Review of Enter the Dragon (1973) by Dan B — 12 Jun 2009
What's not to love about this film? Bruce Lee being at his physical peak, Jim Kelly laying the smack down on a couple of corrupt cops, John Saxon obviously having no martial arts talent (lol), a few memorable lines, a wacky villain and tons of martial arts action. My only regret is the fate of Kelly's character. Black Belt Jones never should have went out like that.
For the naysayers, stop focusing on the cheesiness "or you'll miss all that heavenly glory" that we call America's first kung fu film. This movie opened the door for a new movie genre to be seen in the US. As a kid growing up in the '70s around NYC, every weekend channel 5 would show the latest dubbed kung fu flicks. It inspired a generation of boys to study martial arts and aspire to be like Bruce - long before anyone ever thought to "be like Mike".
What makes Bruce so compelling is that he lived and breathed constant training and improvement. He didn't hire a trainer to get in amazing shape for a role like today's action stars; he was constantly finding new ways of training to increase his physical prowess. He was the real deal.
This review of Enter the Dragon (1973) was written by Dan B on 12 Jun 2009.
Enter the Dragon has generally received very positive reviews.
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