Today we talk about Brandon Lee, son of the great popularizer of martial arts Bruce Lee, which needs no introduction. As we know, Brandon died tragically on the set of the film."Raven". There are 2 versions of his death - according to the first, he was accidentally shot, according to the second, pyrotechnics exploded nearby and, as far as we know, the first was confirmed.
However, the bulk of his fans know him only from the film "The Raven", while fans of hand-to-hand action films only remember "Quick Fire" And "Showdown in Little Tokyo". I was not lazy and looked through his entire full-length filmography. Before I start, I honestly warn his fans - there is a lot of negative things to say about his filmography, but I will try not to find fault too much.
In general, people treat Brandon Lee differently:
- Some consider him a good actor with the ability to fight, but with a small number of roles and death “on takeoff” - that is, if not for death, he would not have eclipsed his father, but at least equaled him.
- Others believe that he was an ordinary major, who compared to his father was mediocre and became famous only for the fact that he was the son of the great (although greatness is disputed by many facts by haters) Bruce Lee and his death during the filming of “The Crow,” and this is a great way to become famous (without benefit for the actor) - let's remember the completely passable "The Dark Knight", where Heath Ledger, who played the Joker really well, died shortly before the premiere and made the film's box office huge, and the boring (with his films) Christopher Nolan a billionaire; as well as the late Paul Walker (haters called his death “symbolic”), who allowed the good action and cast, but still a giant boyish quotation book, to collect lard at the world box office.
- Still others do not consider Brandon an actor in hand-to-hand cinema after “The Crow”, attributing him to the actors of gothic cinema or drama - this part of the fans is the most numerous.
I will try to form my opinion about the actor and decide which of the above was right - and how much. Now let's move on to the cinema.
"Kung Fu" (Kung Fu: The Movie, 1986)
Brandon's very first full-length film, where he was given at least some role; here he is not the main character, but still his character is significant, it takes place in the USA, the Wild West in the local beginnings of China Town, where two storylines are intertwined:
- A certain wandering Shaolin Monk (David Carradine) encounters the enemy of the past - the killer Manchu, who has hypnosis and, with the help of his son Monk (played by Lee), tries to take revenge on him for his son killed in China.
- The Sheriff, with the help of the Monk, is investigating a drug trafficking case and related murders.
What can we say? The first damn thing is lumpy - by the middle of the film the measured narrative turns into tediousness that you just want to rewind; There is very little action and it is not very well shot, only Brandon Lee burns a little, showing a variety of strikes and weapon work, which is far from standard compared to other action stars of the time. The era of the Wild West is not revealed too much - there are few shootouts, no chases; Shaolin here does not look like endless training in sweeping the floor and standing under a waterfall, but only as part of the hero’s memories and very fragmentarily.
It's not even really an action movie, it's more of a philosophical detective story set in the Wild West. If there was a lot more action in it... But alas, no. I recommend watching only for fans of Carradine and Brandon Lee for the collection, the rest - skip it, otherwise you will fall asleep.
Framed (Legacy Of Rage, 1986)
Brandon Lee's first serious film shot in China, in which he plays the leading role. According to the plot of this crime drama, Brandon (that’s the name of the hero), shortly before the wedding, is set up by his best friend, the major and the son of a mafioso, Michael, and ends up in prison. For half of the film he tries to get out of it, and when he does, he takes brutal revenge.
You know, don’t scold me harshly, but throughout the film I was remembering Nevsky’s masterpieces and now I’ll explain why:
- This film is one big advertisement for Brandon: firstly, a poster depicting Bruce Lee (who is not in the film), secondly, the title (although the theme of legacy is only at the end and does not relate to the hero or the concept of rage).
- Brandon himself is very similar to Nevsky here - the epic facial expressions in combat praised by reviewers and the external resemblance guarantee this.
- The hero at the end shoots packs of villains by simply pointing his machine gun in their direction - this is even worse than in Rambo 3 and Commando; a lot of other trash.
- A guest epic and muscular action star, merged into two blows - here he has already gained fame in China Bolo Yen. Fans, after "The Crow" or learning about the fact that Bruce Lee had an actor son, rushed to watch - after all, here he is fighting with BOLO HIMSELF!!!!! And Bolo falls in two hits and does not appear again, just like Matthias Hughes at Nevsky.
However, don’t rush to scold me for turning the film into crap - unlike Nevsky, the film contains:
- Good music from Richard Yuen, taking the viewer back to the era of Hong Kong cinema.
- A good copy of Brandon's father's style - but alas, very short, in the end Brandon prefers to shoot.
- The Chinese are good at crime action drama, and I managed to empathize with the characters this time too.
- Energetic non-stop action at the end.
- Memorable characters played by skilled actors.
Total: You can watch it once, but the unevenness of the film, the small amount of combat and a lot of unnecessary “epicness of Nevsky” spoil the impression.
