Game of Death

When you see that Bruce Lee did not acknowledge “Way of the Dragon” to look right for international release, we can only think at what he would have done with the horrible mess of “Game of Death,” released in 1978.

Lee had started to work on film in 1973, but once he was offered the starring role in “Enter the Dragon.” That’s when he put “Game of Death” on hold but sadly he never completed the film since he died after finishing “Enter the Dragon.” In 1978, new footage using three Bruce Lee doppelgangers was shot to join the few scenes Lee had completed – a terrible attempt  to make a feature-length movie.

Almar Haflidason said in his review, “The result is, at times, nothing short of ludicrous but there are plenty of enjoyable moments: the standard of the choreography is excellent, and the final 20 minutes - which are almost all of Bruce fighting - are well worth holding out for.”

Lee plays Billy Lo, a famous movie star who fakes his death so he can get revenge on a gang of criminals that want to ruin his career. What is really said is that the producers actually used real footage from Lee’s real funeral for Lo’s funeral scenes!

Everything aside (there is good handful), this allows the character of Billy to reach the tower of death where, on each floor, he must fight a warrior of different fighting arts. This is where we get to see Bruce fighting and it’s the best parts Haflidason noted, “The new DVD release contains all the fights in the correct order, including the previously banned scene with Dan Inosanto.”

Including a John Barry score (Haflidason said, “often similar to his music for "The Specialist"), the action direction of the new scenes by Sammo Hung, mixed with the international thriller look that director Robert Clouse adds, makes this a really entertaining if kind of uncertain pleasure.

Famous basketball player and former student of Bruce Lee, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is in here as the last person Billy fights, but I don’t think that’s a spoiler. I actually found the real footage that Lee shot for this film on YouTube, which I also happened to have seen on TV a long time ago, and I found that to be much better than the mess that we got.

This is where a new genre called Bruceploitation was introduced, once of which is “Game of Death II” or “Tower of Death,” released in 1981. These two movies are included in the Bruce Lee DVD Collection, that both state star Bruce Lee. Except “Tower of Death” only has stock footage of Bruce Lee. But is it a good movie?

When Bruce Lee died in 1973, he only had four completed films and one – “Game of Death” – where he only had shot the ending fight scenes that are exciting. “Game of Death” was completed by producer Raymond Chow with the help of Lee stand-in, Kim Tai Chung, and released in 1978. Even though that was a mess (Lee’s fight scenes excepted), it was a huge hit , worldwide, mainly in Japan. Daniel Auty stated in his review, “So when Japanese investors, eager for a sequel, were offered more unused Game of Death footage, they snapped it up; what they actually got was a couple of minutes of Enter the Dragon outtakes, none of which happened to feature the great man in combat.” However, it was enough to put Lee’s name on the credits, and in 1981, “Tower of Death” (aka “Game of Death II”) was released.

“Game of Death’s” protagonist Billy Lo (Kim Tai Chung, except a few footage of the real Bruce Lee) returns to his home in China to see his master Chin Ku (Hwang Jan Lee) and his misbehaving brother Bobby. Chin Ku dies mysteriously and Billy senses something wrong – unfortunately he is also murdered, leaving Bobby (Tai Chun) to find out what happened and avenge his brother’s death. The mystery takes him to the stronghold of American kung fu expert Lewis, played by Roy Huran, who tells him about an inverted tower underneath the land that may have the answer to Billy’s murder.

“Tower of Death” is in no way a good martial arts movie. Auty said, “Storylines are obviously not the genre’s strongpoint, but this one is so poor that it really does take a lot of fighting to pad the film out to even 82 minutes. The cutting from a bewigged Kim Tai Chung to shots of the real Bruce Lee is so jarring that it’s a relief when Billy Lo is killed off after half an hour, although when his ‘disguise’ does come off, it becomes clear that Tai Chung wasn’t hired for his acting abilities or martial arts skills (much of his fighting was doubled by star-to-be Yuen Biao).” Again, the dubbing in the English version is bad even by the low standards in the genre (thankfully the UK DVD also has the film subtitled in Cantonese), and there’s a scene where Bobby is attacked by a lion that’s so noticeably fake that you think if it is really meant to be a man in a panto suit!

