bruce lee

THE FINAL GAME OF DEATH Review: A trip back in time through the unreleased footage Bruce Lee left behind

Last year, fans of the little dragon were delighted with the magnificent 4K UHD/Blu-ray box set released by ARROW covering Bruce Lee´s iconic films for Golden Harvest. However, one of the highlights of the boxset was undoubtedly the documentary, “The Final Game of Death”, a 223-minute documentary that speculates on what Bruce Lee‘s vision on his unfinished project, “The Game of Death”, could have been. Summoning all two hours of footage left that was stored in the archives of Golden Harvest, including never seen before footage, as countless of outtakes, outdoors filming or the log fight scene, following the trend that previous documentaries as “A warrior’s journey” or the Japanese “G.O.D” already did years ago, but this time, having the footage restored in top quality, also assembling a new montage including a newly filmed credits scene and introduction that reimaginates what it could have been. The documentary drags the viewer […]

A Case For Better Action Movies: Bruceploitation, And The (Hopeful) Future Thereof

Shaun Williams

I spend 64 hours a day online like most people. Being permanently plugged into the Twitter-sphere (or whatever the hell it’s called these days), I’ve been lucky enough to see all types of reactions to Severin Films’ recent The Game of Clones box-set. This has led me to ask the inevitable question – “What’s the ideal audience for Bruceploitation?” Indulge me while I try to explain. Bruceploitation isn’t exactly widely beloved as a sub genre. I know die hard kung fu cinema fans who just can’t stomach the stuff. Why is this? Well, let me suggest something.You see, many people claim they hate the “clones” movies because they take a big, hefty dump on the legacy of Bruce Lee. And that’s fine. They are kind of inherently disrespectful. But then there are people that claim Bruceploitation films are just flat-out terrible. All of ’em. Weirdly, I think that, to an […]

ENTER THE CLONES OF BRUCE Review: An Integral Vertebra In The Backbone Of Kung Fu Cinema

Shaun Williams

It is my firm belief that every martial arts cinema fan eventually comes to a certain fork in the road. It’s at this fork that they must take one of two paths: the path to Bruceploitation or the path of Bruceploitation ignorance. Many will take the path of ignorance. I did. All those years ago when I picked up a copy of Fist of Fury 2 thinking I was going to watch Bruce Lee once again display his magnificent physical prowess. Instead, I got Bruce Li. I was incredulous. It was there I faced my fork and I rapidly headed down the path that was as far away from Bruceploitation as one can be. I lived peacefully with this decision for around twenty-five years. Until someone in the online kung fu cinema community convinced me to watch Bruce Li’s magnum opus, Dynamo. I was awakened. Enlightened, even. Fast forward to […]

ENTER THE DRAGON Whips Its Tail On 4K Ultra HD This August!

Lee B. Golden III

Screen legend Bruce Lee continues to be the center of ample ceremony in martial arts and film fandom, especially ahead of the fiftieth anniversary of the action star’s passing. This now brings us to the latest refurbished re-release of Robert Clouse’s Enter The Dragon for its August 8 release on 4K Ultra HD. More via Blu-Ray.com: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Robert Clouse’s classic film Enter the Dragon (1973) with a brand new 4K Blu-ray release, which will be available for purchase on August 8th. Description: Five decades following his untimely death, Bruce Lee remains the movies’ supreme martial arts star. His masterful final film, Enter The Dragon, stands the test of time as the most beloved martial arts epic in film history. This box office hit takes Lee to the island fortress of criminal warlord Han, whose martial arts academy covers up opium smuggling and prostitution […]

FSFF 2023: Bruce Lee Comes To The Mockingbird Next Month!

Lee B. Golden III

The festivities continue in 2023 for the Fighting Spirit Film Festival as they ready their schedule for the year, including none other than a special day-long tribute to Bruce Lee for The Fighting Spirit Film Festival Presents: The Bruce Lee Marathon on June 3. The festival, to be held at the Mockingbird Cinema, will run the gamut of six indepedent action short presentations and four of the late action star’s toplining classics, with intros and guest paneling in between. The marathon event runs from 11:30am to 11pm, and tickets are avaialble with more information on the programme now online at the venue’s official website.

