I wish that I could say that even if you didn’t like Quentin Tarantino’s movies, you would find this book a fascinating peek into the inner workings of the Hollywood machine. I would also like to say that even if you aren’t familiar with David Carradine, you will be charmed by peeking into the inner workings of his character. Unfortunately, I can’t say either. I needed the hook of being a big Tarantino fan and always considering David Carradine an enlightened and elevating presence for any movie (mostly crap) he happened to pop up in to keep me engaged in this book. Let the word DIARY being in the title alert you that quite often when something catches your interest it will suddenly evaporate into a mist of personal distractions or self-aggrandizing vapor. That Carradine considered himself a brilliant actor might have been necessary for his craft but it is a tad off putting. That everyone he meets is the most wonderful or beautiful person ever or they vanish from sight may beautify his personal world but it fails to inform me of anything useful or interesting. Since I do like Tarantino and have a soft spot for Carradine largely because I liked the TV series KUNG FU when I was a kid, I found it easier to forgive these transgressions and there were just enough tantalizing nuggets dropped my way to keep me looking for the next. I would recommend reading it in one or two sittings—the good stuff feels closer together. I wish he had talked about his famous father and brothers more and less about his girlfriend and their travel habits. If you are a Tarantino fan, there are significant portions about his approach to making KILL BILL to fascinate you. The never-ending reinvention even as the filming is underway is rather awe-inspiring. His ability to keep coming up with marvelous ideas to replace merely very good ones gives insight into why his movies turn out the way they do. So this isn’t for everyone but if it is, you know who you are.

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Fabulous writing on his experience making the best movie of his later life. Some very ironic sections, his hoping when he died he would die well like a warrior could or should. And that dignity was important to him. Five years after this book was published he died without dignity...so sad. He was a bright, talented, unique man and I could wish the memory of him was not sullied by his ending. His writing is witty, humorous, intelligent and cohesive. ( )

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.