In the end, there is some really nice kung fu fights, thanks to Yuen Woo-Ping, the famous fight choreographer famous currently for “The Matrix” trilogy and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” The momentum may be slightly low during the final act, but you get some exciting action as Bobby fights minions through the underground tower.

I don’t think people should see these movies, but if you want, then it wouldn’t hurt, but these movies are definitely weak. I can’t really say I like these movies, especially since Bruce Lee didn’t really have anything to do with the sequel and the original never came to fruition the way Lee wanted. However, this is what we have, so what can we do?

Sorry for posting this, today was a really busy day. However, we have now ended “Bruce Lee Month.” I hope everyone enjoyed and stay tuned next month when I do my seventh annual “Black History Movie Month.”

Bad Boys

Tonight I went and checked out the new “Bad Boys” movie so I will let everyone know what I thought about that, but first, I feel it would be right to tell you my thoughts of the first two movies. Let’s start off with the first “Bad Boys” movie, released in 1995.

The “Beverly Hills Cop” trilogy may have driven itself into the ground, but Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer look to have made a smash-hit with “Bad Boys.”

Saying it’s “an action comedy with attitude” isn’t exactly the newest thing every made – with some small changed that could have been a “Lethal Weapon” movie – but casting Martin Lawrence (one of the funniest comedians) and Will Smith makes a successful comic chemistry.

Playing best friends for years who also are Miami officers, the instant comedy duo of Lawrence and Smith looks like there will be sequels and other movies with them casted in them. Michael Rechtshaffen said in his review, “In the meantime, Bad Boys is sure to be very good to Columbia's coffers.”

Breaking away from their popular TV shows, Lawrence (“Martin”) and Smith (“Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”), respectively play the fearful Marcus Burnett and the cool Mike Lowrey, both members of the Miami police force special narcotics unit.

When $100 million amount of heroin is stolen from the station’s vault, Burnett and Lowrey are put on an assignment by their jittery captain (Joe Pantoliano) to find the criminal responsible (Tcheky Karyo from “La Femme Nikita”). On the mission, they protect an appealing witness into protective custody (Tea Leoni).

Rechtshaffen said, “There's some top-notch work from cinematographer Howard Atherton (Fatal Attraction) and production designer John Vallone (Die Hard 2), who convey a neon-injected Miami that is both seductive and dangerous.”

Meanwhile, the soundtrack vibrates with songs from 2Pac, Ini Kamoze, Warren G, XSCAPE, and, obviously, Inner Circle, whose popular Cops theme inspires the movie’s title.

Whatever people think of director Michael Bay, there’s a laugh in his directorial credit in “Bad Boys II,” released in 2003, comes up over a burning alley.

Those who don’t like him can laugh at the irony of this mindless action movie putting out yet another horrendous movie. Nick Rogers said in his review, “But I prefer to think it’s a visual middle finger, a lunatic acknowledgment that the guy simply doesn’t care if people (ahem, critics) think he’s the Antichrist.”

Rogers continued, “Bad Boys II boasts a how-can-they-get-away-with-that vibe that the film’s solid-as-titanium R-rating brings and lots of funny, snappy byplay between Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. It’s a loud, occasionally grotesque return to Bay’s gleefully destructive qualities.”

Rogers continued, “Like the cross, the film’s bombastic bloat might even be an in-joke. Bay, Lawrence and Big Willie Style’s britches all have gotten bigger since their original teaming in 1995. And even though the 147 minutes is somewhat taxing, the movie is lots of over the top fun.”

Smith and Lawrence play Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett, two Miami narcotics cops who are assigned to find a huge ecstasy shipment as they break into a Ku Klux Klan rally. (One can only think the actual Miami Police Department would have the mocking sense of humor to give two African-American officers in real life.)

