Kill Bill Vol. 2 rated R for violence, language, and brief drug use ***spoilers***

In this continuation of the story from Kill Bill Vol. 1 this film picks up shortly after the end of the events in Vol. 1.  This is a film of revelations and/or confirmations for many of the characters.  By now it is assumed that all of the Squad has been killed with the exception of Bill.

This film shows The Bride hunting down the two remaining Squad members.  Ultimately one dies but not at the hands of The Bride.  In this picture we finally learn The Bride's name which is Beatrix Kiddo (wonderful name by the way).  We also definitively learn that Beatrix was Bill's lover in addition to being his top assassin.  We witness Beatrix's arduous training under the tutelage of the fierce Pai Mei (played by Gordon Liu aka Chia-Hui Liu).

It also becomes apparent that Elle Driver was Beatrix Kiddo's jealous rival.  She was the other blonde of the group who clearly loved Bill in her own way and envied Beatrix for all that she was.  Whether Beatrix was aware or not is up to you the audience.  I don't think that Beatrix cared one way or the other.

As such, there is a very excellent fight between Elle and Beatrix.  I consider it one of the better ones that I've seen in films.

The film ends with another great fight scene between Beatrix and Bill.  Any questions that remained (for the most part) are answered by Beatrix to Bill just prior to the fight scene.  And of course, if you didn't know already, Beatrix is happily reunited with her beloved daughter B.B. (played by Perla-Haney Jardine).

I felt and still feel that this is a wonderful follow-up/conclusion(?) to Kill Bill Vol. 1.  If you liked the first one, you'll probably like this one.

Kill Bill Vol. 1 rated R for strong bloody violence, language, and some sexual content

Regarding mothers, this is not a film that I personally could put on for my mother.  She doesn't like Tarantino movies and she would be offended by the violence and language. 

 I am a fan of some of Quentin Tarantino's pictures.  When this one came out, my movie snob friend reluctantly decided that, of all the Tarantino films, this would be the first of his that she watched.  She didn't (and still doesn't) like his arrogance.  She's also squeamish when it comes to blood.  She was reassured by the preview that the blood in this picture would be cartoonish as an homage to classic Kung Fu movies.  She also asked me to watch it with her considering that I do like some of Quentin Tarantino's movies.

Uma Thurman plays The Bride in this picture.  But we the audience don't know that at first.  For reasons, Uma Thurman's character's name is bleeped out throughout this film.

Anyway, it turns out that The Bride used to be known as Black Mamba, the deadliest woman in the world.  She was the top assassin of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad.  The Deadly Vipers consist of O-Ren Ishii aka Cottonmouth (played by Lucy Liu); Vernita Green aka Copperhead (played by Vivica A. Fox); Elle Driver aka California Mountain Snake (played by Daryl Hannah); and Bill's brother Budd aka Sidewinder (played by Michael Madsen).  Bill aka Snake Charmer (played by David Carradine) was the leader and mentor of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad.

The Bride is betrayed by and brutally beaten by the rest of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad during what appears to be The Bride's wedding (hence the title of The Bride).  To make matters worse, The Bride was very pregnant when she was nearly beaten to death by the Squad.  When she wakes up from a coma four years later, she is devastated by the loss of her baby.

This film chronicles The Bride's quest for vengeance against the Squad and anyone who would dare to stand in her way.

I loved this film.  I thought and still think that this is another of Quentin Tarantino's great films.  Everything about this film was and still is excellent in my opinion.

My movie snob friend even managed to make it through the whole film.  She was a little green at the end of it but otherwise ok.  As far as I know this film is the first and last Tarantino picture for her.

Dear Frankie rated PG-13 for language

Continuing the theme of Mother's Day, I present one of my three favorite Mother's Day films.

Frankie (played by Jack McElhone) is a nine-year-old who lives with his mum Lizzie (played by Emily Mortimer) and his grandmother Nell (played by Mary Riggans).  They have recently moved to Glasgow Scotland.  Frankie happens to be deaf and is a "champion lip reader" according to Lizzie.  Frankie seems to be adjusting well to the changes in his surroundings.

Frankie regularly writes to his dad who is a sailor.  Frankie's dad is not in Frankie's life and the impression is given that Frankie's dad has never been in his life.  Frankie's dad does write back or so Frankie thinks.  It turns out that Lizzie has been writing to Frankie as Frankie's dad.

Things get complicated when Frankie's best friend reveals that Frankie's dad's ship is due to arrive in Glasgow.  Frankie is visibly surprised by this news but tries to brush it off like its nothing.  Frankie's friend bets Frankie his stamp collection that Frankie's dad won't show up to an upcoming football game after the ship arrives.  Frankie accepts the bet.

After telling his mom about the bet, Lizzie struggles to find a solution to help Frankie.  On the one hand, she can come break down and tell Frankie the truth.  On the other hand, she wants to help protect her son both from the truth and from being taken advantage of by his friend.

She decides to hire a man to pose as Frankie's dad.  After a disastrous attempt at finding a man in a bar, Lizzie's new friend Marie (played by Sharon Small) offers a solution in the form of a guy that she knows.  Lizzie is pleasantly surprised and intrigued by The Stranger (played by Gerard Butler) who is Marie's "friend".  The Stranger agrees to pose as Frankie's dad and turns out to be a better man than expected for both Lizzie and Frankie.

In the extra features, the director mentioned that she wanted to showcase the beauty of Glasgow and I personally think that she did an excellent job in this film.  I love this movie because it shows just how far a parent (in this case a mother) will go to make their child happy and safe.  It also shows just how much a child can appreciate their parent(s).

Mr. Mom rated PG for mild language and brief sexuality

When thinking of Mother's Day films, a handful come to mind.  Of those handful, three are my personal favorites.

In this picture we meet Jack Butler (played by Michael Keaton) who works at an automotive factory.  His wife Caroline Butler (played by Teri Garr) is a stay-at-home mom who effortlessly runs the house while raising their three children Alex (played by Frederick Koehler), Kenny (played by Taliesen Jeffe), and their baby daughter Megan (played by Courtney and Brittany White).  She is also happily supportive of her husband.

After Jack gets laid off, Caroline goes back to work in marketing for a guy named Ron (played by Martin Mull).  Jack quickly realizes how much he took his wife's being at home for granted and how hard she worked to keep their home and family in order.  As time passes, Jack struggles first with figuring out the routine, then apathy, then frustration with his wife as Caroline enjoys success and growth at her new job.  Meanwhile Caroline is sympathetic to Jack's initial struggles but gradually finds herself taking her family for granted just as Jack used to.

This movie has a lot to love.  There is a delicate balance of comedy and warmth woven throughout the film.  The characters all feel real as opposed to the caricatures that one encounters in films like this nowadays.  While it is more common to find stay-at-home dads in our current society, it's easy to forget that at one time it wasn't as common.  Now there is the use of internet and social media to help stay-at-home parents manage things at home.  In this film, you see a guy using common sense and advice/suggestions from neighbors and his own children to figure things out.

One of my favorite comedic moments might give some parents pause in showing this picture to younger children.  It involves the ladies from the neighborhood taking Jack to see Chippendale's dancers.  There's no nudity or anything very overt but it could be considered offensive by someone I'm sure.