Operation Laser (Laser Mission, 1989)
The main character Michael Gold (Lee), a super-duper US agent, receives a task - to smuggle from Cuba a certain producer who is rummaging around in superweapons. Later, the “daughter” of the producer joins the hero and they try to save him.
I still couldn’t figure out what it was - a parody of action films about lone warriors or a serious film?
- For a parody, there is too little ridiculing of cliches (as in “Loaded Weapon”), here they are trying to look serious (for the genre) and because of the blunders and idiots (two non-comic degenerate characters, cranberry, etc.) the film does not qualify as a parody. All this - the stormtrooper syndrome, indestructibility and tolerance of serious wounds, boobs, an almost immortal villain and "like a serious song about a mercenary" - I associate with the rapper Syava - it seems that he is trying to make fun of the "gopo-rap" genre with his songs, but at the same time he wants become a serious discovery in this genre.
- For a simple action film, there is too much ridiculous comedy, suitable for trash action films of that time, of which they were released in batches - poor script, poor characters, sluggish acting, pointless clichéd dialogue, inability to correctly insert genre cliches, as well as boring walks in the desert for a considerable part of the film . Brandon himself does not fight in his own style, but as if parodying cheap adventure films with strong punch-outs and cupped palms.
As a result, it's trash, but if you look at it as a parody, you can get through it to the end.
Rapid Fire (1992)
After unsuccessful previous films, Brandon goes to Asashai and starred in a new film, and this time the process has begun. According to the plot, a guy artist accidentally gets involved in a showdown between the Chinese and Italian mafias and is forced to hide. The FBI sheep who were supposed to protect him under the witness protection program are bribed and try to kill him. He will only have to trust a team of cops led by Detective Ryan (Powers Boothe).
This time, Brandon, who choreographed the fights in this film himself, has already succeeded. The main positive here is the long action sequences with fast, stylish punches and a lot of destruction in the process; a lot of both shooting (without unnecessary bloodiness, but impressive) using a variety of weapons, and hand-to-hand combat (but towards the end). Bosses and their "classic kills" are also present, in particular a good fight with Al Leong in the laundry room.
However, I wouldn’t talk about Brandon Lee as a breakthrough after this film - there are few signature features (speed, floor shots and rolls, borrowed from his father), the fight scenes are inferior to cooler films (Drive, for example) and do not shine super-technical, the colorfulness of the characters is also not at a high level and Brandon did not create a highly memorable image. Further, for some reason the film added a far-fetched line with a deceased military father; “Rapid Fire” would not have been lost if it had not been there.
The movie itself, however, is watchable, but not re-watchable, a B with a slight minus.
Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991)
Here Brandon is not the main character, he is listed as the protagonist here Dolph Lundgren, and the hero of the article is only his partner. The synopsis is as follows: two funny cops team up and kill the Yakuza, and Lundgren’s hero has a compelling motive - its leader (Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa) once killed his parents. Traditionally, with pros and cons.
Pros:
- Colorfulness - even if you watch it in poor quality, the film is very bright - the colors, scenery, environment, the atmosphere of Little Tokyo are conveyed very clearly, right down to the Yakuza tattoos, even if the film is short (an hour and 17 minutes including credits) and you can’t catch everything because of this consider. I was pleased with the Japanese flavor of the film as a whole, especially the cozy house of the main character on the outskirts, I will not forgive the villains for burning it down! Many explosions and shots add more points to this plus.
- There is a lot of action for the timing, even a lot - the plot does not sag and will not let you get bored. The fights here are like hand-to-hand combat with the pitching of Dolph Lundgren and the high-speed technicality of Brandon Lee; there are also double teams in small quantities. There are also: a lot of katanas and Japanese knives, a variety of small arms and almost all the then minor Asian films: James Lew, Al Leong, Gerald Okamura, Toshiro Obata, Simon Rea, Phillip Tan and at the head of all this f***ing fraternity himself Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa; a monstrous scene of torture and salvation from it, and to top it off just one small factory that was fucked into shit.
- In addition to the action, the film has some brutality - cutting off heads, hands, and so on. The film was even tougher, but it was cut in pre-production.
- Lots of boobs, in particular Renee Griffin and Tia Carrere are memorable, although I suspect that in the scene of entering Dolph’s bathtub it was not her who played, but a stunt double.
- The film is short - it doesn't have time to get boring and is well put together.
- Great catchy tune.
Cons:
- Not the best choreography for an action movie with a bunch of Asians.
- The uneven distribution of roles between the heroes, the Japanese could have been given to Brandon Lee, this would have been more on topic, in the end it turned out that Lundren is super cool, and Lee is just an addition to him.
- There are few double teams and adequate dialogues for a buddy movie.
- The film is short - more fights could have been done.
- Stampedness and Japanese cranberries for the picky ones.
- The melody is repeated over and over again and begins to set the teeth on edge at the end.
Hack and predictor Aviator - an excellent and simple film, a classic good action movie of the time, which I highly recommend watching.
The Crow (1994)
Smoothly, I moved on to the most important and, alas, Brandon’s last film - “The Crow”, filmed with great difficulty due to constant tragedies and mistakes on the set. But enough has been said about this and I’ll move on to the film itself.
