Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (1993)

A fictionalized account of the life of the martial arts superstar.

Director:

Rob Cohen

Writers:

Robert Clouse (book), Linda Lee Cadwell (book)

Stars:

Jason Scott Lee, Lauren Holly, Robert Wagner

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jason Scott Lee	...	Bruce Lee
Lauren Holly	...	Linda Lee
Robert Wagner	...	Bill Krieger
Michael Learned	...	Vivian Emery
Nancy Kwan	...	Gussie Yang
Kay Tong Lim	...	Philip Tan
Ric Young	...	Bruce's Father
Luoyong Wang	...	Yip Man
Sterling Macer Jr.	...	Jerome Sprout (as Sterling Macer)
Sven-Ole Thorsen	...	The Demon
Ong Soo Han	...	Luke Sun
Eric Bruskotter	...	Joe Henderson
Aki Aleong	...	Principal Elder
Chao Li Chi	...	Elder (as Chao-Li Chi)
Iain M. Parker	...	Brandon Lee

Storyline

Based on the life and career of Martial Arts superstar, Bruce Lee. Haunted by demons. Bruce was taught Martial arts at childhood. Bruce then was told by his father to flee to the United States. There, he opened up a Martial Arts school, then was chosen to be the Green Hornet's sidekick, Kato. Then, his big movie career that included "The Big Boss" and "Enter the Dragon". Fighting many enemies along the way, including his childhood demon.

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Plot Keywords:

kung fu | kato | racism | martial arts | demon | 

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Taglines:

The Mystery. The Life. The Love. The Legend

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Genres:

Action | Biography | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for martial arts violence and sensuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Cantonese

Release Date:

7 May 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

A sárkány - Bruce Lee élete

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Box Office

Budget:

$14,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$35,112,679

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$63,512,679

Company Credits

Production Co:

Raffaella De Laurentiis Productions, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 80 min (online release) (edited)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Jerome Sprout (Sterling Maverick Jr.) knocks on the door to Bruce's school, you can see the name of the school is Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute. Lee Jun Fan is Bruce's given name.

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Goofs

Bruce Lee was already running his own kung-fu school (in Seattle) when he met his wife-to-be; he did not open this school at her suggestion, as the film indicates.

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Quotes

Linda Emery: [Sees Bruce pulling into the driveway in a new car] You steal Steve McQueen's car?
Bruce Lee: He stole mine.
[Stops car]
Bruce Lee: Come on, get in. we're late.
Linda Emery: Okay.
[Opens front door and settles herself down on Bruce's lap]
Bruce Lee: What? Linda... Hey.
Linda Emery: You do the clutch, I'll work the stick.

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Alternate Versions

The theatrical release had a different camera angle in a few scenes that different in the video or DVD releases. One of these includes when Bruce Lee (Jason Scott Lee) says "This is the first Bruce Lee Kung Fu Institute.", and punches the air. In the theatrical version the shot of him is a closeup from the front and the punch looks fast and powerful. In the video and DVD release this shot is a distance shot that shows his back and the punch seems fast, but lacking in power.

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Connections

Spoofed in Balls of Fury (2007)

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Soundtracks

Hong Kong Cha Cha
Music by Robert Randles
Lyrics by Rob Cohen

User Reviews

"Dragon:The Bruce Lee Story" * * * *

My brother used to go to this rundown movie theater in Springfield,Massachusetts called The Jefferson Street Theater.From what I heard,it was a pretty bad place to go to.My brother would go there to see these kung fu flicks which probably excited him a lot being that he was a kid.A lot of kids went to or snuck to a martial arts film that probably made there day a lot better.Unfortunately,back on July 20,1973,the master of martial arts mysteriously died.His name was Bruce Lee.Years after his death,he is remembered throughout millions of fans,which includes me and is remembered around the world for his knowledge of martial arts."Dragon:The Bruce Lee Story" seems to be an appropriate title for a movie about the legend who reinvented martial arts .There has been a few biographies on Bruce Lee back in the 1970s.But none of those films didn't even bother to pay close attention to his lifestyle."Bruce Lee:The Man and the Myth" paid attention to Bruce Lee's fighting style and for that time the actor who played him did a fairly good job,but treated the character like a school kid performing kung fu moves after watching a martial arts movie.In "Dragon:The Bruce Lee Story",the actor,Jason Scott Lee,just doesn't portray Bruce Lee.His is Bruce Lee.He seems to take the role very seriously and surrounds his presence with Bruce Lee's spirit.This happens to be one of the best films of 1993 and happens to be a film that shows respect to the martial arts legend.The martial arts cheorography are one of the best that I have seen and I was really pulled into the action.Historicaly,"Dragon:The Bruce Lee Story" falls on its knees.Anyone who has studied Bruce Lee knows that what happens in this film didn't actually happen the way it actually did.For example,the scene in which he left Hong Kong and traveled to America in 1961.Any super Bruce Lee fan will know that he left Hong Kong in 1958.Biographies don't always get it right and I don't expect them to.Filmmakers usually do a pretty good job telling someone's true lifestory.Sometimes,they don't.The filmmakers who made "Dragon:The Bruce Lee Story",even though were not historically accurate,were accurate enough to qualify this as one of the best biographies that I have seen based on the martial arts legend.Jason Scott Lee should have been nominated an Academy Award for this film.I would given this film five stars.But the filmmakers failure to get into his life historicaly lowered down to four stars.This film I think works for fans of Bruce Lee.