Member Secret Executioner Posted December 28, 2014 Member Share Posted December 28, 2014 Return Of Bruce (Philippines, 1977) Courtesy of the "Collection Ceinture Noire" fom FIP, here's yet another Bruceploitation movie. I have 8 of the 10 titles, and it seems like Bruceploitation flicks make up 2/3 of the collection - also, don't expect the Ninja on the cover to show up cause like pretty much all of their other releases, the artwork has NOTHING to do with the movie (hell, there's Gordon Liu on the artwork of Enter The Game Of Death). This one sees a Chinese guy (played by Bruce Le) who wanted to visit a cousin bust a woman trafficking ring. The plot wasn't very engaging, so I essentially browsed through the thing and while I must have seen about half of it (first 10 minutes and last half hour), here's what I got: - nice alternative version of the Enter The Dragon theme - but it seems like almost EVERY Bruce Le movie has that theme in it (got a couple others and - the most flaming character ever (that guy is soooo gay it's just ridiculous - I don't have anything against gay people, but this guy is a freaking stereotype) - a bad guy is seen wearing a Charlie Brown shirt (yeah, it's a detail, but I couldn't help catching it) - many people, especially the White baddies, seem to have stayed in the sun for too long - Bruce Le fighting two hairy-chested Gwailos in white pants has to be the most hilarious fight scene I've seen this year - courtesy of him trying to recreate the original Bruce Lee's fight with Chuck Norris in WOTD - Bruce Le ruining an emotional scene by overreacting to his girlfriend's death (but to be fair, he seems to be overracting for the whole 90 minutes this film runs) - actually, his reaction is so quick you don't have time to feel sorry for the poor girl - WTF are Lo Lieh and Kong Do doing here ?! Anyway, they have some nice action and are fun to watch - though you can't help but wonder how they went from playing in great Shaw Bros movies to making a Bruceploitation with Bruce Le Overall ? Not too bad of a film, it's great for laughs and the action is enjoyable. Maybe I'd put this one in my top 5 Bruceploitation films. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted February 4, 2015 Member Share Posted February 4, 2015 Iron Dragon Strikes Back DVD (Vengeance Video) AKA The Gold Connection Directed By- Siu Kwai Starring- Ho Chung Tao(Bruce Li) Phillip Ko, Han Kwok Choi Ho Chung Tao in the late 70s finally got a chance to step out of the Bruce Lee exploitation genre. Making a handful of films that had no connection to the little dragon at all. This finally gave him the chance to showcase his true talents and create his own screen image. He was a capable gymnast and martial artist before entering into films. He studied many forms of Martial Arts Wing Chun, Judo, Tae Kwan Do to name a few. Born in Taiwan he later moved to Hong Kong and became involved with movies. From bit parts and stunts he moved onto leading roles as a Bruce Lee look-a-like. Iron Dragon Strikes Back was made around 1979/80 and has a contemporary urban setting. It doesn’t feature a lot of humor often associated with these films either. This is much darker and serous than many of the Kung Fu films of the era. Any laughs are not intentional but due to the low budget of the movie. Ho Chung Tao and his friends stumble upon some gold whilst diving in the ocean. They throw the gold back into the sea fearing it’s connected to the HK underworld. Two of Ho's friends change their minds and go back to retrieve the gold and sell it. The gangsters who left the gold there soon find out and come after them. Soon fists are flying and the four friends are fighting to survive. A dark and gritty picture shot mainly during the winter time judging by the weather conditions. It's not a very up-beat film but a more serous martial arts/crime movie. There's many well staged fights scenes, and some really stand out moments. The final fight scene being one of those stand out moments. Both Phillip Ko & Ho Chung Tao do a great job of appearing to be desperate to stay alive as they go head to head. The ending is not the usual predictable outcome either which is a big bonus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted February 5, 2015 Member Share Posted February 5, 2015 Love the reviews dragonclaws. Dr Ngor totally agree with you on Goose Boxer. About half of it is incompetent but half is brilliant. One of the more unique student/teacher relationships. Cheers:smile:, its the second time Ive watched Iron Dragon Strikes Back and its still struck me as a good film. Yet to see Dynamo, I tried watching it