Everyone remembers the plot - musician Eric Draven and his bride are brutally killed by a gang of thugs. But a vengeful spirit in the form of Raven brings Eric back to life in the form of an (almost) invulnerable Avenger, who, having painted himself with white makeup, goes to brutally take revenge on his offenders and, at the same time, manages to communicate with friends in the form of a black policeman Albrecht (Ernie Hudson) and a girl Sarah (Rochelle Davis ).
The first thing a person who wants to start getting acquainted with Brandon with this film needs to know is that this is not a hand-to-hand action movie, but a Gothic movie (a subgenre of “dark thriller”): phantasmagoric moments, arthouse style, noir almost turning into blackness and buildings with Gothic windows ( castles, attics), dark atmosphere, angst, fabulous plot - and a raven, always black; roughly speaking, like the films "Edward Scissorhands", "Tim Burton's Batman", "Mister Decorator" with Viktor Avilov and so on. What is worth noting in the film?
- The genre affiliation is generally observed: a demonic psychopathic villain with the motivation “because killing is fun!”, beautiful women, beautiful memorable outfits of some heroes, emphasizing their characters - and a gothic suffering hero with a sad story behind him and indifferently dark jokes. The creators managed to move the viewer through scenes of memories, albeit a little chaotic, but understandable as a whole - this must be seen, you cannot write it down in text, these moments are very vivid and are complemented by appropriate music. But there are shortcomings - the villains do not all look appropriately and pretentiously, as in Barton's films, just as the gothic decorations are lacking with stained glass windows and everything else - perhaps this is a plus for realism, but in terms of a gothic movie it is a flaw.
- Action. It is there - about 30-35% of the film, no more. I expected more - this is Brandon Lee, couldn’t it be possible to add more movements to the Avenger, more effects, make less flickering and show hits more clearly? However, there are explosions, blood, eye gouging, stabbings and impaling on sharp objects - but the editing of all this is weak.
- Fanservice - represented mainly by a gothic Avenger in a cape, who loves to play good music in his hideout (performed by Brandon himself). Naked women are present in small numbers, also, thanks to the atmosphere, the film is easily accessible to goths and informal audiences.
- The characters are almost all memorable, but time for development is given only to the Avenger (Lee played well, both as an actor and on the guitar), his bride and girl. The final boss (Michael Wincott, brother of that same Jeff) is cool, like his sister (Bai Lin) and dies according to the action movie canon. Ernie Hudson played well. especially in the scene in the policeman's apartment.
- The technical side is generally ok, except for the flickering in the action. The music and sounds are good and do not cause any complaints.
To summarize, it’s worth saying that the film is very good and is definitely recommended for viewing, both for informal fans and fans of action films, especially about all sorts of avengers. Would the film have been so popular if Brandon had not died during the making? I think so, although not so much - there are not many good gothic movies and they are all from Tim Burton, against their background the film would not have soared very high, but it would have been definitely remembered.
Unfortunately, that’s all, Brandon Lee doesn’t have any more feature films, only episodes in TV series and numerous documentaries about the Lee family, of which a great many have been filmed, remain. Did Brandon have potential? Yes, but not like his father - the inability to choose roles, control the process and interfere with the script did not bring good film karma to the son of the legend. But let's assume what would have happened if Brandon had survived then?
He would have achieved success not with “The Raven” (only among informals and his fans), but with the next film he signed up for - “Mortal Kombat”, where he would play Johnny Cage - this film by Poul Anderson is still remembered and loved. After that, the decline of hand-to-hand action films began and Brandon Lee, I think, would have played in a couple of sequels to MK, which turned out worse than the first, after which he would either have ended up with Jalal Merkhi and the like, or would have become another “Seagal”, starring in trash, and would have traveled around the world and would give numerous interviews about his father, like Valery Zolotukhin, who traveled around the USSR with concerts in memory of Vladimir Vysotsky.
The actor can no longer wish for a good movie, and yet, for the world of action films it is a great grief that he left so early, but nothing prevents us from rewatching “The Crow” and “Showdown in Tokyo” right now.
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Tags: Kung Fu: The Movie, Laser Mission, Legacy Of Rage, Rapid Fire, Showdown in Little Tokyo, The Crow, Quick Fire, Bolo Yen, Brandon Lee, Bruce Lee, Raven, Dolph Lundgren, David Carradine, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Framed, Showdown in Little Tokyo
Tags: Kung Fu: The Movie, Laser Mission, Legacy Of Rage, Rapid Fire, Showdown in Little Tokyo, The Crow, Quick Fire, Bolo Yen, Brandon Lee, Bruce Lee, Raven, Dolph Lundgren, David Carradine, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Framed, Showdown in Little Tokyo
I vote for Quick Fire. Almost a standard action movie of the early 1990s with excellent action scenes. True, in the episode of the escape from the art exhibition, the directors shamelessly borrowed several tricks from “Police Story.” I am sure that this was done deliberately. In everything else, you can't complain. In my opinion, Brandon Lee's best film.
