Quentin Tarantino’s fusion of today’s featured music with the images of the arrival of O-Ren Ishii at “The House of Blue Leaves” in Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003) is perfect -pairing. It creates such a ‘badass’ scene and is a cinematic highlight. Also the music has become an anthem of the movie along side The Lonely Shepherd by Gheorghe Zamfir.
The instrumental called Battle Without Honor or Humanity is by Tomoyasu Hotei (image inset) and was originally used in the 2000 film New Battles Without Honor and Humanity (also known as Another Battle) by Junji Sakamoto, which Hotei wrote the soundtrack for and acted in.
The instrumental evolved into something far greater when it was picked up by Tarantino 3 years later and he used it for Western audiences. Tarantino, with his gift for recontextualizing music, recognized its potential beyond the boundaries of Japanese cinema. By placing it at a crucial moment in Kill Bill: Vol. 1, the track gained an entirely new audience.
The track has cemented itself in pop culture. According to the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers, “New Battles Without Honor and Humanity Theme” has been one of the top 10 highest-grossing Japanese recordings based on foreign income. It has made over 20 appearances in Films and TV. Also the Kill Bill Vol. 1 Original Soundtrack reached number 1 on the Soundtracks chart.
References:
1. Battle Without Honor or Humanity – Wikipedia
2. Kill Bill Vol. 1 Original Soundtrack – Wikipedia
“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand
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