by MATTHEW HAYS

Quentin Tarantino has long been criticized as the logical end point for a self-devouring culture with nowhere left to go. If, as the post-modern theorists have told us, there are no masterpieces left to be made, then the only remaining option is to become culture vultures, cannibalistically gnawing away at what came before.

If Quentin ever cared, it seems he's been answering those critics with his bizarre two-part kung fu/spaghetti western hybrid, Kill Bill, Vol. 2 of which opens this week. With this pair of movies the filmmaker appears to have delighted in wallowing in surface, serving us up so much fast-food carnage with all the extras: hot, high-kicking women (you can see his Pam Grier fetish here), various weapons, iconic actors (including the landmark '70s TV show Kung Fu's star David Carradine) and a revenge plot running throughout. Now this is surface, and Tarantino knows how to give it good. The cultural reference points, as in the first part, never slow down. (Both Charles Bronson and Italian goremeister Lucio Fulci are thanked in the final credit roll, among many others.)

Kill Bill Vol. 2 follows along pretty much as someone might expect, picking up the road-and-revenge-movie reins from the previous film. But Tarantino, who fully realizes the hilarity behind his over-the-top violence and dialogue, has infused this film with some beautiful surprises (DO NOT let anyone ruin them for you, just go). Tarantino packs primal fears, nasty mentors, extreme bitch fights and a pregnancy-test scene to end all pregnancy-test scenes into this film, tight.

The only complaint fans of wanton violence, gore and destruction might have is that Vol. 2 has a far lower body count and much more dialogue. Still, for those of us who like Tarantino's screwy, self-referential chatter, that's not exactly a drawback. Sublime soundtrack intact, making the final credits a pleasure to sit through (and there's an outtake finale that's worth waiting for), this is one of those sequels that will leave fans asking: when's Vol. 3 coming?

Kill Bill Vol. 2 opens Friday, April 16

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