Hi!
I’ve been a “guest” on the site for a long time, but this is the first time I’ve decided to write something. Perhaps the fifth bottle of beer is to blame? ) I’m probably an old fart among you: I was born a year after the death of Bruce Lee (like a test of erudition and mathematical abilities), maybe that’s why for you history is for me memories? I'm talking about Urana reviews. I “remember” the films he watches/rewatches. This is probably why I cannot agree with some of Urana’s conclusions. I had a different feeling from these films THEN. Looking at them NOW comparing them with modern choreography or combat is simply unfair - you need remember how they looked then, or at least to assume so. Uran, in this sense, is not bad at all, it tries to evaluate the level of filming and approaches to cinema of that time, but one feels that it is too young for memories. Or I'm wrong? )
So, martial arts for us then, during the times of “glasnost and perestroika,” were something mysterious and terribly attractive. Accordingly, all the real heroes of the then “hand-to-hand combat” were surrounded by a bunch of unverifiable myths and legends. After all, there was no Internet then! It's creepy, isn't it? And Van Damme was a super champion)
And now, after a bunch of films with already boring heroes (I’m talking about Lundgren too), a fresh stream appears - I watched “Showdown in Tokyo”. This was in the year 92-93. You can, of course, NOW speculate about technique or choreography... But THEN everything looked quite up to par. A little later, but even before watching “Quick Fire,” I found out that the guy was not just a namesake or took a pseudonym, but really the son of Bruce Lee, who has been practicing kung fu since he was 6 years old, etc. and so on. But after “Quick Fire” (which I liked for the fights, not the plot), eagerly awaiting another hand-to-hand fight from Brandon, I personally understood that the guy was also a good actor and, perhaps, he would no longer be seen in fights. And then “The Raven” happened. I was both disappointed and satisfied with my insight. As for the popularity of “The Crow,” for the life of me I don’t remember when I found out about Brandon’s death before or after watching it. I didn’t like the film, I was counting on an action movie, there’s some kind of gothic here, but I only studied gothic from books and had no idea then that this was a whole trend in mass media and pop culture (I remind you, there was no Internet, and I always preferred books to magazines). I watched it much later, already knowing what kind of film it was, what kind of direction in cinema it was - I liked it. Therefore, it seems to me that Brandon Lee would not have followed in the footsteps of the B-action heroes listed in the article, but would have given up fighting and shooting, turning to dramaturgy, as the aforementioned Van Damme tried to do at one time. For some reason it seems to me that Lee would have succeeded...
These are the philosophies that visit fans of virtual betting after the sixth bottle of beer)))
Lee,
This is a normal comment, no problem. As for the memories, I agree that many action films were released “not in front of me” and were perceived differently then, because there was no variety and no opportunity to watch everything on the Internet.
Brandon was interesting in his teenage years. And films such as "The Crow", "Showdown in Little Tokyo" and "Kung Fu" still look good, adjusted for their age. Unlike his father, his son always tried to bring something acting. I'm sure that if Brandon were alive, he wouldn't be lost. At worst, I would have gone into TV series, and now, I’m sure, I would be afloat.
The rest of his films are quite normal for those years and for those people who were involved in their production. Although, of course, Bruce Lee fans expected something different. But what we have, we have.
PS. Oh, these Nolan haters... :) But that’s the author’s point of view. Thanks for the review!
Uran:, I really liked Speakman’s first film where he fought with Tori Tanaka at the end, it had great potential. Especially the one you called Valdis Pelsh Combo. And as an actor he is quite interesting. I’ll be watching it again for myself - fortunately it’s available as a Blu-ray. Then I watched his second film - there Speakman did not strain himself and there were few fights, and in fact there were no opponents. And this black man with the ridiculous nickname Eight Ball amused me with this nickname. And then I didn’t watch his other films because, according to your reviews, there wasn’t much action from him at all. Nevertheless, this is definitely a wonderful master actor.
Uran:, I read your reviews and agree completely about the films and actors. I discovered the same Speakman after your reviews. According to Brandon, as he wrote above, you can act in bad films, you can be a bad actor, but an actor positioning himself as a master of acting must show at least a minimum level, not to mention interesting tricks.
And the level of skill - here you can’t steal away worthy or unworthy roles.
And in small Tokyo - replace Brandon with any Asian - nothing will change. Even the no-name Sasha Mitchell managed to give interesting fights as a 4th kickboxer. And here there is no “son of Bruce Lee”.
Here is the mentioned actor Phillip Tan - in general, small roles were usually cast in films just for the sake of one fight - but great fights, skill, athletic form, and as an actor he conveyed emotions perfectly.
Cop12,
About skill. One stuntman once told me that for a normally looking fight, you can go to the stuntmen in the hall and they will train “for the beauty of the fight”, the rest will be done by editing. Although the experienced eye will see the difference.