The confusing hunt goes to Cuban drug dealer Johnny Tapia, played by Jordi Molla. Past attempts to track Tapia have not only failed, but ended up with him suing the department and winning. These attacks of the U.S. judicial system doesn’t feel right with the protagonists, so you can get some sense why they can’t use normal methods and will hurt Miami and, eventually, Cuba to take him down.

Rogers said, “It’s OK to cringe when seeing Ron Shelton’s name come up as a screenwriter, lest Bad Boys II become a scattered mess a la his Hollywood Homicide. And while this sequel bares his shopworn touchy-feely, male-bonding stamp, more present is the likely work of co-writer Jerry Stahl.”

Rogers continued, “Saddle the stomach up — Bad Boys II features at least five bullets to the head, dismembered bodies, amorous rats, decapitated bodies being run over and sliding into the camera, embalmed kidneys, popped-off heads, iguanas stepping on land mines and exploding torsos. Nasty, but consider Stahl is a former heroin junkie who, if you believe his book, injected into his neck.”

Sometimes it’s appalling, but Bay keeps the film going at a good pace, Lawrence remembers what it means to be funny (his accidental ecstasy intake is chaotic), and amazing action scenes (even in a “Matrix” summer, this chase with cars and boats rocket all over the freeway is one of the coolest things ever put into an action film.)

Rogers admitted, “Unless it’s on Pearl Harbor as proof he knows jack about narrative and character, the usual knocks on Bay bother me. “He has no spatial coherence.” Just watch the way the camera swoops through the Haitian shootout enough times so you can follow the gunfire. “He pays no attention to the obvious civilian deaths in his movie.” Show me one action film other than Terminator 2: Judgment Day that really does (and even that one, not so much).”

Rogers noted, “Bay shouldn’t have to apologize for being a crackerjack action director, and neither should Bad Boys II for being a crackerjack action movie.” It’s always enjoying and it may not be as fun as the first movie, but it’s a fun ride that thankfully has a surprisingly rare, energizing motive. Gabrielle Union is in here as Lawrence’s kid sister, Sydney “Syd” Burnett.

If the very entertaining “Bad Boys” is one of Michael Bay’s best movies and “Bad Boys II” might be one of his worst (however, I think the second one is better than the first), then where does that put “Bad Boys for Life,” which came out 11 days ago? It’s not one of Bay’s movies, as his name is nowhere in the behind-the-camera credits (however, he has a cameo appearance that you can easily miss him in). Say whatever you want about this, but this movie ends up being the best of this exciting trilogy.

The first film was released during Bill Clinton’s presidency and the second during George W. Bush’s presidency, so there’s been a lot of time for Miami detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett to mature. Even though Marcus has evidently calmed down and accepted his old age (helped partially by the birth of his grandson), Mike still thinks he is an unstoppable cop: bold, bulletproof, and crazy over youthful energy. That changes completely after being shot by a few bullets that puts him in the hospitals, where he stays in critical condition while Marcus stays by his bedside.

The person who shot Mike is at first unknown to him but not to the viewers. He’s Armando Armas, played by Jacob Scipio, the son of a Mexican drug lord who was arrested by Mike a long time ago and died in prison. He’s also the son of Isabel Aretas, played by Kate del Castillo, a supposed witch who wants vengeance on everyone responsible for her late husband’s death, from the judge to the forensics officer to Mike Lowrey.

Obviously Lowrey survives the shot (or this would be a really short movie), and despite being ordered by his boss to let others investigate the case, he refuses to not get involved. He’s finally allowed to be the consulting officer on the case, but despite him expecting Marcus to honor their lifelong slogan of “We ride together, we die together,” Marcus has other plans – mainly, retirement.

Directed by Belgian filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (credited as just Adil & Bilall), “Bad Boys for Life” is often funny and really fast-paced that always finds time to slow down and take in the consequences. Not really a mindless action flick, this one has a real feel for the two protagonists and the personal dramas they deal with. This also revolves around the two main villains, whose backstories are told in interesting ways as the film goes on.

