scenes involving a very young Sawa, which was depicted only in the extended version. Helen McCarthy in 500 Essential Anime Movies called the anime a "shocking story of violence, abuse and perverted self-justification". In popular culture Kill Bill writer and director Quentin Tarantino recommended Kite as part of actress Chiaki Kuriyama's preparations for her role as Gogo Yubari in the first film. Several scenes in the music video directed by Hype Williams for the song "Ex-Girlfriend" by No Doubt are based on Kite. The Velvet Acid Christ song "Pretty Toy" samples one of Akai's lines from the English dub. See also Mezzo Forte—Umetsu's second anime OVA, which also concerns a young woman working as an assassin, and a cameo by Sawa. Mezzo DSA—television series based on Mezzo Forte. Cool Devices: Yellow Star, previously directed by Umetsu, features "prototype" character designs, and similar subject matter. References External links Kite Information at Arms Company Website Animerica review A dissection of the various releases of Kite. 1990s exploitation films 1998 anime OVAs Animated films about orphans Film controversies Film censorship in Norway Film controversies in Norway Anime Works Anime and manga controversies Arms Corporation Crime in anime and manga 1998 directorial debut films Exploitation films Films set in 1998 Girls with guns anime and manga Hentai anime and manga 1990s Japanese-language films Kitty Media Obscenity controversies in animation Obscenity controversies in film Single OVAs Anime with original screenplays