Bruce Lee Part 4 - The Movies & Quotes
The Movies
The Green Hornet
1972, Kung Fu TV series - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5kBqrHphjo&feature=search
As quickly as you can, snatch the pebble from my hand.
Kung Fu Theme - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h2GOmeHouw&feature=related
The Big Boss - 唐 山 大 兄
Enter The Dragon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIlBZ2uQyHg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74fUKUdz9g
The Green Hornet
The Green Hornet was an important break for Bruce. In it and being Oriental he had to wear a mask. It was not as good as Batman and lasted only six months but everyone who saw it was dazzled by Bruce's Kung Fu. He could strike with such lightning speed that the cameras could not catch his action. He attended Karate demonstrations where he showed his strength. Some fans mobbed him in the streets. That was the first taste of success. When the show was cancelled his ego and wallet were badly hit. When he got paid $400 a week, he was driving a red Porsche. Other bit part movies came along. What he did not know was that he was already a hit in Hong Kong and some parts of Asia. If he had given up we will never know. It was not a question of whether he will be successful but when.
The Silent Flute
He worked on a script for a martial arts film called The Silent Flute. Warner Brothers expressed interest and sent Bruce to India to scout for appropriate locations but all these were eventually turned down. Bruce began giving private kung fu lessons to Hollywood stars like Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Roman Polanski and he also trained with others like Joe Lewis and Chuck Norris.
Bruce bought a beautiful house and the mortgage was quite a drain. An serious back injury during weight training made things worse as he was bed-ridden and doctors told him he could never do kung fu again but he was up within six months and doing the same things within a year.
Kung Fu
He began working on a new idea with a script for a television show about a Shaolin monk who would roam all over the Wild American West fighting for justice. Warner Brothers liked it and turned it into a major television hit series called "Kung Fu". However, the lead role was given to David Carridine. Can you imagine watching Kung Fu with Bruce in it?! The producer felt that America was not ready for a Chinese lead actor. Bruce was devastated. (Isn't this what we faced in life sometimes?)
As quickly as you can, snatch the pebble from my hand.
Kung Fu Theme - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h2GOmeHouw&feature=related
Bruce made a trip back to Hong Kong not realising he was already having superstar status as Hong Kongers love his Green Hornet. He was invited on TV and in one of these appearances he broke five pieces of dangling boards with a single kick. If you observe carefully, he tore planks apart when they were held on only one side which made his strikes even more special. With those kicks, his stardom has arrived. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4TXz-buqzU. Shortly after he returned to L.A., he got an offer from Raymond Chow of Golden Harvest for two movies at $15,000. He was convinced by now to return to Hong Kong thus fulfilling his given Chinese name of Jun Fan (to return in Cantonese).
The Big Boss - 唐 山 大 兄
Was filmed in a remote village in Thailand. Bruce told Chow that he was going to be the biggest Chinese star in the world. Filming was six weeks and Bruce was missed his wife and children. He caught a flu and sprained his ankle. Bruce would watch Chinese kung fu movies and observed their story line and fight scenes and he has often felt that they were all inadequate. During filming he would asked to make changes or do fight scenes better. By this time, Warner Brothers who dumped his Silent Flute and gave the lead role of Kung Fu to David Carradine wanted him. Run Run Shaw tried to woo him too giving him a blank cheque. Bruce was having new problems. Bruce flew to Hong Kong with his family for the premiere of The Big Boss and were greeted by screaming fans and newsmen at the airport. See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQHTw3BnL8Y & http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRJX4yhrqnw.
At the end of the movie, the cinema was silent. Then suddenly the audience went into wild applause giving him a standing ovation. Bruce was more than just a film star to the people of Hong Kong. Bruce was a fiercely loyal person as a friend and business associate. Despite being wooed by rich companies, he stuck with Raymond Chow.
There were reports that that while in Thailand, he sought a Thai "Muay Thai" Master and they had a very tough fight which he won. Some suggested he could have sustained some injuries here.