once and didn't get very far. This was not due to lack of interest Id just burned myself out a bit with the genre at the time. In my younger years I filled most of my spare time with these films. Ill have to read your latest review Godfrey Ho Worshipper, I have a copy of The Big Boss 2 to watch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DrNgor Posted February 5, 2015 Member Share Posted February 5, 2015 Cheers:smile:, its the second time Ive watched Iron Dragon Strikes Back and its still struck me as a good film. Yet to see Dynamo, I tried watching it once and didn't get very far. This was not due to lack of interest Id just burned myself out a bit with the genre at the time. In my younger years I filled most of my spare time with these films. Dynamo is probably my favorite Brucesploitation flick at this point, or at least ties with Secret Ninja, Roaring Tiger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member paimeifist Posted February 5, 2015 Member Share Posted February 5, 2015 Yeah Dynamo is awesome, it actually mocks itself for being a Bruceploitation movie. Bruce Li even plays as a Bruceploitation actor in the movie, lol. Sweet cast with Ku Feng, Philip Ko, Lee Hoi San, and members of the Yuen Clan. Which clone is in Secret Binja, Roaring Tiger? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Secret Executioner Posted February 11, 2015 Member Share Posted February 11, 2015 Bruce Lee Fights Back From The Grave (HK, 1976) The release from the 9-movie Bruce Lee Action Pack is actually an upgrade from the previous version I had (Digiview DVD under the title Bruce Lee From Beyond The Grave): it has (slightly) better quality (more contrast and less blurry) and is widescreen instead of fullscreen. While a really poor movie, it's kind of a guilty pleasure for me and I can't really explain this fascination I have for this film. Guess the OTT title (one of my favorite OTT titles with Raise The Titanic and The Bloody Horror Video That Made Me Puke On My Aunt Gertrude), some of the action (like the fight between Bruce K.L. Lea and some big bearded dude) and a rather cool soundtrack (J.J. Johnson's Willie Chase as the opening theme notably) make it decent enough for some mindless entertainment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted February 12, 2015 Member Share Posted February 12, 2015 Bruce Lee Fights Back From The Grave (HK, 1976) The release from the 9-movie Bruce Lee Action Pack is actually an upgrade from the previous version I had (Digiview DVD under the title Bruce Lee From Beyond The Grave): it has (slightly) better quality (more contrast and less blurry) and is widescreen instead of fullscreen. While a really poor movie, it's kind of a guilty pleasure for me and I can't really explain this fascination I have for this film. Guess the OTT title (one of my favorite OTT titles with Raise The Titanic and The Bloody Horror Video That Made Me Puke On My Aunt Gertrude), some of the action (like the fight between Bruce K.L. Lea and some big bearded dude) and a rather cool soundtrack (J.J. Johnson's Willie Chase as the opening theme notably) make it decent enough for some mindless entertainment. It's a long long time since I sat down to watch Bruce Lee Fights Back From The Grave. I bought the film paired with Bruce Lee The Man The Myth on VHS when I was teenager. The film was very common on VHS in the U.K but Ive never seen a copy off it on DVD here. The print was full screen and really worn out. I remember being impressed by some of Bruce K.L Lea's moves but little else. There's not much information available about this film. Some say it was directed Umberto Lenzi the Italian exploitation director?. This is the VHS I picked up years ago. Link- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bruce-Lee-Myth-Fights-Grave/dp/B00004COIM/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1423747484&sr=1-2-fkmr0&keywords=bruce+lee+fights+back+from+the+g Bruce Lee Fights Back From The Grave Trailer Link- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Secret Executioner Posted February 12, 2015 Member Share Posted February 12, 2015 The movie seems widely available on the US market under various DVD releases - either on its own or in packs. The Umberto Lenzi rumor has been brought up on the forum a few times (essentially due to a "Bert Lenzi" credited as the director) and it's usually agreed on that he actually had nothing to do with the movie - though there's a legend that he actually directed the opening scene with Bruce Lee leaping out of his grave. On the movie itself, this was originally a Korean film called The Stranger that I guess was repackaged as a Bruceploitation movie in HK.The American trailer went the extrra mile promoting it as an American film that ACTUALLY had to do with Bruce Lee somehow coming back to life and going out for revenge against the people who killed him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted February 12, 2015 Member Share Posted February 12, 2015 I wonder if they made more changes to the film?, other than the added pre-credit sequence. Doubt there's any prints of the film with its original title in circulation to compare?