They Call Me Bruce (1982)

A goofy Korean finds his life hopelessly complicated with people continually confusing him with Bruce Lee.

Director:

Elliott Hong

Writers:

David Randolph (screenplay), Johnny Yune (screenplay)

Stars:

Johnny Yune, Margaux Hemingway, Raf Mauro

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johnny Yune	...	Bruce / Grandfather
Margaux Hemingway	...	Karmen
Raf Mauro	...	Freddy (as Ralph Mauro)
Pam Huntington	...	Anita
Martin Azarow	...	Big Al
Tony Brande	...	Boss of Bosses
Bill Capizzi	...	Lil Pete
Harvey Vernon	...	Officer Hangten
Heshimu Cumbuka	...	Curtis
Bob Hannah	...	Officer Carp
René Le Vant	...	Reverend
Vidonne Sayre Linn	...	Angela
Ivana Moore	...	Hooker
Phillip Simms	...	Baby Moe (as Phil Simms)
Ralph Strait	...	Officer #2

Storyline

A Korean man's resemblance to the legendary martial arts star Bruce Lee proves to be a mixed blessing when he stumbles onto the activities of the Mob.

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Plot Keywords:

bruce lee | martial arts | racist stereotype | racist humor | racial humor | 

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Taglines:

They also call me the man who ruined the reputation of every KUNG-FU expert!

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Genres:

Action | Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character of "Bruce" is only ever known by his lookalike name and is never referred to by his real personal name. Similary, nor is there a personal name ever given for the godfather character known as "The Boss of Bosses".

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Goofs

In the movie, "Bruce" sees the Boss of Bosses giving Freddy the "Kiss Of Death" and mentions that he knows about the kiss because he watched the Godfather movies. "Bruce" also mentions to the Boss of Bosses that he doesn't kiss as good as Marlon Brando. In actuality, Marlon Brando never gave the kiss of death in the original film "The Godfather". The kiss of death was actually first given by Al Pacino in "The Godfather Part II" to John Cazale.

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Quotes

Bruce: I am a sex object. I always ask women for sex, and they object.

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Connections

Followed by They Still Call Me Bruce (1987)

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Soundtracks

I Imagine You
Lyrics by Gary Tigerman

User Reviews

Surprisingly good B-movie!

I had read the short review of this movie in "The Video Movie Guide" over and over, thinking it would be bad; but by luck, it was on T.V. one summer afternoon, so I watched it. Well, they were wrong (again).

This movie was good. It at least did its job in making me laugh like crazy at times, which is tough for anything coming down the pike these days.

Johnny Yune, a now forgotten comedian, plays Bruce, so-called because people mistake him for Bruce Lee (he looks nothing like him). Bruce gets himself involved with the Mafia, who use him and Ralph Mauro as unknowing guinea pigs to deliver "Chinese Flour", which is really cocaine, to various bosses from L.A. to N.Y. When things go sour, the late Margaux Hemmingway tries to off the heroes.

The film is very cheap-looking and dark, but there are some absolutely funny lines delivered by Yune.

When he's in Las Vegas and he's asked about gambling

Bruce: Ah Gambling! In China, I knew a woman who made her husband a millionaire through gambling. Only thing was, he used to be a billionaire.

When he's at a black church and asked to testify.

Bruce: We were so poor that when a thief broke into our house, we'd rob him!

Early in the film, his adventures at a dojo are pure slapstick, as well as a scene where Yune and Mauro are in a Texas jail, and they use the Chinese Flour to cause a jailbreak, then when the cocaine is on the clothes of the prisoners, they start sniffing at the clothes to snort the coke! Hilarious.

You won't find this on DVD, but you'll find this hidden gem somewhere in a video store. See it.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 November 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Fistful of Chopsticks

Filming Locations:

Liberty Island, New York Harbor, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,071,345, 14 November 1982

Gross USA:

$16,894,678

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$16,894,678

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gold Pine Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1