The fight scene with the Crazy 88 is shown entirely in color, compared to the standard version of Kill Bill Vol. 1 which cuts to black-and-white to keep the film from receiving a harsh NC-17 rating. The all color version of this scene was also released in the original Kill Bill Vol. 1 in some international markets.
The anime sequence is slightly longer with more gore. This version of the anime sequence was also released in the Japanese version of Kill Bill Vol. 1 but not other domestic or international versions.
Quentin Tarantino's original vision for Kill Bill was for it to be one four-hour epic. It was later released in two halves as this was more commercially feasible and would allow him more time to finish the second half. Early promotional material was released for the film in 2002 that indicated it would be one film. Once the film was split into two, Tarantino maintained this original four-hour cut and would screen it only for friends and industry. It was released to the public in 2011 at The New Beverly Cinema, a Los Angeles cinema that the director owns.
This version of the film is very rare and has never been released for home video or leaked online. It is known to exist as film prints owned by the director himself. It has been shown only in theaters at events curated by the director or at film festivals. Occasionally these screenings have been by available to the general public, but often they are exclusive screenings with some barrier for entry. This version of film is not to be confused with "fan edits" that exist online and attempt to approximate what is known about Tarantino's official version.
The old Klingon proverb shown at the beginning of the theatrical version of Kill Bill Vol. 1 is not present. A dedication to filmmaker Kinji Fukasaku is in its place.