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member AlbertV Posted February 13, 2015 Member Share Posted February 13, 2015 The movie seems widely available on the US market under various DVD releases - either on its own or in packs. The Umberto Lenzi rumor has been brought up on the forum a few times (essentially due to a "Bert Lenzi" credited as the director) and it's usually agreed on that he actually had nothing to do with the movie - though there's a legend that he actually directed the opening scene with Bruce Lee leaping out of his grave. On the movie itself, this was originally a Korean film called The Stranger that I guess was repackaged as a Bruceploitation movie in HK.The American trailer went the extrra mile promoting it as an American film that ACTUALLY had to do with Bruce Lee somehow coming back to life and going out for revenge against the people who killed him. The film was actually directed by Lee Yoo-Dong. For many years, many thought this was a psuedonym for Umberto Lenzi, but no, there is an actual person with this name. He would go on to co-direct SILENT ASSASSINS in 1988. And for those who do not know, "Bruce K.L. Lea" is actually Grandmaster Jun Chong, who would star and produce L.A. STREETFIGHTERS, SILENT ASSASSINS, STREET SOLDIERS (which was Hwang Jung-Lee's only full American film), and MAXIMUM CAGE FIGHTING. And the swordsman was none other than future "Ninja", Sho Kosugi! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Secret Executioner Posted February 13, 2015 Member Share Posted February 13, 2015 The film was actually directed by Lee Yoo-Dong. For many years, many thought this was a psuedonym for Umberto Lenzi, but no, there is an actual person with this name. He would go on to co-direct SILENT ASSASSINS in 1988. And for those who do not know, "Bruce K.L. Lea" is actually Grandmaster Jun Chong, who would star and produce L.A. STREETFIGHTERS, SILENT ASSASSINS, STREET SOLDIERS (which was Hwang Jung-Lee's only full American film), and MAXIMUM CAGE FIGHTING. And the swordsman was none other than future "Ninja", Sho Kosugi! Didn't know about "Bruce K.L. Lea"'s background, nor about that swordsman being a now famous actor. Pretty interesting informations there. The Mar's Villa starring John Liu, Stephen Tung Wai, Chai Kai, and Philip Ko. Review is up on the main site. Awesome review, man. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member paimeifist Posted February 27, 2015 Member Share Posted February 27, 2015 Call Me Dragon I enjoyed this, but I'll admit it isn't a great movie. I don't feel the plot or acting is anything worth mentioning. The settings were all pretty bland and bleak., and while there were a couple cool locations, they were all In some "yellow tone" (prolly due to bad print) that made them bland. Now that's out of the way, so on to why I enjoyed it. This was my introduction to Bruce Liang, and it's basically a big showcase for him. There aren't many good fights in this, but there is plenty of Bruce Liang pummeling people with impressive kicking ability and precision(for a basher.) Kurata is also awesome in this, and I feel if he had more screen time, he would have stole the show. The end fight between the two was one of the couple good fights, but don't take that the wrong way.. Bruce Liangs fighting performance and the comedy make the movie worth watching. While I said the plot is no good, there is some good comedy involved. Bruce Liangs two lackeys are actually pretty funny, and the much sought after bike had me rolling.. Even one drawn out scene involving the lackeys riding through various locations honking the horn on the "bike".. It was hilarious to me. The dub also provides some unintentional humor, As the characters have some exchanges that make little sense. Anyway, fun movie. I want to see more Bruce Liang, he's an explosive kicker with some serious swagger! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Asmo Posted February 27, 2015 Moderator Share Posted February 27, 2015 Enter the Fat Dragon. Never seen it looking so good (or better than the Crash print at least). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Morgoth Bauglir Posted February 27, 2015 Member Share Posted February 27, 2015 Call Me Dragon I enjoyed this, but I'll admit it isn't a great movie. I don't feel the plot or acting is anything worth mentioning. The settings were all pretty bland and bleak., and while there were a couple cool locations, they were all In some "yellow tone" (prolly due to bad print) that made them bland. Now that's out of the way, so on to why I enjoyed it. This was my introduction to Bruce Liang, and it's basically a big showcase for him. There aren't many good fights in this, but there is plenty of Bruce Liang pummeling people with impressive kicking ability and precision(for a basher.) Kurata is also awesome in this, and I feel if he had more screen time, he would have stole the show. The end fight between the two was one of the couple good fights, but don't take that the wrong way.. Bruce Liangs fighting performance and the comedy make the movie worth watching. While I said the plot is no good, there is some good comedy involved. Bruce Liangs two lackeys are actually pretty funny, and the much sought after bike had me rolling.. Even one drawn out scene involving the lackeys riding through various locations honking the horn on the "bike".. It was hilarious to me. The dub also provides some unintentional humor, As the characters have some exchanges that make little sense. Anyway, fun movie. I want to see more Bruce Liang, he's an explosive kicker with some serious swagger! Good to hear your thoughts. I like the scene with Kurata, I think it's where we first meet him. I didn't know what to expect because he looks like of geeky. But all of a sudden he unleashes a furious ass whooping on all the guys that tried to ambush him. Have you seen Little Godfather? It's another Leung/Kurata pairing. I didn't care for it too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted February 27, 2015 Member Share Posted February 27, 2015 Call Me Dragon I enjoyed this, but I'll admit it isn't a great movie. I don't feel the plot or acting is anything worth mentioning. The settings were all pretty bland and bleak., and while there were a couple cool locations, they were all In some "yellow tone" (prolly due to bad print) that made them bland. Now that's out of the way, so on to why I enjoyed it. This was my introduction to Bruce Liang, and it's basically a big showcase for him. There aren't many good fights in this, but there is plenty of Bruce Liang pummeling people with impressive kicking ability and precision(for a basher.) Kurata is also awesome in this, and I feel if he had more screen time, he would have stole the show. The end fight between the two was one of the couple good fights, but don't take that the wrong way.. Bruce Liangs fighting performance and the comedy make the movie worth watching. While I said the plot is no good, there is some good comedy involved. Bruce Liangs two lackeys are actually pretty funny, and the much sought after bike had me rolling.. Even one drawn out scene involving the lackeys riding through various locations honking the horn on the "bike".. It was hilarious to me. The dub also provides some unintentional humor, As the characters have some exchanges that make little sense. Anyway, fun movie. I want to see more Bruce Liang, he's an explosive kicker with some serious swagger! Interesting to read your thoughts on Bruce Liang. Most of his films are not high art but his physical performances can be really impressive. My first impression of him was through watching Magnificent Bodyguards. Not the best performance of his career and it didn't impress me much. Then again apart from James Tien the whole film is not that good. Ill have to watch Call Me Dragon one day. Look out for The Godfather Squad and Little Superman if you get the chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member paimeifist Posted February 27, 2015 Member Share Posted February 27, 2015 Interesting to read your thoughts on Bruce Liang. Most of his films are not high art but his physical performances can be really impressive. My first impression of him was through watching Magnificent Bodyguards. Not the best performance of his career and it didn't impress me much. Then again apart from James Tien the whole film is not that good. Ill have to watch Call Me Dragon one day. Look out for The Godfather Squad and Little Superman if you get the chance. So basically most of his films are like Call Me Dragon? Haha! If that's the case, they're worth watching to me! Yeah I'm hearing great stuff about Little Superman lately. Morgoth, I really like Kuratas first fight scene In this too, and instantly began thinking "he's gonna steal the show." His kicks were razor sharp! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Morgoth Bauglir Posted February 27, 2015 Member Share Posted February 27, 2015 Leung Siu Lung is easily one of the best screen fighters. Great with both his fists and his feet, he made the transition from bashers to shapes flawlessly, and he's still alive and kicking ass today. He's #7 on my 100 favorite fighters list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member paimeifist Posted February 27, 2015 Member Share Posted February 27, 2015 That is hella high praises! I need to see more than. Honestly, I thought he was awesome in Call Me Dragon, but not enough to call him one of the best I've seen. His athleticism and energy impressed me for sure, but I thought Kurata had the sharper and cleaner movements. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Morgoth Bauglir Posted February 27, 2015 Member Share Posted February 27, 2015 It is hard to chose between them. Actually it was really hard. Kurata finished #10 on my list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member paimeifist Posted February 28, 2015 Member Share Posted February 28, 2015 It is hard to chose between them. Actually it was really hard. Kurata finished #10 on my list. Well I was just comparing their performances in Call Me Dragon. Even still, it is hard to say one is better than the other, they both are impressive in different ways. (Liangs athleticism and how many kicks he can pull without breaking motion, Kuratas moves are very crisp.) I can not judge them overall as I have only seen one flick with Bruce Liang, and honestly not enough of Kurata either. O_O Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Morgoth Bauglir Posted February 28, 2015 Member Share Posted February 28, 2015 For me I think it's Leung's flying kicks that edge him over Kurata. Leung may have been the highest flyer out of all the super kickers. Also it's pretty crazy that these old men are still 2 of the best screen fighters today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member paimeifist Posted February 28, 2015 Member Share Posted February 28, 2015 For me I think it's Leung's flying kicks that edge him over Kurata. Leung may have been the highest flyer out of all the super kickers. Also it's pretty crazy that these old men are still 2 of the best screen fighters today.[/QUOTE] Examples, please. I must see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Morgoth Bauglir Posted February 28, 2015 Member Share Posted February 28, 2015 Paimeifist are you just looking for like post 1990 stuff from these guys? I should point out that their skills and athleticism has diminished, and the fact that they are still 2 of the best today at their age, I'm basically saying that there's not nearly as many good fighters around today compared to the 70's and 80's. But don't worry, even though they aren't as good as they used to be, they still kick major ass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DrNgor Posted February 28, 2015 Member Share Posted February 28, 2015 Call Me Dragon is an extraordinary kung fu film: it's one of the best bashers (probably my personal favorite), features the sort of kick-heavy choreography that wouldn't really become the norm until The Secret Rivals two years later, and the choreography is simply way ahead of its time. The nunchaku/tonfa fight is just wonderful, partly because it doesn't feel like a guy beating on a bunch of unskilled stooges with a nunchaku, or two people trying to outdo each other with demonstration of said weapon. My experience with Leung Siu-Lung is still pretty limited. He was great in Angela Mao's Broken Oath. According to an interview, he said that the director didn't know what he wanted for the final fight, so Leung and Michael Chan Wai-Man improvised a lot of the choreography on the spot (despite Yuen Woo-Ping being the principal action director). I wasn't impressed with Fists, the Kicks & the Evils or Four Shaolin Challengers, but I still need to see more of his older films. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ShawAngela Posted February 28, 2015 Member Share Posted February 28, 2015 Bruce Liang seems to be very good too in The king of rod (and I only saw a few images of this movie at this moment, not the whole movie...). King of rod seems to be connected to the story of the Yang family and, if I remember well, it was on youtube like site with English subtitles... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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