Bruce Lee Biopic Gets New Life At Sony Division, Ang Lee Tapped To Direct Son In The Lead Role

Lee B. Golden III

Media mogul Shannon Lee has been pursuing a biopic about her late father, actor and martial arts sensation Bruce Lee for years but now it looks like we have a solid footing over at Sony’s 3000 Pictures. What’s more is that celebrated Life Of Pi, Hulk and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon director Ang Lee is on deck to direct the film with none other than his son, Mason Lee (The Hangover II, Who Killed Cock Robin?) attached to play the part of the screen legend. The film had been in the works as of 2015 for Bruce Lee’s daughter who launched Bruce Lee Enterprises a year prior. One project would have seen the then-titled “Little Dragon” with Shekaur Kapur at the helm as of its announcement back in 2017 which unfortunately never came to pass, while other screen incarnations of her father would materialize through George Nolfi’s Birth Of The […]

CAN I KICK IT?: Shaolin Jazz Returns In October With ENTER THE DRAGON!

Lee B. Golden III

Gerald Watson and DJ 2-Tone Jones, better known as their prolific stage moniker, Shaolin Jazz, are returning for more thrilling kung fu entertainment with this year’s seventh installment of Can I Kick It? in Wilmington, North Carolina next month. The hip-hop duo will be on hand to apply their own ambient score for audiences, this time for a screening of action legend Bruce Lee’s 1973 classic, Enter The Dragon. The screening is presented in collaboration between the North Carolina Black Film Festival, Speller Street Films, and Black Kung Fu Cinema. Shaolin Jazz has been in business since 2013 with the Can I Kick It? series, catering to the lovers of martial arts flicks, music, and everything else in between, coining it as “a martial arts film series with a mixtape twist.” With Jones at the turntable for next month, fans will get to live scene-by-scene score fusing elements of Funk, […]

ONCE UPON A TIME IN HIGH SCHOOL Review: Bruce Lee As A Way Of Life

Mike Garcia

This Korean drama from 2004 and directed by Yoo Hoo, is a story about endurance and youth set in 1978. The action takes place in a rough South Korean high school, where we witness the story of a young kid that has to learn to survive in that hostile environment, where he has to deal with the cruelty of the ruthless cloister and the bullies that unfortunately every high school in the world has. That´s when Bruce Lee becomes in his most important influence to overcome all the adversities, learning from his philosophy the tools to become stronger phisically and emotionally and survive in a world in which only the strong survives, getting in the proccess scars in the heart that remains forever as a reminder of those first lessons that all we have to learn to in the way of adulthood. Although Bruce Lee is a very important part […]

WARRIOR: Cinemax’s Bruce Lee-Inspired Drama Premieres April 5. Watch The New Teaser!

Lee B. Golden III

That Cinemax’s latest martial arts drama, Warrior, is already working the kinks out for its second season could be telling about what promise the first may hold. Bruce Lee fans and folks keen on this inspired period drama from Shannon Lee, Justin Lin (Fast franchise) and Jonathan Tropper (Banshee) will get just the insight they’re looking for when it premieres on April 5, as stated in the official teaser trailer above. Inspired by an idea from martial-arts legend Bruce Lee, this gritty, action-packed crime drama is set during the brutal Tong Wars of San Francisco’s Chinatown in the second half of the 19th century. Filming in Cape Town, South Africa, it follows a martial arts prodigy who immigrates from China to San Francisco under mysterious circumstances, and becomes a hatchet man for one of Chinatown’s most powerful organized crime families. The new footage comes along with exclusive photos over at […]

The Korean Roots of Hong Kong Kicking

Eric Jacobus

The fast and precise kicks of Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee, Donnie Yen, and other great Hong Kong action stars are staples of the Hong Kong style of action choreography, but if we look before Bruce’s 1971 breakout hit The Big Boss, there were almost no kicks to be found in any action cinema. Only Billy Jack, released in the same year in America, featured the same high-flying kicks courtesy of Korean Hapkido artist Bong Soo Han. The similarity between Billy Jack’s kicks and Bruce’s in The Big Boss is no mere coincidence: Bruce had picked up his cinematic kicking style by studying from Korean and Vietnam war vets who brought Korean kicks to the USA, Chuck Norris being a major player. In his backyard home videos, we see Bruce shooting spin kicks and stepping side kicks, experimenting with how to make these kicks cinematic. Bruce’s backyard filmmaking endeavors would become […]

