Fists of Fury (AKA The Big Boss)
by Wei Lo
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DVD details
Actor: Bruce Lee, James Tien, Malalene, Maria Yi, Yin-Chieh HanDirector: Wei Lo
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: Cantonese (Unknown); English (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Color, DVD, Letterboxed, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 99 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-05-21
Audience Rating: X (Mature Audiences Only)
Studio: 20th Century Fox
DVD Reviews of Fists of Fury (AKA The Big Boss)
DVD Review: Want the best version on DVD ? Then just keep reading !
Summary: 4 Stars
Back in 1970, Bruce Lee was a keen martial artist with three Jeet Kune Do studios, he had a fledgling TV/movie career in the United States appearing in movies such as "Marlowe" and TV series such as "Longstreet", and he was charging major Hollywood stars up to $250 an hour for personal martial arts tuition. However, Bruce Lee was somewhat unsatisfied with his life, and he had headed back to Hong Kong for a break and arrived to an unexpected welcome from many young Chinese TV fans, who had seen him as "Kato" on the cult TV series "The Green Hornet". Also around this time, HK film producer Raymond Chow had left Run Run Shaw and started "Golden Harvest" productions, and spied the athletic Bruce as a potential lead actor for the action film genre. After some negotiations, Chow managed to secure Bruce's signature to star in a low budget martial arts film titled "Tang shan da xiong", or as it was eventually released in Western film markets, "The Big Boss" aka "Fists of Fury".
Filming was completed around Pak Chang in Thailand, and by all reports it wasn't the most pleasant of places, and the cast and crew survived on terrible meals and poor accomodation. The plot line is simple enough....a young Bruce Lee plays Cheng Chao-an, who has come to the big city to work with his cousins in the local ice factory. His father's departing words of wisdom to Bruce are to remember his promise not to get into any fights, and as a reminder Bruce wears a jade pendant around his neck. However, trouble seems to follow Cheng around and before long he is drawn into violence, as the truth is uncovered that the ice factory is merely a front for a heroin smuggling operation. "The Big Boss" aka "Fists of Fury" certainly has it's shortcomings, however in 1971 it was the springboard that really launched the legend of Bruce Lee, and it remains forever a key film in the evolution of the martial arts / action genre. Lee was a capable enough actor to demonstrate a broad range of emotion and feelings beyond just anger.....he's an eager and willing worker for his first day at the ice factory, he's wooden and uncomfortable when he first meets his city cousins, and he's clumsy and embarassed around the pretty Nora Maio. However, Lee was at his most charismatic and thrilling to film audiences when he explodes against the villains who butcher his friends, and the film's fight sequences featuring Lee are violent, uncompromising and fast paced. Lee could also capably mix in humour with his brooding menace, such as in the scene when Bruce is munching on a bag of chips, he kicks two knife wielding thugs in the groin, and then continues to finish his chips ! As the body count escalates, the film moves towards a showdown between Bruce Lee and the sinister owner of the ice factory (played by the wonderful Yin-Chieh Han, who also appeared as a trecherous cook in Lee's next film "Fist of Fury" )The film received a rapturous welcome from Chinese film fans, who just loved watching this rugged & handsome Chinese actor and his flailing fists, and the movie broke many box office records in Hong Kong.
Now to which version on DVD you should buy ! The DVD version of this film on Amazon.com with the red tinted cover is the Region 1 CBS/FOX release, and it's not true widescreen, it's only the dubbed English version, and only presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 mono.
However, my suggestion is that you log onto the Amazon UK website and buy yourself the Hong Kong Legends Special Collectors Edition DVD of "The Big Boss", as it is the finest quality presentation available of this movie on DVD. The special release DVD's long list of goodies includes the following : a digitally remastered crystal clear and UNCUT 16:9 Anamorphic widescreen presentation, plus the soundtrack is selectable between the dubbed English version, or the original Cantonese version both in Dolby Digital 5.1 Audio ! On top of that there is a sensational audio commentary track from film commentator / Bruce Lee fanatic Bey Logan, plus original theatrical trailers and interviews with cast members. The disc is Region 2, but hey that's why they invented multi-region DVD players. I've owned many versions of this film on DVD from all over the world, however hands down the HK Legends DVD is the best one yet and it rates 5 stars and more. If you are a Bruce Lee fan, this DVD belongs on your shelf.
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