Tarantino, the darling of most critics, who have been lining up to genuflect to this cinematic saint, is undoubtedly the most copied guy in Hollywood, with young filmmakers falling all over themselves to repeat his techniques and success. For a director with a single great film (PULP FICTION), his everlasting fame remains something of a mystery.

VOL. 2 pays homage to a long list of moments from other movies from Yoda in the STAR WARS series to every kung fu film ever made. Most of all, however, the movie is Tarantino paying homage to Tarantino.

The craftsmanship of the movie is superb. It is the sort of artistry that you can admire in every frame -- every mind-numbing, tiresome and repetitious moment of a movie without a single character worth caring about. Sure, Uma Thurman, as "The Bride," will have you feeling her pain as she is buried alive, is shot in the chest with a shotgun and has her fist torn to shreds in sadistic training sessions. You'll grimace along with her, but you won't care whether she -- or anyone else -- survives or not.

In VOL. 2., you'll learn about such deadly techniques as the "five point palm exploding heart technique," and you'll be intrigued by its ever-changing cinematography. But what you will not be is entertained. You'll just be robbed of two-and-a-quarter hours of your life. Let's hope that Tarantino waits until he has something worth saying before he makes another movie.

KILL BILL: VOL. 2 runs 2:16. It is rated R for "violence, language and brief drug use" and would be acceptable for older teenagers.