PS: and how is Speakman? Have you come in?
uranium. Brandon is dull as an actor, and his films are dull, but this is not the main problem, the main thing is that he is no fighter and could not show anything, at most his role is a third-rate assistant to some boss. There’s no point in watching movies even with him. Uranus probably has the largest article in the entire existence of the Internet dedicated to Brandon. The same Speakman, Jame Liu could appear for a couple of minutes and fight and it would be interesting to watch, but Brandon just ruined all the films in which he was allowed to act. And they gave him acting opportunities, like Bruce Lee’s son. His only hit is Raven, but he also ruined it with the lack of fights.
Cop12,
You shouldn’t overestimate me as a reviewer, I’m just a spectator, and you shouldn’t underestimate Brandon either. However, you have reason to criticize him - there weren’t many worthy roles, let’s even say that he didn’t stand out much from others. except Raven. And in terms of fights, he actually has Little Tokyo.
I’ve been reading the site for a long time, I really like it, the reviews are excellent, the news is wonderful, but I don’t particularly like to shake the air on the Internet, as it is completely useless.
But after reading this review I decided to unsubscribe.
Firstly, if a reviewer wants to be objective, then he still needs to somewhat stifle his hatred and write a review in a calmer tone.
This of course applies to the intro with the mention of Nolan and Batman.
And so, by the way, any director starts with small films that do not collect a lot of money, but show potential, and then the director can get his hands on the production of a big-budget blockbuster.
But that’s okay, all this is not particularly relevant to the filmography review.
Next.
It would be nice to study the history of the creation of films in more detail and describe it in more detail, because it is quite interesting.
The Kung Fu film is a kind of finale and film version of the 70s series of the same name.
The series was developed by Bruce Lee, but it was later canceled and the main role was given to David Carradine.
There were three seasons of the series and then a kind of remake, in which Carradine also starred, but the action took place in our time.
So, to some extent, the son starred in his father’s legacy.
Yes, the film is not very successful, but it is interesting precisely because of its story, which would not be amiss to mention.
"Legacy of Rage".
Somehow you’re being really tough with him here.
For its time, 1986, a very, very decent Hong Kong action movie.
Yes, it doesn’t live up to the works of the same John Woo, but it’s a pretty good shoot-em-up entertainment, and in the end it’s very good.
Yes, there are few fights, but perhaps Lee was not particularly prepared for hand-to-hand combat and that is why the film leans towards shooting.
And also, if I’m not mistaken, a very cool guy and expert Bey Logan included the final showdown in the list of the best action scenes of Hong Kong cinema.
"Showdown in Little Tokyo"
Among the disadvantages of the AMERICAN film:
"Not the best choreography for an action movie with a bunch of Asians." and “Cliché and Japanese cranberries for the picky.” To be honest, it's a little funny.
The Americans have never filmed action films on the level of Hong Kong, especially in the 90s, and no one will write out the true customs of the Yakuza in a typical bashka.
Well, I was very interested in reading this review, and not only this one.
I really hope to continue this series soon.
Thank you very much.
wesker,
It makes me happy that some readers write such detailed reviews, everyone needs to take an example and there should be more of them.
About Nolan - I am a veteran of the fight against the Nolanists and have argued with them a lot. then he decided that it was useless to prove something to them with the inconvenient truth and analysis of films, as with fans of Tolkien and Martin, so there is no point in raising his topics here.
The history of making films - it is possible but not always necessary. In general, there is Wikipedia, and the history of creation can be summarized in a nutshell. I’m not a super reviewer with Cinema Shit, and I evaluate it with a more down-to-earth look, close to the viewer.
I agree about Kung Fu, I’ve seen the series in fragments, Carradine is great there, but the film itself is boring, there’s nothing to add here, whether it’s the first experience or the last, who had a hand in it or didn’t, what matters is the result at the end - whether you enjoyed the film or not. Moreover, in six months I watched more than a HUNDRED films for the site, 60% of which I saw for the first time - and the choreography there is much better than in those places where I found fault.
Legacy? Everything is to the point - lackluster, major (in the history of creation there is about how B. Lee and Martin Wong drank in bars and Bolo Yong, who complained about Lee's majority, I should have noted this) - but Yuen's music and a more or less sensible showdown in the finale saved the movie. Unfortunately, I haven’t heard about Bay Logan, but I’ve seen worse showdowns.
Little Tokyo and bad American combat? But what about Undisputed (and Florentine and Adkins in general), Drive, Blood Moon (+/- a number of Daniels’ works in general), No Retreat (although it’s a bit shaky + Chinese specialists), Mortal Kombat (even the second and an awesome old series), Van Damme (even if he became monotonous in the end), Statham (even if in some places England was directed by Corey Ewan).
In general, thank you very much for your comment, write about other works on this site (there are other reviewers here).
Thanks for the detailed answer. :)
This may be a matter of taste, but for example, the combat in Undisputed 3 is worse than in the second, it seems to me.
And again, I was talking specifically about the action films of the 90s.