The chemistry between the actors is stronger than ever, and while you expect Smith to play to his strengths as a cool and charming man, the real surprise is Lawrence. Matt Brunson ended his review by saying, “He grounds this film with unexpected gravitas, and he even contributes several moving moments amidst all the gunplay. I’ve generally liked Lawrence better than the movies in which he appeared (Big Momma’s House, anyone?), so it’s nice to see him in a sturdy vehicle that’s custom-made to match his talents.”

If you saw the first two movies and really love them, definitely go to the theater to see the new Bad Boys movie. If you haven’t seen this trilogy, go out and see it, you will love all of them. Don’t listen to the critics or other people saying that they are bad, because each one (in my opinion) got better with each installment. You’re going to love this trilogy, especially if you’re a fan of buddy cop movies. This one is one of the best, hands down, and quite possibly another one of my favorite trilogies.

Thank you for joining in on tonight’s review, stay tuned this Friday for the finale of “Bruce Lee Month.”

Enter the Dragon

Bruce Lee’s last movie is the only one that gives him the highlight actor he earned. His fascinating appearance is awesome in “Enter the Dragon,” released in 1973, and it’s sad he didn’t have the chance to become the greatest martial arts actor he looked to become.

Alan R. Howard said in his review, “The movie itself, produced by Fred Weintraub and Paul Heller in association with Raymond Chow of Hong Kong's Concorde Productions, is a whoop-and-holler entertainment, which is to say that it's a lavish, corny action movie, not boring for a second and as outrageously wry as it is visually appealing.”

Michael Allin’s creative screenplay brings Lee to the island fortress of gang leader Shih Kien to find evidence to make him guilty of white slavery and opium trade. Kien puts together a martial arts contest, which is really a way to find salesman to market his goods all over the globe.

John Saxon is really good as an uncontrollable gambler who joins the contest to find some way to end a losing streak. Jim Kelly is equally great as a black American trying to earn money for the movement. Peter Archer is an evil New Zealander contestant.

Bob Wall is a huge villain who murdered Lee’s hapkido belt sister, played by Angela Mao Ying in one great action scene. Yan Sze is Shih’s muscle bound bodyguard. Geoffrey Weeks is Lee’s English Interpol contact. Betty Chung is a secret agent inside the fortress.

Howard noted, “Ahna Capri floats through the movie the way Myrna Loy used to in the early Oriental period of her career, dispensing pretty women to the tired contestants like sleeping pills.”

However, this is Bruce Lee’s movie. Howard said, “He's a strange, otherworldly presence, a man of wisdom who excels at action, who speaks of the emotional content of the fight scorning the notion of anger. Lee staged the fight sequences himself, and they lift the movie the way Astaire and Rogers used to when they danced in movies of a different fantasy genre.”

Howard continued, “Robert Clouse's fluid direction brings this three-ring circus to action climax, so to speak, after action climax, wringing full potential out of the production. His work is an excellent example of a genre director proving his ready for more ambitious material. Clouse even steals, and quite deftly, from the mirror funhouse scene in Orson Welles' Lady From Shanghai.”

Howard noted, “Lalo Schifrin's gigantic orchestral score inflates the movie with an appealing epic feeling that sometimes falls out of its story. Gilbert Hubbs' garish photography is entirely appropriate to the Fu Manchu-like decor of James Wong Sun and costumes of Louis Sheng.” Even though the movie feels just a little too long, film editors Kurt Hirschler and George Watters keep the movie going at a great pace.

This is hands down, the best Bruce Lee ever. If you haven’t seen this movie yet, stop reading this review and go watch the movie. You have to see it to know the sheer magnificence of this film and how great it is. This is my all time favorite Bruce Lee movie and another one of my favorite movies of all time. I give this a high recommendation.

Next week, we’ll end “Bruce Lee Month” with a movie that Bruce Lee was supposed to make, but died before he even had the chance to finish the movie.