REMAKE/RECAST: Robert Clouse’s ENTER THE DRAGON

Lee B. Golden III

So…last Monday saw some pretty explosive news pertaining to a remake of Robert Clouse’s 1973 movie, Enter The Dragon. And like clockwork, the internet has, once again, fallen into entropy. While responses have been a general mixture between likes, shares and retweets, actual commentary from folks have ranged from cautiously optimistic to wholly and purely cynical. Jokes pertaining to whitewashing with comments optioning Scarlett Johansson or Matt Damon have comprised much of the banter from critics of this latest update and one guy on my fan page voted that “we” should dig up dirt on attached director, David Leitch (Deadpool 2). Yeah… I don’t know what this “we” shit is about and I’m no muckraker, so you can count me out. More to the point though, personally I’ve always been a champion of remakes despite what some critics may suggest. You needn’t look further than my articles keeping up with […]

ENTER THE DRAGON Remake Lands ‘Deadpool 2’ Helmer To Direct

Lee B. Golden III

In wake of the 45th anniversary of late martial artist, actor and filmmaker Bruce Lee’s untimely death in 1973, word is brewing once more of the long off-and-on talked about potential remake of the action classic, Enter The Dragon. As Mike Fleming Jr. at Deadline noted on Monday, Deadpool 2 and Atomic Blonde helmer David Leitch is now circling the remake of the Warner Bros. classic, for which the search for a writer has also commenced. Lee had only done a handful of films in Asia by the time Enter The Dragon came around, joining him with director Robert Clouse and an eclectic cast that listed John Saxon, Jim Kelly, Ahna Capri, Betty Chung, Shih Kien and Bolo Yeung, with cameos by Pat E. Johnson and fellow martial arts star Angela Mao. The film premiered several days after Lee’s death, sparking a global phenomenon that would spawn a legacy of […]

Bruce Lee’s Protégé, Dan Inosanto, Is Getting A Biopic

Lee B. Golden III

Originally published July 18, 2017: You’ve seen him play the Game Of Death opposite Bruce Lee in the late martial arts star’s final film. You’ve watched him go down in the iconic bar room brawl as “Sticks” in Out For Justice. You might have even caught him in a heartfelt and defining moment in the finale scene of David Mamet’s 2008 martial arts drama, Redbelt. Or, if you’re immersed in the martial arts niche enough then you’ve likely given a glance at martial arts legend, Dan Inosanto, in various viral self-defense videos online or in segments from the many documentaries he’s been featured in within the last few decades, namely Jay Ignacio’s The Bladed Hand: The Global Impact of the Filipino Martial Arts or Pete McCormack’s I Am Bruce Lee. For certain, the actor and ardent teacher and FMA mainstay’s relevance is guaranteed this week with the news of a […]

THE LEGEND OF BRUCE LEE – VOL 2: Movement With A Heart

It can be difficult to put into words what Bruce Lee gave to the world of martial arts but I will take his cue to simplify it: movement with a heart. And this second volume, with all its faults and laughingly unintended background with 2000 era bloopers not caught (episode 15 shows John Woo’s “Stranglehold” [2008] on a San Francisco trolley car, twice), this volume gives us that heart to a certain degree, trying to keep a balance between fantasy and actual history regarding Bruce Lee. Beginning with episode 11, after being humiliated by the fight of Karate Master Yamamoto (Mark Dacascos) in the 10th episode, Bruce mulls over why Uncle Shao (Luoyong Wang) decided to stop the match. It was only at Ms. Ruby’s restaurant that Uncle Shao imparts his wisdom to try to temper Bruce’s anger into a more focused, humbled, and disciplined self. “If you’re too impatient, […]

Shannon Lee’s ‘Definitive Bruce Lee Biopic’ Gets A Director, Production Date And More

Lee B. Golden III

Say what you will about the most recent pesudo-adaptatation of late legendary martial arts master Bruce Lee’s life as depicted in George Nolfi’s Birth Of The Dragon. That is still on deck for release later this year following its acquisition by BH Tilt and WWE Studios back in February, but there’s no love lost there with actress and entrepreuneur Shannon Lee having stood staunchly against the project in wake of its TIFF premiere in late 2016. As for Lee, the past few years have revealed news of her own research and inquiry into her father’s past for what has been reportedly persued as the “definitive” Bruce Lee biopic. That development now comes with an update with word on the new movie, Little Dragon, inspired by the on-screen nickname the late martial arts star took on among several during his lifetime. Shannon Lee, whose Bruce Lee Family Company shingle, Bruce Lee […]

Review: THE LEGEND OF BRUCE LEE – Volume One (2008 TV Series)

