Kill Bill may not be the most obvious pop culture reference for female empowerment.

A violent bloodbath of a film which is split into two gory parts, the story follows a former assassin called Beatrix Kiddo – aka The Bride – as she sets out to reap revenge on Bill and her ex-colleagues who murdered the guests at her wedding party before also trying to kill her.

But while the film features a number of disturbing moments, such as the rape of an unconscious woman lying in a hospital bed, its star Uma Thurman has spoken out about how many women have told her the film helped them in their lives.

Speaking about her character at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival last weekend, Thurman said, “Women would come up to me and they would say that somehow or other – they’d share a little bit — that that film helped them in their lives, whether they were feeling oppressed or struggling or had a bad boyfriend or felt badly about themselves, that that film released in them some survival energy that was helpful.”

Anyone who has watched Kill Bill will understand what Thurman means by “survival energy” – throughout the four hours of the film, directed by Quentin Tarantino, we see her character thrash through a number of improbable near-death situations and topple both male and female opponents.

Read more: The 21 best feminist TV shows to watch out for in 2017

Continuing to discuss the impact the film had on women, Thurman added that the responses she had from viewers were “probably one of the most gratifying things that I have ever experienced in response to a piece of art”.

The 47-year-old actor, who lives in Boston and has also starred in hit films including Pulp Fiction and My Super Ex-Girlfriend, went on to speak about the importance of cinema and why she loves acting.

“It’s a form of dramatic storytelling that I fell in love with, and it’s a challenge to keep doing it,” she said.

We can’t wait to see what she comes up with next...

Images: Rex Features