The Way of the Dragon

Bruce Lee Lives! Maybe not completely, but seeing the almost overwhelming amount of conspiracy theories around the master of martial arts and his sudden passing 30 years prior to the film’s release, it’s a magazine headline wanting to be written now or never. Jo Berry noted in his review, “So, although the man-myth does live on in a very real sense through his movies, the knotty issue of unravelling the star from the legends - let alone separating out the films - is a perpetual headache. One that often fogs the true brilliance of Lee’s performances and his feline prowess as a martial artist.”

“The Way of the Dragon,” released in 1972, is memorable simply for its final Coliseum fight between Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris (at the time the champion of so many US and World Karate championships). This is the film that gives just about the best fight scene ever made. No fancy camera work, no tricks, just two guys at the prime of their career kicking seven colors from each other.

Berry ended his review by saying, “For better or worse, it’s also the film that launched Norris’ career and, whilst most of his straight-to-video output - along with that of Cynthia Rothrock, Michael Dudikoff and their ilk - is too easily dismissed, it was responsible for maintaining the momentum of martial arts films in America.”

This is a change of direction for Bruce Lee films because it has more of a comedy light to it than the others that we have seen. Maybe they wanted to change directions, so it may not be as good as some of the others, but it’s still a classic to check out. If you haven’t seen it, see it if you’re a Bruce Lee and/or martial arts fan. Sorry for posting this late, I was busy for a good majority of the day.

Look out next week when we look at the classic that really made Bruce Lee into a worldwide star in “Bruce Lee Month.”

Frozen II

Tonight I finally got to see “Frozen II,” which came out two months ago, and I will let everyone know my thoughts on it.

I think everyone could predict that a sequel was going to be made. In 2013, “Frozen” made $1.3 billion at the global box-office making it the highest-grossing animated film ever (not adjusted for inflation). Critics fell in love with the film and it won Academy Awards for best animated feature and best original song (Let It Go).

In the sequel, the main story is hugely untouched. Matthew Toomey stated in his review, “Inspired by a research trip through the forests of Scandinavia, writer-directors Chris Buck and Jennifer have returned with a fresh, creative story.” Songwriters Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez come back and make seven new songs including the hit Into the Unknown. Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff and Josh Gad have all reprised their roles as the film’s protagonists.

If you don’t seem to remember everything that happened in the first movie, there’s a hilarious moment at the end of the first act when Olaf, reprised by Josh Gad, gives a quick-note version. It happens with the magical Queen Elsa (Idina Menzel) and the brave Princess Anna (Kristen Bell) putting together their strengths to save their small kingdom from the villain Hans. The story was loosely inspired by Hans Christian Anderson’s fairy tale, The Snow Queen.

Toomey said, “The five-person writing team have done well to craft something distinctively different for the sequel.” Very close to the Kingdom of Arendelle is an enchanted forest. Its people, who look like Native Americans, can call upon the elements of air, water, fire and earth as part of their everyday work. However, the forest has been surrounded by a thick mist for more than 30 years after the war that “enraged the spirits.”

Queen Elsa has been told this story as a child but it’s only now become important because of a musical voice that’s calling to her (Toomey admitted, “I was humming it too on leaving the cinema”). Following the story to the enchanted forest, Elsa is able to use her magic powers to break the mist and, working with her friends, goes in to look for the voice. Following what the wise troll told – “the truth must be found.”

“Frozen II” is not as good as the first one but still has a lot to give. Toomey admitted, “Josh Gad wins big laughs as the deep-thinking Olaf, there’s a cute frog that will win audiences’ affections, and, while I can’t believe I’m saying this, there’s a scene stealing performance from a gust of wind (although it might be tough to sell merchandise based on that character!)”

The story is also great. It’s a nice, strange, magical world where you’re not completely sure what is around each side. The character interaction is also great with the film focusing on the theme of siblings growing up and making their own sense of independence. There are some great, often emotional, conversations spoken between Elsa and Anna that many will relate to.