Perhaps no one is as lauded, both personally and professionally, than Bruce Lee (Li Xiao Long). Well, Jackie Chan is a close second but that’s not the focus of this review. Where should I start? I have many conflicting emotions writing this and I am sure there will be some people that will take my own informed opinions with a grain of salt. And you should. Because this review is my own, of course. Let’s start with the production. CCTV backed The Legend Of Bruce Lee. It’s video quality. Although it was filmed in 2008, I was disheartened of the low quality throughout the ten episodes in Volume 1. Made for several million dollars for 50 episodes and Executive Produced by Bruce’s daughter, Shannon, I felt that the overall vision was amateurish but had promise. Yet, seeing a young Bruce Lee (Danny Chan) along with terrible and distracting English dubbing […]

Stars To Gather Next Month For Celebrity Roast Of Heralded Actress And VO Artist, Joycelyne Lew

Lee B. Golden III

Celebrated television, film and voice actress Joycelyne Lew is slated to be the center of attention when stars gather for a celebrity roast at Golden Dragon Restaurant on Saturday, March 4 at 7:00pm PST. According to last week’s press annoucement, arrivals will include actor Mel Novak (Bruce Lee’s Game of Death, Chuck Norris’ An Eye for An Eye), Cynthia Rothrock (Tiger Claws III, Lady Dragon), Gerald Okamura (G.I. Joe, The Rise of Cobra, Mortal Kombat), Peter Kwong (The Golden Child, Big Trouble in China), Host Grand-Master Eric Lee (Rambo: First Blood Part II, 3 Ninjas) and many more. Other celebrities expected to make an appearance are Hank Garrett (3 Days of the Condor, G.I. Joe, The Animated Series), Vida Ghaffari (Holy Terror, The Mindy Project), multi award-winning filmmakers Thomas J. Churchill (Check Point, The Rack Pack) and Gregory Hatanaka (Samurai Cop 2: Deadly Vengeance, Blue Dream). “I have set up […]

Hey UK Residents! Free Admissions To The Apex For BRUCE LEE EXHIBITION + Tickets For ENTER THE DRAGON Screening In February Now On Sale!

Lee B. Golden III

For many in the martial arts world, the celebration of the life and legend of film star, Jeet Kune Do founder and author Bruce Lee is far from waining… I suppose one way to explain this can be summed up by the response to a trailer when it went live back in September in the wake of a feature screening at TIFF in Canada, perpetuating a singluar, vociferous backlash that would stretch as far as the legend’s daughter herself. Film prospects notwithstanding though, it’s clear that people love Lee and especially folks residing in the UK. Specificially fortunate would be the ones living in or around Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk where The Apex, by way of Kudos Memorabilia, will be running an exhibition with FREE ADMISSIONS from January 26 to March 5, brimming with all things Bruce Lee, as well as host to a February 13 screening of Robert […]

Shannon Lee Responds To BIRTH OF THE DRAGON, Calls It A ‘Travesty’, ‘Inaccurate’ And ‘Insulting’

Lee B. Golden III

I think it’s safe to say you know your movie sucks when you not only screw the rights holders whose name and content you base your unsanctioned film on, but when said rights holders join the chorus of critics panning your movie from literally every angle of the internet. That is the level of achievement you have reached if your name is George Nolfi and you’ve directed a film called Birth Of The Dragon, long hyped to be a hopefully legendary homage to Bruce Lee, the late founder of Jeet Kune Do and patriarch of American martial arts movie fandom. Pan over to what Lee’s own daughter, actress and CEO of Bruce Lee Enterprises, Shannon Lee, had to say about the film after watching it herself. She’s busy with several people working on advancing some of her late father’s work as we speak, in addition to a forthcoming TV series, […]

Bruce Lee-Inspired Martial Arts Crime Drama, WARRIOR, Gets A Pilot Order For Cinemax

Lee B. Golden III

If you’re not subscribed to Cinemax and you love martial arts action and Bruce Lee, then take heed to this latest bit of news as a sign that you should. Following updates last May, the word now is that a pilot order has been given for Warrior, the latest effort hailing from Star Trek: Beyond helmer Justin Lin who is executive producing the pilot and may well direct. From a script by executive producer, hit action series Banshee co-creator, Tropper Ink’s own Jonathan Tropper, the pilot will kick off the potential series set in the aftermath of the Civil War when a young martial artist from China arrives in San Francisco, only to find himself swept into the bloody war between rival Tong factions in Chinatown. The series was the first of several projects that began conception early on as Lin pacted with Chinese media magnate Bruno Wu for the […]