In my opinion, hand-to-hand action :) is almost the same everywhere, there were exceptions to the rules, but that’s why they are exceptions.
And it seems to me that the same Daniels, Blood Moon, etc., the films were almost all on the same level in terms of action.
So, it seems to me that it is not entirely correct to classify this point in the Showdown in Tokyo as a minus.
Moreover, Lundgren was never a good hero of films with BI; he still mostly preferred to shoot.
In addition, karate is still not such a spectacular form of martial arts as kung fu and similar martial arts.
Well, now specifically about Brandon.
Brandon was born at 65 and Bruce Lee died at 73.
That is, Bruce, for example, could not physically train his son in adolescence and adulthood and make him a person who has excellent command of BI.
Besides, Brandon may not have really wanted to do this.
Yes, he knew how to wave his arms and legs beautifully, but perhaps he went into cinema only to earn money, become famous and ride on his pedigree.
Perhaps after The Raven he would have gone into shooting action or other genres in general and abandoned films with BI.
After all, we cannot exclude the possibility that his first films were in the BI genre only because it was easier to become popular, nothing more.
Now, unfortunately, we can only assume all this.
Well, I’ll step back a little from the topic and touch on Bruce Lee.
I recently read Tom Bleecker’s book “Unsettled Matters. The Life and Death of Bruce Lee / Unsolved Mysteries. The Life and Death of Bruce Lee” and began to look at Bruce’s life and work a little differently.
And Bruce himself began to look a little different to me.
Without detracting from all his merits, we must still admit that he was just a man with his cockroaches, of which he had very, very many.
wesker,
I am not a supporter of the mythification of Bruce Lee, so I will read the book. I generally agree about Brandon, considering what others have written about him.
I haven’t written comments on the site for a long time, but I read what they write about the dark knight and wanted to express my opinion, I don’t understand people who consider this film a masterpiece, a stupid, boring, illogical and boring movie, has nothing to do with art, a complete disappointment.
Dave,
I agree, but let’s not get into trouble, it’s better to talk about Brandon.
Review Van Damme's filmographies. My favorite actor.
TIMMONS,
I try to focus on little-known, under-developed or forgotten ones, with rare exceptions. Van Damme won't be here anytime soon.
uranium,
Matthias Hues then.
TIMMONS,
It will be, but not soon. I have a whole queue here + a lot of other work in real life.
Uran:, would you like to review James Liu? A great master, an excellent actor and stunning looks.
I know that you can say that he, like David Bradley, played only small roles, but I advise you to watch if you haven’t seen the film with him in the title role - “Conquering Death” where he is in the title role and also has Norton, Urquidez, Eric Lee, Karen Sheppard, Nils Allen Stewart
Interestingly, I was the only one who thought that in “Quick Fire”, Brandon very actively copied Jackie, albeit a little awkwardly? In the fight with Leong alone, elements from "Patron" and "Dragons Forever" are visible! Plus the use of a frame, as in the first "Police Story", or when a man was kicked, he waved it off, like Jackie in "Project A 2"! Coincidence ?
Vadya,
I do not think)))
All the later B-movie actors copied and borrowed from each other. The main thing is to borrow well. I watch modern action films and I think that they don’t borrow from Hong Kong or from Avedon, although he did. This is so missing, this half-electronic, half-rock music, this static camera.
I think if it weren’t for the tragedy, Brandon would have switched to drama (and occasionally appeared in action films) after the end of the B-movie. He studied it, but he was only invited to action films at the beginning of his career.
And so:
1. We persuaded....I’ll watch Quick Fire)
2. The Raven - I think this is a movie about love (and revenge).
3. Tokyo is one of the best films of both actors. There are already a lot of fights there, if it lasted longer, there wouldn’t be more fights.
and PS I strongly disagree about Nolan! TR is not a boring movie, and it wasn’t just Ledger’s tragedy that made the box office; Nolan’s films themselves are good, otherwise the sequel to TR, Inception, and Interstellar would have failed at the box office. In addition, many directors borrow their entire style, sound design, etc.
JOHNSON,
I'm Nolanohater. I admit it - although I like Prestige. But to say that he is not boring as a director and at the same time to be a fan of action films are mutually exclusive paragraphs. TR is a boring bore with the most idiotic plot twists (the untested Joker comes to the mafia as if it were his home; a murderous facepalm in a moment with a motorcycle, stupid Batman, ugly staged fights in all parts, a minimum of the superhero himself, a drama stretched over the globe, they called Michael Ja White to the role of a passing non-fighting idiot and much, much, much). This is a movie for student philosophers looking for CPGS (spoiler: where it is not), although for me, “a stupid movie for rednecks from the 90s,” the first Mortal Kombat conveyed more meaning and teachings than all this boring, arthouse and two-hour bullshit. It was Ledger's tragedy that made his movie - compare the box office before and after, as well as the above-mentioned examples of Walker and Brandon Lee.