Toomey noted, “A research study published in 2016 showed that for Disney animated features involving princesses, male characters produced the majority of the dialogue in almost all cases (the only two exceptions were Tangled and Brave).” The first one came up a little short (59% of the dialogue were said by men) but if “Frozen” and “Frozen II” are any sign, female-focused stories are in high demand.

This movie felt like it was borrowing from “The Lord of the Rings” and “Pocahontas,” but I still liked the movie for the characters, the sibling growth, the songs, the animation, and especially Olaf. He cracked me up a lot throughout the movie, so it’s still a good one to watch. If you haven’t seen this movie yet and you liked the first one, check this one out. It’s not as good as the first one, but it’s still a good sequel to see.

Now I’ve finally seen every movie I wanted to see that was released in 2019, now to move on to movies that will be released in 2020. Stay tuned this Friday for the continuation of “Bruce Lee Month.”

Fist of Fury

Almar Haflidason started his review of “Fist of Fury,” released in 1972, by saying, “Bruce Lee might have a faithful and ever-growing fan base, but reviews of his films often veer between amateurish fanatical sycophancy to professional, ignorant disdain. Awful video releases of dirty prints with ludicrous dubbing of clumsily translated dialogue hardly help. With the immaculate DVD release, complete with English subtitles based on the spoken Cantonese, it is now possible to offer a fairer assessment of this striking movie.”

Bruce Lee plays a martial arts student who returns to his previous school to hear that the teacher he was close with has been murdered. Taking place in Shanghai in the 1930s, the Japanese are ruling, and it is one of their Bushido schools that are responsible for this murder. Knowing that the police will not try to arrest these murderers, Bruce Lee goes out to restore honor to the school and teacher with terrible revenge.

Haflidason noted, “In making this film, Lee tapped into a powerful sentiment that the normally undemonstrative Chinese audiences of the time stood up and applauded. The tag of 'Sick Man of Asia' was used in the 30s by the Japanese Imperialist forces to describe the subjugated Chinese, and in this movie, Lee exacts a visceral vengeance of mesmerising power.”

There is a strange romance subplot and the script and direction can sometimes be a little rough, but just seeing Bruce Lee is hands down the best. His movement in Kung Fu was just the best to see, and he reduces the rage of a tortured society into a physical act of revenge that puts this film into a lineup of Martial Arts classics.

This is another classic of Bruce Lee’s that everyone has to see. I give it another high recommendation because this film really is better than “The Big Boss.” If you thought that Bruce Lee’s martial arts weren’t as good as you heard, this one will be able to satisfy everything you want.

Look out next week when we look at a film that is a change in direction and style, but still has some great highlights in “Bruce Lee Month.”

The Big Boss

Happy New Year everyone! To start off this year, I thought it would be a great idea to talk about one of the greatest, if not “the” greatest martial arts actor of all time, Bruce Lee. Let’s get this exciting month started with “The Big Boss,” released in 1971.

Jo Berry started his review by noting, “Bruce Lee’s break-out movie is the latest (and confusingly last) to receive the ‘Platinum Edition’ treatment.”

This is the story of Cheng Chao-an (Bruce Lee), a young man from the city, who goes to work with his cousin (James Tien) in a factory, vowing for no more violence to make his family happy and keep himself calm. Sadly, keeping his promise is in trouble from the evil acts in the factory, where his co-workers, after having met the bosses (Han Ying-chieh and Tony Liu), are disappearing one by one.

Berry mentioned, “What earns it a place in every fu-fan’s collection is Lee’s rawness — the proverbial coiled spring unleashed to devastating effect.”

It’s interesting because it’s the first Bruce Lee film but also it holds a simplicity that is appealing to fans.

For the very first Bruce Lee film, I would say this is a powerhouse that needs to be seen. If you want a good introduction into how Bruce Lee films were like, this is a good place to start. You will absolutely fall in love with the movie. The action, the characters, the lines, the sets, everything about this movie is something that we don’t see anymore in Martial Arts movies. I give this a high recommendation.

Now that we got this month started off with a bang, stay tuned next week when we look at the next film in “Bruce Lee Month.”