Reviews

From start to finish, the Chinese Connection (originally released as Fists of Fury) is probably the most entertaining and satisfying of all the Bruce Lee movies. Well paced, with creative and fairly realistic fight scenes distributed evenly, the movie keeps the audience's attention all the way through the long fight scene near the climactic end (I won't spoil the actual ending for you). The predictable revenge plot provides the emotional trigger to release Lee's rage-filled fights and his now-famous smashing of the "No Dogs or Chinese Allowed" sign. Equally famous is his "this time you eat paper, next time you eat glass" line. Viewers are also treated to the only on-screen kiss by Lee, some comical moments with Lee playing a bumbling telephone repairman, a cameo by director Lo-Wei as the chief inspector, and a soundtrack which effectively builds tension in the fight scenes. You won't recognize Jackie Chan as the stuntman for one of the Japanese martial artists who flies through the screen door. The most memorable part of this movie is Lee's dynamic vitality as he goes about his business, cocksure and confident, and with the goods to back it up. I am forever grateful to those who, in marketing this movie to the west, decided to dub only the dialogue and to leave Lee's original fight sounds untouched. As is evident in the US version of Return of the Dragon (aka Way of the Dragon), dubbing Lee's fight sounds is nothing short of a sin.

Bruce Lee marked his directorial debut in Return of the Dragon, (originally released as Way of the Dragon). From a western perspective, Lee fails miserably as a director, but comes through as a fight choreographer and martial arts performer because his fight scene with Chuck Norris remains a classic to this day. Keep in mind, however, that Lee did not intend this movie to be released in the US, and the corny comedy scenes were and are the kind of stuff that Hong Kong audiences lap up, and he was playing to that audience.

Edited out of the US version are further examples of such scenes: ordering 7 bowls of soup because he couldn't read the Italian menu; a restaurant patron walking in on Lee in the toilet, squatting on the seat because that's what he does on the farm at home in China; after being enticed by a beautiful Italian girl back to her place, Lee's country bumpkin character has no idea what to do and instead winds up practicing kung fu in the mirror (a brilliant, albeit brief, demonstration of his skills). The editors probably thought these scenes were too corny for western audiences expecting a more macho Bruce Lee, having seen him in Enter the Dragon.

I personally missed those scenes in the US version, but I still groan at the story, the direction, and the production values even in the original version. Nevertheless, my problem with this film isn't any of those things, because I can easily fast forward to the fight scenes. My problem (anger, frustration, call it what you want) is with the terrible and inexplicable decision to dub the fight scenes, and to use someone who basically sounds impotent to do it. If you are ever able to find a copy of the original version, with english subtitles (I finally found one in a local Japanese video store), do not let it out of your hands. I amazed several friends by simultaneously playing the subtitled version and the US version on two VCRs hooked up to one TV, flipping back and forth to illustrate the power of the fight scenes when accompanied by Lee's original fight sounds. Maybe some day, someone will get the bright idea to re-release the film with the original fight sounds and have the overall sound track redone.

If you haven't seen a Bruce Lee movie, I suggest you start with Enter the Dragon (Warner's 75th Anniversary, and the movie's 25th Anniversary, special edition). Otherwise, Way of the Dragon is somewhat entertaining and amusing, and memorable only for some great fights and of course the classic with Norris.

Charisma, power, grace, speed and skill. As displayed by Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon, these qualities have never been more beautiful to behold in a martial arts film.

I highly recommend the 75th Anniversary Warner Brothers special edition, which includes two short additional scenes which allow Lee to reflect on his own martial arts philosophy and which explain why he decides to break the mirrors in the final action scene. However, the main reason to check out the special edition is the inclusion of a half hour documentary on Lee which precedes the film itself. In it, the viewer is treated to an intimate introduction to the man and the martial artist.

As for the film, the predictable plot makes the filler scenes between the action sequences a bit boring (especially if you've seen the film dozens of times as I have). When Lee is on screen, however, the film kicks up several notches and, when he's fighting, the screen is on fire.

Enter the Dragon is significant to Western audiences for another, less known, reason. With the exception of the Chinese Connection (released in Hong Kong as Fists of Fury), Enter the Dragon is the only Bruce Lee film where you hear his real voice during the fight scenes and in regular dialogue. If you've seen Return of the Dragon (aka Way of the Dragon) or Fist of Fury (aka the Big Boss), you'll hear his fighting yells reduced to a whimper by dubbing which is as disgraceful as it is unnecessary.

I have a few footnotes to this Comment. First, Lee deserves much credit in seeing the need for the introductory spar at the temple; otherwise the viewer would have had to wait ages before his first fight with O'Hara on the island. Second, the voice of Lee in the first new scene (where he walks with the master immediately following the introductory spar at the temple) is dubbed. Third, the camera is too close on several occasions during the fight with O'Hara, especially where Lee serves up roundhouse kicks. Fourth, having Roper fight Bolo instead of Lee was disappointing. Fifth, the fight with Han takes a disappointing turn when they enter the mirrored hall, where the fighting basically slows to a standstill.

Nevertheless, at the end of the movie, as Lee gives a thumbs up following a long battle with Han, the overall feeling is of course still very positive, and one is left wondering what could have been had Lee lived to make more films to fulfill his incredible potential.

Deep Blue Sea is an action film, not a horror film, which is what I was expecting to see. The premise, intelligent sharks stalking human prey in an ocean lab, appeared to make some truly frightening moments possible even if the plot lacked any credibility. And while the beginning of some scenes touched on that possibility, the execution and follow through were disappointing. Of all the shark bite scenes, none were frightening, and only one was surprising. The director chose to craft this movie as a series of fast paced action sequences with minimum emphasis on fear. Maybe the idea of being compared to Spielberg's Jaws was too intimidating; perhaps the pace was intended to give the audience little time to think of the problems with the story. The acting was average, the effects were so-so (Ebert was right, the sharks looked like cartoons), but I must admit I was kept guessing about who would die next and, as an action film, it has its moments. All in all, I give it a 6.