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The Way of the Dragon

Original title: Meng long guo jiang
  • 1972
  • R
  • 1h 30m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
43K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
4,997
1,284
Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris in The Way of the Dragon (1972)
Kung FuMartial ArtsOne-Person Army ActionActionAdventureComedyCrimeDramaThriller

A country bumpkin martial artist visits his relatives in Rome, Italy, where he must defend them and their restaurant against harassment from brutal gangsters.A country bumpkin martial artist visits his relatives in Rome, Italy, where he must defend them and their restaurant against harassment from brutal gangsters.A country bumpkin martial artist visits his relatives in Rome, Italy, where he must defend them and their restaurant against harassment from brutal gangsters.

  • Director
    • Bruce Lee
  • Writer
    • Bruce Lee
  • Stars
    • Bruce Lee
    • Chuck Norris
    • Nora Miao
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.2/10
    43K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    4,997
    1,284
    • Director
      • Bruce Lee
    • Writer
      • Bruce Lee
    • Stars
      • Bruce Lee
      • Chuck Norris
      • Nora Miao
    • 162User reviews
    • 86Critic reviews
    • 58Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win total

    Photos146

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    Top cast37

    Edit
    Bruce Lee
    Bruce Lee
    • Tang Lung
    Chuck Norris
    Chuck Norris
    • Colt
    Nora Miao
    Nora Miao
    • Chen Ching Hua
    Ping-Ou Wei
    Ping-Ou Wei
    • Ho
    • (as Paul Wei Ping-Ao)
    Chung-Hsin Huang
    Chung-Hsin Huang
    • 'Uncle' Wang
    • (as Wang Chung Hsin)
    Robert Wall
    Robert Wall
    • Bob
    In-shik Hwang
    • Japanese Fighter
    • (as Ing-Sik Whang)
    Ti Chin
    Ti Chin
    • Ah Quen
    Tony Liu
    Tony Liu
    • Tony
    Little Unicorn
    Little Unicorn
    • Jimmy
    Malisa Longo
    Malisa Longo
    • Italian Beauty
    Ngan Wu
    • Waiter
    Fu Ching Chen
    Fu Ching Chen
    • Robert
    • (as Robert Chen)
    Jon T. Benn
    • The Big Boss
    John Kenny
    • Quen
    • (voice)
    Robert Baker
    • Thug
    • (uncredited)
    Riccardo Billi
    • Bank Manager
    • (uncredited)
    Russell Cawthorne
    • Man at Airport
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Bruce Lee
    • Writer
      • Bruce Lee
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    IMDb's Picks For Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

    IMDb's Picks For Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

    IMDb celebrates the cinematic contributions of Asians and Pacific Islanders with a list of some iconic films, new classics, and hidden gems to add to your Watchlist.
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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The entire film was shot without sound, with the actors looping their lines in post-production.
    • Goofs
      At the beginning of the movie, Bruce Lee is eating several different types of soups and several times he takes a spoonful of an orange colored soup and as he puts it into his mouth some dribbles on his chin. The soup he dribbles on his chin is white.
    • Quotes

      Tang Lung: Move number 4: "Little dragon seeks the path." Hi-yah!

      [Tang kicks, knocking a thug unconscious]

      Tang Lung: "Big dragon whips its tail!"

    • Alternate versions
      All above mentioned cuts to the original US release were restored to the new 2005 DVD release. Plus an additional scene of Lee being made fun of by the gang for saying "excuse me" to one of the crooks after bumping into him.
    • Connections
      Edited into Game of Death (1978)
    • Soundtracks
      As A Judgement
      (Colt's Theme)

      by Ennio Morricone

    User reviews162

    Featured review
    7/10

    Bruce Lee at his best

    Bruce Lee demonstrates why without ever being a tournament champion that he was one of the best martial artists of all times. His speed and technique easily out class the other real martial artisits this film presents. His fight with Chuck Norris in this film is legendary. Watching Chuck in his prime is intense, high speed and accuracy. What scares me is that Bruce is faster. And even though he is lacking size, its obvious that the little dragons power is intense. Yes the scenes in these movies may be choreographed, but it's hard to make duplicate the skills shown by these fighters with trick photography and ballet lessons.

    This is the first film Bruce took a major role in both on and off the set. He searched for quality martial artists for the fight scenes and was the one who reccomended Italy for this shoot.

    The film revolves around a restaurant in Italy run by Lee's uncle and his (assumably ) cousins. Local gangsters try to close the restaurant down and get a piece of the action. To avoid complications with the law, they try and man handle the resteraunt owner and workers and Lee comes to the rescue.
    • tshodan
    • Sep 10, 2000
    • Permalink

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    FAQ19

    • How long is The Way of the Dragon?Powered by Alexa
    • Why the ironic music when Tang Lung presents the wad of banknotes to the bank manager?
    • What are the differences between the old British VHS and the Uncensored Version? How about the US Version?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 1973 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • Hong Kong
    • Official site
      • Miramax [United States]
    • Languages
      • Mandarin
      • Cantonese
      • English
      • Italian
    • Also known as
      • El dragón
    • Filming locations
      • The Colosseum, Rome, Lazio, Italy
    • Production companies
      • Golden Harvest Films
      • Concord Productions
      • Golden Harvest Company
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $130,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 30 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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