Lady Snowblood is a 1973 movie that follows a young woman seeking revenge on her family’s murderers. From its female heroine to its style, setting and themes of vengeance and redemption, this movie is a clear influence on Tarantino’s Kill Bill.
It’s obvious that Lady Snowblood was a huge influence on Tarantino’s Kill Bill. The original features a female assassin out to avenge her family’s murder at the hands of an evil killer group. The idyllic snowy setting, use of animation and stylish flashbacks in Lady Snowblood are directly honored by Tarantino. You can quickly glance the following trailer and figure out which parts of the movie were Tarantino’s favorites.
The movie opens with a cryptic scene that shows Lady Snowblood’s mother struggling to give birth in a prison. We learn that her mother was raped by a group of criminals, who also murdered her husband and son a year prior. She conceives Lady Snowblood solely for her to be raised to exact vengeance. After a long struggle, the mother gives birth and then dies.
We later see a young Lady Snowblood receiving training from a priest and then becoming a dangerous assassin. She finds herself in a destitute village, where she enlists the leader of a beggar group to find the four criminals responsible for her family’s deaths. Eventually, she tracks down three of the four murderers.
Along the way, she is helped by a journalist who publishes sensational articles of Lady Snowblood’s exploits. This leads to a final showdown with Gishiro, who is the most powerful of the remaining criminals.
The film’s second scene establishes Lady Snowblood as a deadly force. She quickly defeats a local crime boss and his three henchmen – using her concealed umbrella sword. We immediately learn Lady Snowblood is coldly efficient and dispassionate. Or in other words, she’s an assassin. The setting is directly reminiscent of Tarantino’s House of Blue Leaves. It’s snowy, serene and if the scene had more time to develop, could probably be considered a beautifully meditative environment.
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