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In Kill Bill Volume 1 we see the character played by Uma Thurman waking up from a coma that lasted 4 years.

The first thing she does immediately, is look at her palms and then realize that four years had passed.

Is it really possible for someone to tell how old he/she is by just looking at their palms?

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    Probably one of her many random skills is quiromancy. She's a master at this: she can read both the future and the past.
    – xDaizu
    Jun 6, 2017 at 7:22

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According to the FAQ on IMDb, it was assumed that she was taught that in her training:

In some cultures, they teach you a way to tell many different things just by looking at the lines of the palm. So, it is assumed that she read those lines to judge the amount of time she was out. Notice the close up shot of those lines before she says, "4 years?"

Beatrix had extensive training and education. She could have easily been taught the art of palmistry through her training. This would have allowed her to look at the lines on her palm to determine her age at the time that she woke up.

Learning how to identify the primary lines used in palmistry can help you read hands, and may help you calculate a person's age or vitality in life.

Beatrix learns most of her skills from Pai Mei. This could be where she would have learned the art of palmistry.

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    @Tom.Bowen89 I don't really know. After all, it's a Tarantino film. It would also take her more than a few hours to be able to "move her big toe" after being in a coma for so long...as well as her legs for that matter.
    – steelersquirrel
    Jun 5, 2017 at 8:39
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    @steelersquirrel Not to mention that, while she is in the Pussywagon wiggling those toes for hours, nobody discovers the 2 bodies and goes investigating the car belonging to one of the victims. There are more of those little details... Like how she flies back from Japan to the States with a katana as cabin-luggage.
    – Tonny
    Jun 5, 2017 at 10:34
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    Uhm. By that logic, she should also be an expert in yo-yo tricks, tongue twisters and egg balancing. I mean, the fact that she has learned one difficult technique doesn't imply that she now must know all other less difficult ones. Your first point makes sense, I just don't understand why you would bring in the FPPEHT into it.
    – terdon
    Jun 5, 2017 at 11:56
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    Weird, I had always assumed she saw a date on her hospital identification wristband.
    – Shufflepants
    Jun 5, 2017 at 15:19
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    @terdon the deleted scene where she does yo yo tricks while reciting tongue twisters is a favorite of mine! So sad that didn't make it into the final film...
    – heathenJesus
    Jun 5, 2017 at 15:51
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She remembered things that happened to her in the coma—like “Buck” being there to “”. As a nurse I tried to update and talk to my unconscious patients, telling them where they were, the date, why they were there, what I was going to do before doing it. People waking up from comas have been known to report much of what they heard, even though unable to respond. Why could she not have remembered the length of time she had been there from such talk around her? Makes more sense than being able to accurately judge time by hand lines.

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  • So...how does your answer explain how she could tell her age by looking at her palms? Where are your sources for your answer?
    – steelersquirrel
    Jun 6, 2020 at 8:06

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