Also assisting O-Ren Ishii are two deadly female assassins: Go-Go Yubari (Chiaki Kuriyama) and Sofie Fatale (Julie Dreyfus). I had the opportunity to speak with Lucy Liu, Chiaki Kuriyama, and Julie Dreyfus at the Los Angeles Premiere of “Kill Bill Vol. 1.” Here’s what the three beautiful and talented women had to say about working with Quentin Tarantino:
LUCY LIU:
What did it mean to you to find out you were going to be working with Quentin Tarantino?
Well I wasn’t sure if it was really real because he called me at home. He’d gotten my number from a friend of mine who’s a make-up artist who is friends with him also. He called me and I’m like, “Is this a joke?” (laughing) It turned out that it wasn’t. He’d written this role. I didn’t know how to respond. I read the script – he asked me to read it and just to tell him what I thought of it, and I did. It turned out great and we had a great, great time working on the movie.
What is Tarantino like on the set?
There’s a madness to his madness. He just has an incredible way of creatively working. He’s inspired at any given time. He doesn’t really work with a shot list. You’ll see when you see the movie there’s just so much stuff going on. It’s like a goulash of shots.
The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad vs. Charlie’s Angels - who would win that fight?
They’re so different. “Charlie’s Angels” is more cheeky; they laugh a lot. This one’s got a different sense of humor so I’m not sure. I think that you can’t really compare the two movies – but you can enjoy them.
The tagline for “Kill Bill” is Kill or Be Killed. When it comes to working onscreen, do you prefer to do the killing or do the death scene?
I don’t mind being killed once in a while, as long as I can come back (laughing).
(Lucy Liu learned a little Japanese during the course of filming ‘Kill Bill” and as Chiaki Kuriyama walks up to be interviewed, Lucy Liu gives her a hug and speaks to her in Japanese. Laughing, Liu admits that she just called Chiaki ‘delicious’ on accident, meaning to call her ‘cute’.)
CHIAKI KURIYAMA:
Was there any stunt Quentin Tarantino asked you to do that you couldn’t do?
No, we did a great deal of training so I was able to do them all.
What was the most difficult thing to do?
Falling off a table, that was by far the hardest.
What was it like to work with Quentin Tarantino?
It was just such a happy set. It was full of enthusiasm and fun. It was a really fun experience.
Will we see you in “Vol. 2?”
I can’t say (laughing).
JULIE DREYFUS:
How messy does this film get blood-wise?
I believe special effects make-up used 450 gallons of blood on the one big scene only – the ‘House of Blue Leaves’ scene.
And you had a bucket of blood tipped over your head, didn’t you?
Yes, and I got to swim in blood for a couple of months while Uma Thurman was chopping away. I won’t give away too much but I stayed in my little pool of blood for a few weeks. Finally after a few months, I’ve gotten it all off.
What was it like working on a Quentin Tarantino film?
I’m very happy to be in it – it’s a fantastic movie. It was the most amazing experience I’ve ever had. I’m ready for it again, and again and again if he’ll have me.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
Interviews with Uma Thurman and David Carradine
Interview with Michael Madsen
Interview with Producer Lawrence Bender
"Kill Bill" Photos, Trailer, Credits, and Movie News
