Bruce Lee, le géant du kung-fu

A classic slice of Bruceploitation from Hong Kong, featuring Bruce Li who I always thought was the most believable and talented of the Bruce Lee imitators; he was certainly a better fighter than his rival Bruce Le. The plot is quite an odd one to begin with, with Li's character noted for his resemblance to the deceased Bruce Lee, at which point a movie producer decides to make him a star in his own right. However, he soon discovers that fame comes at a price...

It's almost like a non-fiction story, but you needn't worry too much as DYNAMO is very much a typical kung fu film in that the plot is very slim and merely used as an excuse for endless fight scenes, this time with a contemporary setting. Li spends the running time battling various goons and taking time to romance a few, typically naked, beautiful women. He even dons Bruce's yellow jump suit from GAME OF DEATH at one point.

The notable thing about DYNAMO isn't the story or even the rather uninteresting cast, but instead the action, which is choreographed by the inimitable Yuen Woo-ping. In fact the whole 'Yuen clan' is involved here and eagle-eyed viewers will seen the likes of Brandy Yuen and Yuen Cheung-Yan keep appearing as various opponents. Their presence and the solid choreography gives the action an edge over rival fare and although DYNAMO is never a film that breaks the mould, it's nonetheless a well-paced and fitfully exciting movie.

One for avid Brucesploitation aficionados, and neophytes alike, and I think it is entirely fair to suggest that the snappy moniker is ably earned!! An honourable, fleet-fisted cabbie (Bruce Li) is groomed to stardom by an increasingly unscrupulous ad agency until they push him too far! Charismatic, preternaturally agile Kung Fu practitioner, Bruce Li is on dynamite form, and many of his whirlwind fight scenes are crisply choreographed with no lack of satisfyingly crunchy Foley! Right on!!!! The talky gubbinz of warring ad agencies provides an unwelcome distraction from Li's exciting, evermore devastating combat skills. I must openly admit to getting an additional frisson of 'Fu-freak-out pleasure whenever lighting swift, steel-sprung, head-knocking Dojo-destroying hero Li righteously don's the iconic yellow & black Game of Death tracksuit! Overall, Hwa I Hung's highly-charged Dynamo remains a pretty electrifying old school 'Fu extravaganza, the brusingly bellicose battles being frequently boosted by some killer funk riffs, and the strenuous training sequences are pretty dope. Bruce shows no fear in Korea, proves he's the No.1 man in Japan, delivers a dynamic display in the U. S. A., and never puts a foot wrong in Hong Kong!

Picked this up for $3.99 on a double-feature DVD including "Drunken Tai Chi. I knew this was a Bruce-ploitation film and I wanted to see the action scenes. I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of time and effort put into the movie. The plot was interesting enough but not unusual for this type of film. It is "loosely" based around Bruce Lee's death. Elements of sex, courage, competition and love are included. The film has several interesting fight scenes and I enjoyed the ones between Bruce Li and his trainer the most. Also, the film was shot in several locations including New York and Chicago. Sound and picture quality for this film were good. I also liked the voice actors used in translating this film to English from its native Asian language. Definitely worth viewing!!

Yes, that's right. This little movie was co-ordinated by none other than Yuen Woo Ping and his band of merry stunt men, his brothers to be exact! It's fun to watch movies by the Yuen Clan, to try and spot all the brothers popping up in different places, sometimes after being stabbed, maimed or killed in a very horrific way! Broken neck? Nay problem, just put a different wig on and fight all over again! Dynamo was a film I saw in 80's then again in the 90's on the Black Belt DVD label then again last night... No Oscars for the main director. Boring pointless story for an excuse to make an excuse for our very convincing, always directed well by the Yuen clan, Bruce Li. Bruce Li made about four films with the Yuens and they're all his best. This film is definitely worth it. Just remember to forget that this is a Bruce-ploitation movie and enjoy the action!! Look out for the funky white game of death suit & the always vomit inducing naked gwai lo (white woman) sex scene!