiert er sogar Kopfpositionen in Gruppenszenen auf diese Weise. Match Cuts ermöglichen auch klare Orientierung in den schnell geschnittenen Actionsequenzen. Gemäss Kameramann Robert Richardson verlangt Tarantino selbst nach dieser Art der mittigen Platzierung.

Recommended viewing: PULP FICTION (1994) [MS], KILL BILL (2003/4) [RV], INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS (2009) [MS], DJANGO UNCHAINED (2012) [RV], THE HATEFUL EIGHT (2015) [RV]

KILL BILL: Central perspective match cuts

PULP FICTION heads right in the middle of the frame during intimate conversations.

KILL BILL: consecutive shots with the center of attention almost precisely matched in the right half of the frame.