HERO THE GREAT (the title was BRUCE LEE - HERO THE GREAT on the version I saw, more on that later) is a real obscurity. It's one of those cheapie martial arts movies made in Hong Kong by the infamous IFD Films and Art studio. No surprises there, but what is surprising is that it was made as recently as 2006 rather than the 1980s. I had no idea that IFD were still in existence but it turns out that HERO THE GREAT is one of their better works; no cut and paste nonsense here, just straightforward storytelling.
The tale is one of revenge and rivalry between two different families. I didn't follow it too closely but it involves a trio of villains attempting to assassinate by poisoning a wise old martial arts master. Unfortunately for them, the master has offspring who then swear vengeance. Basically you get three characters on one side, three on the other, and left them fight throughout the movie, with a few extra trappings and other characters lurking on the sidelines. It's simple stuff, simply told, but at least HERO THE GREAT has plenty of action. There's a 1990s-era wuxia influence in this film, with copious wire work used in the fight scenes. They're low budget but relatively effective and I've seen a lot worse. The outdoor scenery provides a fittingly scenic backdrop for the action and the back-and-forth nature of the plot holds your attention rather than boring you.
The biggest problem with the film is the atrocious dubbing of American accents. Still, kung fu fans are treated to the opportunity of seeing Carter Wong once more playing a Buddhist monk. He's an old man now but barely seems to have aged since BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA and still proves his mettle in a few fight scenes. Bruce Lee imitator Dragon Shek also plays in support, which may be why the title was BRUCE LEE - HERO THE GREAT. It's weird to see a middle-aged Bruce Lee imitator. Things build to an appropriately fiery fight climax which doesn't disappoint.
