The Kill Bill Diary: The Making of a Tarantino Classic as Seen Through the Eyes of a Screen Legend

Carradine's candid detailing of the daily grind of starring as the title character in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill is a fascinating and honest look at the process of movie making. As a filmmaker myself, one of the things I most enjoy is the bond formed between cast and crew. When thing's are going well, being on set is like being a part of a secret club that the audience rarely gets to be a part of. This book puts the reader onto the set to see all the pain and passion that goes into creating art. Like Robert Rodriuguez's "Rebel Without a Crew" before it, this book should be a filmmaker's Bible for what to do and what not to do. Fan's of film and especially Tarantino, should find it to be a very entertaining read.

The Kill Bill Diary is sort of a hard book to review. I ended up giving it four stars because it's well written and engaging, but unfortunately very light. Carradine has done a wonderful job of chronicling his time spent working on the film, as well as shedding some light on both his process as an actor and what it's like as an actor to deal with studios such as Miramax (now the Weinstein Company), but the book tends to be a little off balance if only because it's so guarded. Carradine's prose is very interesting and comfortable, and the book reads very quickly, though in a very nice conversational way. There is something to be desired in its Diary approach as the book struggles in this style choice, shifting between some all too expedited daily synopses to some almost uncomfortably personal correspondences (in particular a couple of gushing letters to Tarantino) with not much middle ground in between. Though at times Carradine's voice borders on arrogance (and with his lengthy body of work and his iconic rock star status after Kung Fu, who can blame him), he can just as easily come across as the most humble man on earth, so overall the POV of his experiences on the film come off almost pretty well balanced. At the end of the day though it's not as personal as one would think a "diary" would be, and because it tends towards skirting details it feels like he's holding back. Don't get me wrong, I think the book is very honest, and Carradine has a very positive outlook (I'm not expecting him to dish dirt or anything), but because he tends to hold back a little (either guardedly leaving out names or not really getting into detail) it reads a little flat or more like a blog instead of a book. My biggest gripe with the book though is in its marketing. The back cover blurb makes the book out to be a "making-of" on the Kill Bill film when honestly it's really only about Carradine's time on the set which amounts to about a fourth of the film. If you're looking for some light, behind the scenes reading on the film industry, this book is great, but if you are looking for "...an insider's close-up look at the film-making process and the astonishing cast and crew, ...the fine points of the actor's craft, ...[and a] breathtaking, no-holds-barred ... miraculous journey" (taken from the back cover) then you might be a little disappointed.

David Carradine's KILL BILL DIARY is unlike 90% of celebrity-penned 'behind-the-scenes' books: literate, insightful, witty and downright fun to read. Unlike 98.5% of actors who endeavor to wield a pen and express themselves in words, the man famous for playing "Kung Fu's" Kwai Chang Cain is as gifted a writer as he is a thespian. True, the book reads like a valentine to KILL BILL director Quentin Tarantino (and to a lesser extent, KB star Uma Thurman); but Carradine's sentiments seem genuine, and therefore, tolerable. Anyone looking for insights into the production of the KILL BILL saga, and into the film business in general, will find them here. Much detail on the actor's life and career beyond the Tarantino film is provided, as well. Carradine's sharp eye for detail and self-deprecating humor make this a truly enjoyable read. One flaw: the inclusion of on-set notes made by blogger Harry "Ain't It Cool" Knowles. Knowles' garbled, self-centered blather is a written version of the sound fingernails make when raked across a chalkboard. The only positive thing about this Knowles intrusion? It helps the reader to appreciate Carradine's graceful, articulate writing even more. Readers: do yourselves a favor and skip over the Harry Knowles pages. Author & Editors: in future editions, dump Knowles. Overall, though, this is a wonderful work by an intelligent, perceptive writer. Let's hope David Carradine will be as prolific an author as he is an actor.

Congratulations David on an excellent book. It takes courage to be as open and personal as you are in the Kill Bill Diary.

Actor David Carradine who plays the lead character in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill has written a detailed, skillfull, highly involved study of those films and his role in them. Reading the pages is like what I would imagine speaking to Carradine himself would be easy going laid back commentary that never strays from a particular day as the book is laid out in sequence from his first meeting with Quentin to that final premier. What a superb job Carradine has accomplished! I finished the book in two sittings, and now am reading it again it is that good! For those who loved the two films, and also for those who have never seen Tarantino's movies it is a wonderful, insightful, and thought provoking read. David Carradine the actor, martial arts expert, musician, television and film star can add one more credit to his life that of a very excellent author!