The Fist Of Fury - 精 武 门
This was known as the "Chinese Connection" in the USA and the UK. Because Bruce was a perfectionist he would work endlessly on everything. He would go through scripts, made changes, studied fight scenes, etc. to make all things better. He laboured long hours and does not hit home till as late as 3am in the morning. Again with Lo Wei at the helm as director there was no proper script (they could not get along) but the story was good and will certainly please a Chinese audience. Can you imagine after the great success of The Big Boss, nobody could wait for his next movie. The opening scene was unusual - a funeral. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGV4gdHsXnw
The "Sick Man of Asia" - 东 亞 病 夫: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PS7x8HIC54s made our blood boil and our desires to see justice. Bruce fought for his school, teacher, race and for the underdog. When he said "the Chinese are not sick men" it was a cinematic masterstroke of the time. Fist of Fury smashed all box-office records. While there were a few screams in The Big Boss, Bruce now has a trademarked cat-call and yell when he fought. A nunchaku was introduced. Wow! You know that watching Bruce was like watching Lionel Messi in soccer. You can't take your eyes off the man because in a split second he would produce magic. He has good comic timing too.
The Way Of The Dragon - 孟 龙 过 江
By now, Bruce was surely on the way to super super stardom. Even better things have to come. He was unstoppable. He was loyal to Raymond Chow who in turn appreciated Bruce. They set up a joint company called "Concord Production". This led to Bruce's involvement in everything in this movie. Bruce was now totally in charge of The Way Of The Dragon from script, directing, fight scenes choreography, acting and all else.
Bruce invited some real top gun martials artists who featured in this movie. There was also a fight scene involving Korean Hupkido Grandmaster Ing-Sik Wang who was a student of hte legendary Ji-Han Jae and also Karate and Kick-Boxing legend Bob Wall. Then of course there was Chuck Norris, a multi times Karate World Champion. This time he introduced fighting with two nunchuckus at the same time. This was to me the best kick-ass fight scenes in a movie.
The Bruce Lee versus Chuck Norris fight is probably the best fight scene ever in the history of cinema. I am sure all would agree - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYHZEu7Y7DU
The Bruce Lee versus Chuck Norris fight is probably the best fight scene ever in the history of cinema. I am sure all would agree - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYHZEu7Y7DU
Enter The Dragon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIlBZ2uQyHg
On 10 May 1973 Bruce collapsed on the set of Enter The Dragon in the Golden Harvest Studio. He was found suffering from seizures and severe headaches and was rushed to hospital. Doctors found him with cerebral edema but were able to reduce the swelling of his brain. If everyone of his movies were hits, then this was the biggest one - his biggest dream as this was Hollywood. Bob Wall, John Saxon and Jim Kelly were among the cast.
Although Bruce loves sparring to absorb more knowledge and is not never known to shirk a challenge, he intelligently believed that one can win without having to fight and winning without having to fight is the greatest victory. In this movie, you have a scene where a Western pugilist on the same boat bullying others and shoving his weight around and later challenged Bruce to a fight. Bruce indicated to him they should lower down the small boat and fight there. As the boat was lowered, holding on to a rope tat held the boat, Bruce signalled to him to go down first and when the bully did, Bruce gave the rope to those he had bullied to toy around with. Bruce took a long time to film the final fight scene due to the excessive use of mirrors and the almost impossible situation of filming without capturing the reflection of the camera crew.
The Game Of Death
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNvdSbMW_F8
Bruce's Life In Movies
Knowing is not enough, you must apply. Willing is not enough, you must do.
Whatever you do, do not be nervous. Keep calm with no illusion or imagination so as to apprehend the situation and find a way to deal with it. No excessive action is needed, just keep your mind and body relax.
The Game of Death adds mystery to Bruce's death. The storyline had Bruce faking his own death. Kareem Abdul Jabaar appeared and so did Dan Inosanto. It was not completed and they have to use footages of Bruce's previous movies and screen shots of his eyes or face to join the different scenes and a stand-in actor. This made it a terrible movie to watch but the fight scenes that featured the real Bruce were worth the ticket price.