Borrowing from Nolan? Of course - what about the MK Legacy series? A complete mess (except for the episode with Johnny Cage from the first season). Let them borrow more, maybe. this will wean me off the computer, then I will finally lose faith in the revival of action films and find solace in a more realistic occupation.
uranium,
The Dark Knight is not a film about BI, don’t get confused. And why, if I like action films, shouldn’t I like blockbusters, films of other and mixed genres? I would dispute a lot of what was said, but why start demagoguery, it’s better to let everyone remain with their own opinion.
JOHNSON,
Let it be.
Peace to all, brothers))).
uranium,
Thanks for the review!
1. I would also like to see the history of the development of sports skills in such articles. Here, obviously, dad has been trying since childhood and yet it would be interesting (not only, I think, to me) what the actor himself did in each such review and with whom, what he achieved as an athlete, what he specialized in.
2. Homage to the father... it shouldn’t be so harsh. For me, it’s quite logical, we are all children of our parents... Especially such ones. By the way, Bruce Lee also starred in his daughter, Shannon Lee. She has at least one creditable film - “Enter the Eagles” by Corey Yuen.
3. Nolan’s films were criticized for being boring). “The Dark Knight” is not his first financially (at least!) successful film and far from the last). Personally, his tapes finally forced me to delve into popular astronomy and modern physics. I guess I'm not the only one)...
4. Brandon's films pay tribute to the style of Hong Kong films of that time, and piles of corpses...
Here John WU and Tsui Hark have really piles of corpses, but here... the same homage))...
In general, once again - thanks for the reviews of the film of youth)))!!
Alex,
1 - I try to touch films more and how they “come” to the viewer, and about sports skills - only if this is often prescribed.
2 - it's not harsh, it's truthful. Many people are clouded by the images and lies of both fans and the actors themselves. Bruce Lee himself is a very controversial personality, many myths about him have long been debunked, and the famous references from fans about “he dragged Norris in” are broken down in the latter’s interview for Esquire magazine - I strongly recommend everyone read it. There will also be a review about Shannon Lee, but I don’t know when yet.
3 - Those who consider Nolan’s financial success are recommended to look at the collections of his films BEFORE and after The Dark Knight. What about financial success? Well, Comedy Club Films collect films well this way. But TR is still a bad and boring film. Interstellar is a controversial film, but the fact that it made people take up and become interested in astronomy and physics is a huge plus.
4 - They give it its due - but they also give it Nevsky’s style, I described the rest. Wu and Hark at least made these corpses juicily - with holes with blood, with bullets in the forehead, with tin and facial expressions - but here they scattered and that’s it.
uranium, and where can one read these revelations of myths for a person who didn't dig? Those. he simply doesn’t know what is considered myths, what is facts, and what he simply hasn’t heard of.
For example, I judge Chuck Norris solely from the way they both move - Bruce is clearly faster and sharper. What does Norris say in this interview?
I can say even less with confidence about Brandon. I only remember reading Bolo Yong’s complaints about the unpunctuality and majorism of the younger Lee.
Wave,
This is a very complex topic, and to tell you the truth, a lot of it was unpleasant to read when I was young. Publishing all sorts of such revelations is not always pleasant. I'll jot down a few offhand:
1) That video where Bruce plays Pong with chucks is a fake and an advertisement with an actor.
2) The fight between Chuck and Lee is post-war, it’s a movie. I can move quickly on the screen after much preparation. The installation and camera angle will make a fighter out of anyone.
3) https://esquire.ru/wil/chuck-norris here's the interview.
4) Lee did not study very well with Ip Man and did not master many forms - this was confirmed by other students of the Master. However, I do not rule out that they could have spoken out of envy.
5) Everything that is known about Bruce is known from his words. Are there any recordings of his fights? Official documents? We do not know. But we know another figure, who is Mr. Universe.
6) Ving Chunovtsy can show an inch blow
However, the fact that Lee knew how to fight and was a great popularizer of martial arts and that combat cinema began with him is undeniable.
uranium, looked at the video with an inch. What the hell inch? Half a meter span.
uranium,
A…
1. Knew it. Reaction: so what? Bruce will not forget that such fakes are created about him.
2. Of course, staged and film. Only I saw Bruce's videos and Chuck's videos not only in films. And what I saw about Bruce convinces me better than any words that his condition is unparalleled. The speed of the blows is enormous (and it is clear that this is NOT an accelerated video), and the stopping blows themselves are short, who the hell has time to swing (several videos where he explained the essence of his technique to someone). Well, so is the strong woman... Considering his weight...
At the same time, however, I note that technically he is poor; I have not seen anywhere that he does anything sophisticated. Therefore, I don’t know who would win if a person with the same condition was put up against him.
3. There are only a few words about Bruce in the interview. “and here I am in front of you: a successful man who shook hands with Bruce Lee” - it doesn’t look like he’s exposing Bruce in this phrase. Well, okay, about “defeating me, the world champion in karate” - it looks like something. But it also sounds like a joke from Chuck. There was a conversation not about who could beat whom, but about who should win the film.
