Written by Old Bluffer 6th Oct 2006

Elle has arranged to meet Budd at his trailer, so that she can pay him for the Hatori Hanzou sword that he took from the Bride's corpse. This sword is worth an absolute fortune, and it comes as no surprise when she reneges on the deal and kills him instead.

Budd's bank has a novel policy for discouraging large cash withdrawals.

The method of killing is typically underhand. Even though she is a trained martial artist, Elle is an assassin who prefers to attack like a ninja, with minimal risk to her person. If her victim is asleep or otherwise unsuspecting, so much the better.
She therefore distracts Budd by letting him handle the case stuffed full of money. Budd is fairly relaxed anyway, as Elle is loyal to Bill, who is Budd's brother, so he can't imagine she would be so stupid as to betray him.
This misjudgement costs him his life though, as Elle has hidden a Black Mamba snake underneath the money, and it rears up and bites him repeatedly in the face as he rummages through the notes.


Elle relaxes with a smoke and some light reading while her victim dies.

At this point, most films would leave it at that, but this is a Tarantino film, and he has a gift of exploring the consequences of violence in a thoroughly original and entertaining manner.
So, as Budd's face swells up to grotesque proportions and he lies convulsing in agony on the floor, Elle sits and watches him with professional curiousity and tells him that she researched this particular snake on the Internet before she came. She then proceeds to take out copious handwritten notes, and lectures him at length on the utterly deadly nature of the poison coursing through his body.

"The venom of a black mamba can kill a human in four hours, if, say, bitten on the ankle or the thumb. However, a bite to the face or torso can bring death from paralysis within 20 minutes. Now, you should listen to this, 'cause this concerns you. The amount of venom that can be delivered from a single bite can be gargantuan. You know, I've always liked that word..."gargantuan"... you so rarely have an opportunity to use it in a sentence."

She continues in this manner until Budd finally expires, then tries to leave the trailer with both the money and the Bride's priceless sword... (continue on to the next scene)


Elle clears up the pile of money, but draws the line at the girly mags and other detritus that litters this bachelor pad.