Just recieved my Bruce Lee Legendary Collection (Blu Ray). Here's my take.

[Golden Arm Kid]

I had to give in despite mixed reviews of the Bruce Lee Legendary Collection on Blu Ray.

Just thought I'd give my own little review/take on what I think of it so far.

Well so far I've only watched Bruce's HK trio of movies (TBB,FoF, and WotD). Watching Game of Death and Enter the Dragon later today so I'll post those up later.

So far essentially the the "iffy" reviews were correct to a degree in that these BLD's are do not look like the best Blu Rays out there. Imo it felt like HD DVD 1.5. Imo quality wise they felt better than DVD quality but not as good as typical Blu Ray quality, so naturally somewhere in between.

The Big Boss and Fist of Fury actually imo looked pretty great at least when you compare them to any DVD counterpart that I've seen. I believe that this is honestly the best and clearest that the two films have ever looked. But let me mention again that they are not typical Blu Ray quality. They are not quite up there with WB's Blu Ray release of Enter the Dragon but probably could have been of the same quality had a little more work been put into making these. I think it's obvious that a full-scale Blu Ray conversion was ATTEMPTED here but was only done about half-way which imo is still better than nothing.

Now...WAY OF THE DRAGON was ridiculous considering I own the Ultimate Collection on DVD and have that to compare this to. I'll admit that in every version I've seen of Way of the Dragon the picture quality can be pretty sketchy in the opening stanzas (usually from the airport scenes to when Tang Lung and Ms. Chen make it back to her apartment). However, the quality on THIS release on BLU RAY nonetheless is just pitiful in picture for these opening stanzas. If you've seen the actual cover of Kam and Ronson's Blu Ray release of this, where it has a picture of Bruce that's blurry and looks artistically watercolored...well that's exactly the kind of picture quality you can expect for most of the beginning of WotD.

Overall WotD seemed to be VERY inconsistent with picture quality. The beginning was horrid. Then all of a sudden it made a jump to maybe about DVD quality at about sometime when Tang Lung goes to the restaurant for the first time. At that point the quality gets very jumpy. You get some pretty iffy moments (though it doesn't get as bad as the beginning again), then you get a lot of moments where it looks like DVD quality, and THEN...thank Neptune that there are some spots in the film where the quality looks as good as the entire TBB and FoF release in this set. Most noticeably I really enjoyed the picture quality during the iconic Colosseum fight between Bruce and Chuck. That was pretty epic. So WotD while very inconsistent in picture quality throughout, really did show instances of brilliance throughout my viewing.

Since I just received and started watching the set yesterday, I HAVE only seen The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, and Way of the Dragon.

But as of now I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed viewing The Big Boss and Fist of Fury on Blu Ray. It was really a great experience. Came in expecting them all to be lackluster due to what I'd heard (ordered it because i HAD to find out for myself/with my own eyes). I was pleasantly surprised. Is it lackluster if you compare it to WB's Enter the Dragon release or the typical Hollywood Blu Ray release? Yes probably. But imo so far without a doubt these films have gotten a nice upgrade in quality, even if it was half assed. I still thought while watching that this is the best these films have ever looked to me. Save Way of the Dragon which as a whole was jumpy in quality but DID show the same quality of TBB and FoF in various instances.

So like I said. I will report later with my verdicts on the Legendary Collection/Kam and Ronson Game of Death and Enter the Dragon Blu Ray Discs. I've heard good things about the Kam and Ronson G.O.D. release so we'll see.

Want to give my thoughts because when I looked up reviews for this I didn't get too many or too many that went into detail.

[sdog2006]

I might get them at a later date but there's just nothing in them that excites me.

I don't want The Big Boss because there is no English dub, which is the one I watch and Fist of Fury HKL Platinum is a great disc anyway. WOTD, in your review, sounds horrid so that is out of the question also.

GOD '78 is crap and the ETD is Cantonese only. Jesus I've talked myself out of ever buying it now lol. Glad you're happy though mate - that's what it's all about:-)

The HKL versions will do me fine and they have better special features by a landslide.

[Golden Arm Kid]

I might get them at a later date but there's just nothing in them that excites me.

I don't want The Big Boss because there is no English dub, which is the one I watch and Fist of Fury HKL Platinum is a great disc anyway. WOTD, in your review, sounds horrid so that is out of the question also.

GOD '78 is crap and the ETD is Cantonese only. Jesus I've talked myself out of ever buying it now lol. Glad you're happy though mate - that's what it's all about:-)

The HKL versions will do me fine and they have better special features by a landslide.

HKL does HEAVILY smash these editions in terms of special features.

Imo TBB and FoF look better on this version or any DVD version for that matter. Despite the whole thing being a half assed job it's still an improvement and for the most part they're still better than any DVD version I've seen.

Way of the Dragon wasn't horrible throughout I should say. The only absolutely horrid and disappointing times were the first 10 minutes (or however long it takes for Tang Lung to go to Ms. Chen's resturaunt for the first time). Essentially after that the movie is regular DVD quality with instances of the Blu Ray quality we see in TBB and FoF. Then it typically reaches the same Blu Ray quality we see in TBB and FoF throughout the rest of the film once the final fights begin. All I can say is that the quality of Bruce vs. Chuck was very good to me. 100%.

So if we're comparing something like The Ultimate Collection's Way of the Dragon and The Legendary Collection's Way of the Dragon I'd say considering both the CONSISTENCY of TUC's Way of the Dragon and the length of time total we see Blu Ray quality in TLC's Way of the Dragon I'd say they're about equal.

