Die Todesfaust des Cheng Li

The first of the four Bruce Lee starring movies[ well, five, if you count Game Of Death]is technically the weakest. However, it's easy to see how it caused such a stir. Unlike most martial arts movies of the time, the film was set in the present day and attempted things like characterisation and even realism. These touches sometimes seem crude and even laughable now [for instance, check out the scene when the other workers of the factory are waiting for Lee to return, with it's exaggurated 'passing the time' actions]but when the film came out, it was a major step forward.

Even more daringly, the film has less fighting, with the fights being structured around the plot rather than the other way round, and bravest of all, the star of the film does not go into action into half way through. Instead, it cleverly builds suspense by having Lee as a guy who has sworn not to fight, and when he eventually cuts loose the result is exhilarating. However, it's obvious that none of Lee's opponents are a match for him and only the sequence when he battles a group of heavies in and around an ice factory really stands out. The clumsiness of much of the action [Lee was only allowed to choreograph the ice factory scene]is almost redeemed by the huge amount of gore and brutality.

Despite it's shoddy aspects, the film does have an odd power,especially towards the end. Lee's character is a very flawed hero who for a while badly strays from goodness and there is a sense that killing all the bad guys will not bring him redemption. In all three of Lee's Hong Kong films, violence never really solves things, it just makes things worse. Maybe that is why Lee's dated, sometimes awkward films are still watched again and again while many other films of the same time and genre have faded into obscurity. Well, that and Lee.

i liked this film.it's very entertaining.the story is engaging enough to keep you interested.the fight scenes are very good.especially the final fight between Bruce Lee's character and The Big Boss.Lee had a lot of charisma and screen presence and it shows here on his first big feature film role.what really impressed about him though while watching the film was his amazing footwork in the fight scenes.he was obviously a very skilled martial artist.the version i viewed was the U.S. 99 minute version.it would be interesting to see the uncut version,if it still exists anywhere.but for now,this version will have to do.for me,Tang shan da xiong is a 7/10

Saw this in a theatre in 1971 and just revisited it 45 years later.

Conclusion:

As a film, it suffers badly from the massive improvements in choreography, skill, and staging that MA films have enjoyed in the interim. What seemed sort of "OK" in a dark theatre in 1971 becomes, after several decades, almost a slow dance of awkward fighting moves, with off-sync sound effects and blows that never seem to connect with anything.

In this instance it is not fair to judge the old by the new ... so, no rating.

And then there is the topic of Mr. Lee.

History tells us that Bruce Lee exploded into Asian cinema on this film and anyone can see why. IT IS AS IF HE IS OPERATING AT A FAST CAMERA SPEED AND THE REST OF THE CAST AT A SLOW CAMERA FEED. Of course, the speed of the camera is the same throughout, it is the speed of the actors that differed.

The cast were the usual bunch that made many dozens of these films in a year. They looked slow and awkward because they actually were slow and awkward.

Mr. Lee on the other hand lived (and ultimately died) for his craft. His whole life was MA and even today the debate continues as where he would have ranked against the best fighters of all time. At the top is my guess.

In essence, this is almost an audition tape for Mr. Lee and not much else. But it is a piece of history and deserves great respect.

After years of trying to get into Hollywood, Bruce Lee returned to Hong Kong and began his efforts with this low-budget martial-arts thriller. The result - an Asian box-office smash which made Lee an overnight sensation in the East. Whilst its not a great film or Lee's best work, it is an definite film classic that really opened the door for the martial-arts genre, as well as kicking off Lee's career. The story sees Lee coming to work in Banghok with his cousins in an ice factory, where he soon discovers sinister operations taking place under the thumb of the title villain. Like Lee's other films, the action builds up through the film to impressively staged fight scenes, all topped by a dramatic, all-out climatic bout between Lee and the Big Boss. Breakthrough stuff but the best (and the West) was yet to come.

After trying to make a name in Hollywood with the TV series "Green Hornet" with mixed results, young actor and martial artist Bruce Lee traveled back to Hong Kong where his popularity as Kato was very high, there met Raymond Chow and received the chance to star a film about martial arts. "Tang Shan Da Xiong", or "The Big Boss" (known in the U.S. as "Fists of Fury"), was the final result and the movie that started Lee's career and his way to becoming a legend of celluloid.

"The Big Boss" is about a young Chinese man named Cheng Chao-an (Bruce Lee) who travels to Thailand looking for a job. Living with his distant cousins, he finds a job in the ice factory where his cousins work and soon he finds a family in them, developing a close friendship with Hsiu Chien (James Tien) and a big affection for Chow Mei (Maria Yi). Although he is a skilled fighter Cheng sworn an Oath of non-violence to his mother, promising that he would not be a get in fights. However, things get complicated when two of his cousins disappear and is discovered that the ice factory has a dark secret. Cheng will have to break his Oath in order to unveil the mystery behind the disappearance of his new family.

Directed by Wei Lo (who would also discover Jackie Chan), "The Big Boss" was a breath of fresh air to martial arts films as it showed a flawed hero in a modern setting. The story (by Wei Lo and Bruce Lee) is very well developed and filled with suspense and action, and in a bold move for an action film, the main character remains almost inactive for the first half as Cheng must avoid violence due to his oath. The film not only launched Lee's career to stratosphere, it influenced his own film-making's style and the way future martial arts movies were done.

Wei Lo's usually restrained style was also influenced by his young actor's abilities, "The Big Boss" can be seen as his transition to a more explosive way of film-making that would be completed in his next Lee's film ("Fist of Fury") and the subsequent Jackie Chan's films. The natural and raw look of the film added to the high dose of graphic violence (it is probably the goriest film in Lee's career) give the movie a harsh, gritty realism that adds to its charm.

As many have already said (and will continue saying without a doubt), Lee was a very charming actor whose presence filled the screen and owned it completely. That statement is proved here as we see him not as a killing machine, but as a common man who just wants to live peacefully, giving us many scenes of Cheng enjoying his new found family and struggling with his own vices. Lee's performance is very natural although one could say that he was basically playing himself. The rest of the cast ranges from average to OK, with James Tien, Quin Lee and Malalene being the best among them. However, it's fair to notice that the poor dubbing, typical of movies of the era makes a bit difficult to judge them fairly.

"The Big Boss" is considered among the weakest of Lee's films and not without a reason. Those accustomed to constant action scenes will feel it is slow due to the film's pacing and the way the story is built. The acting, as written above, is not very good and only Lee and Tien's performances are of constantly quality. And finally, Wei Lo's inclusion of some silly comedic effects feels terribly out of pace in an otherwise dark and gritty action film.

To summarize, "Tang Shan Da Xiong", or "The Big Boss", is a terrific film on its own right, and together with "Fist of Fury" ("The Chinese Connection") and "Enter the Dragon", a basic film to understand Lee's career and the development of martial arts films during the 70s. It may not be a classic as the films mentioned, but this was just the beginning of the legendary Bruce Lee. 7/10