4. Oh, quite a revelation. Here you need to look at the overall picture: how much he trained with Ip Man, how exactly the training went, what Ip Man gave him. So what came out of all this (jeet kune do).
5. This, again, is not facts, but speculation. We don't know and that's why everything could be bad.
Although, of course, this is a pretty compelling argument. The only thing about the video. Bruce's youth occurred at a time when videography was still exotic. And then he went to the cinema. Why he didn’t participate in international karate competitions is a question, of course.
6. So what? Honestly, I don't understand why everyone makes such a big deal about this one-inch strike. Just like a top secret ingredient. It is just an indicator of how a person moves, how much explosive power he has, whether his blow can gain good speed in just an inch (in reality there is more, 5-10 centimeters plus the space into which the body flies off after contact with the fist).
So these revelations don't change anything for me.
Wave,
I’m not particularly going to dwell on this topic and sketched out the simplest skeptical arguments, to which there will be no direct answers, because Bruce Lee is one of the symbols that competently promoted himself, moreover, he was the very first of his kind in America - and he he did an excellent job with the role of a pioneer in films about BI and also forced millions of children and adults to take up BI, for which I bow to him.
Nevertheless. fans greatly exaggerate everything about him and believe in all the fairy tales on the fly. Chuck? Ordinary mutual PR - in the same interview, Chuck talked about Lee’s early fighting style and the lack of a bunch of punches and something like below and above the belt (reminiscent of our gossipers with their deadly super-blows that cannot be shown), and the video outside the cinema is in The answer to this is the video “Starov vs. Batu Khasikov.” I’m sure that Lee could punch him in the face and forcefully, he knew karate and boxing well - people flew away from his blows in training and demonstrations for a reason (although haters and skeptics tried to explain this). They interviewed the Master's students about Ip Man, who told a lot about Lee that exposed him (although, again, I don't exclude the possibility of envy).
I, too, was unpleasant when Anatoly Taras was exposed, who wrote (I now believe that with someone else’s hands) the half-serviceable book “War Machine,” so I understand the indignation of the fans. when Lee is exposed.
Uran:, would you like to review James Liu? A great master, an excellent actor and stunning looks.
I know that you can say that he, like David Bradley, played only small roles, but I advise you to watch if you haven’t seen the film with him in the title role - “Conquering Death” where he is in the title role and also has Norton, Urquidez, Eric Lee, Karen Sheppard, Nils Allen Stewart.
Cop12,
Yes, I planned it, even though he plays a villain in every third film and regularly appears in reviews. Are there any other films with significant roles for him?
Uran:, to be honest, it seems to me that “Conquering Death” is the only film where he has both a positive role and the main role and a film for him. I assume that, like Keith Cook in “Man vs. Cyborg,” they tried him as a star, but for some reason it didn’t work out for him, although the film is extremely superb and rare. How in the role of the main boss he has films where he is shown enough - Balance of Power”,
"Red Sun Rising", American Nija 5, Midnight Man,
role of assistant - mission of justice,
the rest are probably 15-20 roles - he either carried out a spectacular fight like with Speakman or with Blanks, or played one of the gang members in the Laws of Hand-to-Hand Combat.
Cop12,
Liu is a great guy, he’s a plowman who always commands my respect. There will be a review of it anyway.
Uran:, I'll be looking forward to James Liu's review with great anticipation.
Cop12,
This will have to wait, but throw it in for now or look for his main roles.
Good review!
Brandon's physical and athletic training was at a high level! Better than Van Damme, I think)))
True, I watch Quick Fire more often than Showdown in Little Tokyo.
Vladimir,
Quick Fire has good fights, but the plot is a bit left-field and the bosses aren't as memorable as Little Tokyo.
Great review. When will you review Dacascos' filmography? Or has it already happened?
TIMMONS,
Actually, there is Dacascos, both from Ravenside and from me. You need to use search)
Lol, yes, even twice :D
TIMMONS,
I had a chance to see everything from the above; the reviews are very accurate and true. One note about "Quick Fire", the movie is still not a one-off movie and, if it weren't for "The Crow", it would have been the brightest action movie in his career
Dmitriy,
For me, Runaway Fire is his calling card for fans of BI. Yes, Tokyo is the best film, but Tokyo is already Lungren’s calling card)
Oh Brandon Lee, I love him more than my father.
Probably because his character is closer to me.
This is his emotionality and vulnerability, despite all his
hand-to-hand manners. Martial arts + soul type.
After him, Dacascos crushed this topic. Both are good.
But Brandon, damn, it’s still interesting how he
happened after "The Raven", in any case a legend.
Lech,
By the way, yes, it should be noted that Lee Jr. is in fact a beta version of Dacascos (he later played in the series “The Raven”), like Blanks for Snipes.
Operation Laser is a film adaptation of a spy novel, there is a second part, just as stupid.
Mery,
There were quite a lot of such films - especially the trashy and rare "Number 1 in the Secret Service", but if almost all of them are parodies, then this one doesn't matter.