But if I had to pick between the two editions I'd pick TUC's Way of the Dragon simply because it has very sturdy and enjoyable quality from the very beginning of the film to the very end whereas TLC's WotD is very INCONSISTENT and essentially picture quality ranges from horrid (the opening sequences), to dvd and blu ray quality (definetely more DVD quality than blu ray but there was a fair amount of blu ray looks).

And thanks lol. Actually so far I'm very satisfied with my purchase. TBB and Fist of Fury are better than I could have ever realistically hoped. I now have my favorite Bruce Lee documentary of all time (Bruce Lee: The Legend) and an apparently pretty rare one (Bruce Lee: The Man and the Legend) on DVD for my viewing pleasure.

Way of the Dragon is still enjoyable to watch. I was perhaps just harping on its bad points because I was expecting it to be JUST as good as TBB and FoF that came in the SAME freakin box. TBB and FoF are certainly better than any DVD version imo but WotD is more "on par" or comparable/can be in competition with DVD versions.

Btw just popped in Game of Death and thought it was really cool that they included Game of Death Revisited and an outtakes montage on the special features.

And just for a little background, I DO own The Ultimate Collection on DVD, HAVE had The Master Collection in my possession for a while (borrowed it from my cousin who will want it back soon lol), and I DO own the WB release of Enter the Dragon (got it as an Xmas present this past Christmas...was eternally raging afterwards when I found out it was the reissue and it DIDN'T come with A Warrior's Journey...)

As a whole, me personally, I WOULD recommend this box set to anyone who is a collector or anyone who ALREADY has seen or owns all of Bruce's movies. I think the sweetness in this viewing so far is being able to see how great The Big Boss and Fist of Fury looks and even how awesome Way of the Dragon looks at parts (after all, the downfall imo is really just the opening minutes). You get Game of Death Revisited, Bruce Lee: The Legend, AND Bruce Lee: The Man and the Legend. All of those were very appealing to me.

And another awesome thing was knowing that I WASN'T just stuck with this version and if I ever wanted to relive nostalgia and watch with English dubs (I usually watch Cantonese with English subs) I always have my Ultimate Collection ready to go.

So yeah. Maybe wouldn't reccomend this to a new Bruce fan looking to get the best FIRST TIME viewing experience. That imo would either go to The Ultimate Collection or the Hong Kong Legends Series of Bruce's films.

[David Rees]

I have heard these releases have horrid 7.1 mixes with added sound fx. Is this true?..that is why i havent purchased any. Why cant they put mono sound on these also, theres enough room on a blu ray for gods sake.

[OpiumKungFuCracker]

I have heard these releases have horrid 7.1 mixes with added sound fx. Is this true?..that is why i havent purchased any. Why cant they put mono sound on these also, theres enough room on a blu ray for gods sake.

Yeah, it sucks so much ass... The Transfer wasn't all that great, it still looks like Buffalo Jizz...... K&M are horrible at transferring classic movies...

[Guest Markgway]

I have heard these releases have horrid 7.1 mixes with added sound fx. Is this true?.

Yes.

Why cant they put mono sound on these also, theres enough room on a blu ray for gods sake.

Because they're incompetant, ignorant arseholes.

If you don't care about original mono (and shame on you if you don't) then The Big Boss is the only one worth the upgrade for the image quality. For the rest stick with the DVDs (even Fist of Fury which looks better on Fox's UE).

[HKFooey]

But will the Blu-rays ever be any better with any other release, even if it was released in the US? I have both versions of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. The Blu-ray was supposed to be a special release. It doesn't look any better and the grain of the 35 mm film really shows on the Blu release. Maybe it's a little sharper, but not any better. Sorry this example is not related to any Martial Arts films, it's just the point. Maybe we have the best we'll ever get with the US release of the Ultimate Collection.

[The Dragon]

But will the Blu-rays ever be any better with any other release, even if it was released in the US? ... Maybe we have the best we'll ever get with the US release of the Ultimate Collection.

My point is, when do we get the films with everything on one release? Special features, multi-audio choices, decent video, commentaries, and photo/

behind the scenes tidbits that have been made available on various releases. Since there's really nothing new to release, they may as well go for the gusto and cash in that way.

[Guest Markgway]

...the grain of the 35 mm film really shows on the Blu release.

That's a good thing unless you want your films to look like they were shot on HDV?

[John]

My point is, when do we get the films with everything on one release? Special features, multi-audio choices, decent video, commentaries, and photo/

behind the scenes tidbits that have been made available on various releases. Since there's really nothing new to release, they may as well go for the gusto and cash in that way.

I think you know the answer to this question. Personally, I consider a solid release a victory. You know, stuff from Media Blasters, or earlier Dragon Dynasty discs. The only "perfect" discs I have are stuff from the Criterion collection and they're sure as hell not kung fu. I'm just happy the materials are out there to be had by consumers; if getting good A/V means finding a European release and slapping some subs on it, so be it. At least the choice is there. Now, if only I could get my hands on a BDROM...

[Nakadai]

The blurays are mediocre. I watched The Big Boss and Fists of Fury bluray release recently and while obviously there's more detail, it hardly warrants a double dipping when there isn't the original mono tracks available. With the huge Bruce Lee following through the world you think they would of put in a little extra effort. Not really surprising however.

Oh well for now i'm satisfied with my dvds.

[Guest jerome]

Is game of death revisited in HD ?

[The Dragon]

Is game of death revisited in HD ?

No it isn't.