La résurrection du dragon

The movie pulls on lots of great American/European/Asian characters and manages to mash them together in a joyfully ridiculous plot that is stitched together with classic kung-fu fight scenes.

Along the way the movie manages to grab the classic characters' moves in a very tongue in cheek way. It feels a lot like a tip of the hat to movies of the era. The movie has lots of other subtle reminders of the way martial arts movies were made at the time with studio filmed scenes/fight scenes giving way to the final showdowns with each character filmed outside (in what looks like an old quarry).

There's probably a lot more characters in here that I missed but as well as 'Bruce Lee' these were some of who I recognised:

• Kane (from kung-fu series Bruce had the original idea of)
• Kato (Green Hornet's sidekick Bruce Lee played this character in Batman and Green Hornet)
• Zatoichi
• Popeye
• James Bond
• The Man with No Name (from Spaghetti Western)
• Emmanuel (from the sex movie franchise of the 70s)
• One armed swordsman (from the Shaw Bros movie)
• Dracula
• Zombies (Dracula's henchmen)
• The Exorcist (from the movie The Exorcist)
• The Godfather

There are quite a few more that martial arts fans of 60s/70s movies will recognise.

Anyone a little more aware of fight choreography might recognise a few moves routines also.

The story line is fun and the dubbing adds to the craziness.

"Bruce Lee" goes to hell, he doesn't look like Bruce Lee because people look different after they die (or so they claim in this film). Along his journey Bruce Lee has a major erection, befriends Popeye, and fights "Clint Eastwood", James Bond, Zatoichi,Emmanuel, a mummy, and others. I'm not making this up. Just when you think the movie can't get any better we reach the life affirming Wizard Of OZ meets The Red Balloon climax.

This is not just another attempt to cash in on the name of Bruce Lee, this is THE attempt to cash in on the name of Bruce Lee. Much more far-out than it sounds in my description and VASTLY superior to the majority of The Game Of Death.

This movie was purchased by a friend of mine and myself as a 4-movie set. Long story short, we only got two. But one of them was this. The money was well spent.

If you see a 2 DVD set entitled 'Return of the Dragon Pack,' I highly recommend it for bad movie buffs and/or kung fu movie buffs with a light-hearted nature.

The kung fu is good, just highly over planned and wrapped around hilariously stupid 'special moves.' To see Bruce Liang punch a guy in the balls after shouting 'Fist of Fury' is worth millions.

Some of the plot decisions- well, all of them, are a bit strange. James Bond isn't that great. Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman is far more capable against 'Bruce Lee.' To put it simply, if you throw all your logic out the window- i.e. Dracula walking around in the sun, you'll have a great time. And if you want to convince your friends, it has pointless and random female nudity too.

I agree with the other reviews on here and wasn't going to write one, but thought there was something I could add. I'm not one of the "so bad it's good" crowd. 90% of the time when I've seen something billed that way I've come away saying, "No, that was just bad". "Petey Wheatstraw" comes to mind.

But this one works. It's more absurdist than parody, though some bits are just inscrutable (why does he dress as Cato whenever he fights Dracula???) It appears that it's only bad when it wants to appear bad. It definitely is a "B-movie", but it's a bit to well thought out to actually be one. Not that that means the screenplay is logical. It isn't. But the moving bits fit together just a bit too well to actually be an inferior effort. If you're in the mood for a "so bad it's good" and one of the crowd doesn't swing that way, but likes martial arts films, you could safely give this one a go.

The fighting is largely karate, with obvious bits of Gung Fu added to make it look kind of like Gung Fu. Is that deliberate? Low budget? Who knows. The karate ain't bad. Bits of Muay Thai and lots of other things. Bruce imitates so many of Lee's mannerisms that it doesn't much matter, but for those that want a bit of serious martial arts, some of the karate choreography isn't bad. Again, revealing that it's not so "B" as it wishes to appear.

So, my verdict is "crazy like a fox". Which isn't to underestimate how crazy it is. Popeye. (Cum theme music and real life versions of his classic animation sequences) Yeah, dudes, you betray that you're thinking more than an Ed Wood would. (And that pun is totally in keeping with this film).

A movie with fake Bruce Lee, fake Popeye, fake Dr. Who, fake James Bond, fake Clint Eastwood, fake The Exorcist, and fake The Godfarher what could go wrong? Nothing, that's what! A ten out of ten just for the moment when Dracula shows up. Need I say more.