Trade Mark - brushing his nose, tasting his own blood and then spitting, cat-like howls.Bruce's Life In Movies
If one were to observe carefully, Bruce Lee's life was often featured in his movies and the roles he played. In the Big Boss, he was told by his mother not to fight. He wore a pendant as a reminder. He was in a foreign land and there were bullies. In the Fist if Fury, he came back from a foreign land to the funeral of his teacher (sifu). In real life he came back to Hong Kong from the USA when his father died. In The Way of The Dragon, again he was in a foreign land fighting bullies.
In his movies like The Big Boss and Way of The Dragon, often the people around him would despise him until they got surprised by what he could do or when he could help them. There were always departures and farewells even of the unusual kinds like being handcuffed and led by the police in The Big Boss, charging out with a flying kick in defiance and being shot at in Fist of Fury. Mostly a reflection of his life.
He had his claims to some beauties. One during his teenage years in Hong Kong where he finally left for America. One was in the USA from a rich Filipino family but she didn't shared his passion for martial arts and one was perhaps an actress or celebrity. Information on these were vague and you see them again in his movies. In The Big Boss, he did not know how to drink and got drunk and fell asleep in the room. He went to jail and was separated from the lead actress. Ditto for Fist of Fury and Way of The Dragon where he left to return home leaving behind Nora Liao.
He had his claims to some beauties. One during his teenage years in Hong Kong where he finally left for America. One was in the USA from a rich Filipino family but she didn't shared his passion for martial arts and one was perhaps an actress or celebrity. Information on these were vague and you see them again in his movies. In The Big Boss, he did not know how to drink and got drunk and fell asleep in the room. He went to jail and was separated from the lead actress. Ditto for Fist of Fury and Way of The Dragon where he left to return home leaving behind Nora Liao.
The one and only controversy was Betty Ting Pei when he died and all kind of rumours were spread. In real life, he only had Linda his wife. Linda shared Bruce's passion deeply. Though he was devoted to his wife and children Bruce's time was stretched. Bruce was known to have said: "If I should die tomorrow, I have no regrets. I did what I wanted to do. You can't expect more from life."
The QuotesKnowing is not enough, you must apply. Willing is not enough, you must do.
Whatever you do, do not be nervous. Keep calm with no illusion or imagination so as to apprehend the situation and find a way to deal with it. No excessive action is needed, just keep your mind and body relax.
I fear not the man who practised 10,000 kicks once but I fear the man who has practised one kick 10,000 times.
Art calls for complete mastery of techniques, developed by reflection within the soul.
The eyes must pick up as much information as possible prior to and during a physical struggle. Watch the elbows and knees to get the best results. At no time should you blink or turn your head giving away the most important instrument which supplies the visual information.
It's not about daily increase but decrease - hack away the unessentials.
Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive but adjust to the object and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.
Art calls for complete mastery of techniques, developed by reflection within the soul.
Art is never decoration of embellishment. It is work of enlightenment. Art, in other words, is a technique for acquiring liberty.
Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into the bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put it into a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water my friend. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sonZq6ZnF90.
My technique is a reuslt of your technique. My movement is a result of your movement.
A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool from a wise answer.
Life itself is a teacher and you are in a state of constant learning.
When the opponent expands, I contract. When he contracts I expand. When there is an opportunity I do not hit, it hits all by itself.
A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool from a wise answer.
Life itself is a teacher and you are in a state of constant learning.
When the opponent expands, I contract. When he contracts I expand. When there is an opportunity I do not hit, it hits all by itself.
If you are talking about combat, as it is, well then, baby you'd better train every part of your body.
Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjusting ourselves to the object, we shall find the way around or through it. The softer a substance is, the narrower the crack through it may pass. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves. Moving, be like water. Still, be like a mirror. Respond like an echo. Nothingness cannot be defined. The softest thing cannot be snapped.
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