THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN

Year: 1977
AKA: Deadly Hands of Kung Fu
Starring: Bruce Liang, Shin Il Lung, Alexander Grand, Tang Ching, Cheung Lik, Hon Gwok Choi, Eric Tsang, Lau Yat Fan, Lau Wai Yue, Fong Yau, Lily Foo Lai and Jenny
Directed by: Law Kei



"This film is dedicated to millions who love Bruce Lee"


Any time a film opens with a dedication featuring improper grammar, you know you are in for a good time. Let me start off by simply stating everything you have heard about this movie is true! Bruce Lee goes to hell? Yup! Bruce fights James Bond and Dracula? Yup! Bruce befriends low rent versions of the One Armed Swordsman and Popeye? You betcha! All that and more can be found in what can only be described as one of the wackiest kung fu movies of all time.

The plot is pretty simple: Bruce Lee arrives in Hell and immediately gets on the bad side of the King of Hell. Seems all the women in Hell know about Bruce's legendary prowess in bed and want to play with his nunchaku. This irritates the King, whose wife even digs Bruce, so he sends his henchmen to get Bruce. Did I mention that the King's group of ragtag thugs includes James Bond, Dracula, Zatoichi, the Man with No Name, The Godfather, The Exorcist and Emanuelle? If that weren't enough, Bruce Lee receives help in the form of the One Armed Swordsman, Caine from KUNG FU and Popeye! Yes, Popeye complete with his corncob pipe, can of spinach and theme song. Copyrights be damned! It is like LXG budgeted on the return value of a soda pop can (and more entertaining to boot). Of course, even in Hell Bruce is Bruce so he defeats everyone and everything thrown at him with a variety of styles creatively titled Fist of Fury, The Big Boss, Game of Death, Way of the Dragon, Enter the Dragon and Bruce's Third Leg. What? Well, to use the old adage, you have to see it to believe it.

More than just your average loony kung fu movie, THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN is something special. It is as if Fellini made a kung fu film. But don't get delusions of grandeur here. Everything about this film is cheap. Hell looks a lot like a cheaply dressed studio set. When earthquakes happen, the camera rocks back and forth while $5 a day grips drop Styrofoam rocks from the rafters. Characters will walk from the set to the caverns of Hell (a rocky hillside) and the director wants us to think they are somehow connected. Uh huh. The casting of Bruce Liang as Bruce Lee is quite inspired. While he looks nothing like the real Bruce Lee, Liang is an exceptional martial artist and gets the mimicry down like the best of them. Unfortunately, he spends a majority of the time fighting guys dressed as mummies and skeletons that look like they would be more at home bopping up and down in a Melies short than a kung fu extravaganza. Then again, nobody really looks apt for any of the parts they play. HK stalwart Alexander Grand (imagine Burt Reynolds and Richard Dreyfuss' lovechild) is James Bond and the only thing he has in common with the suave Bond is that he is white. Dracula is a Chinese dude in greasepaint who attacks in broad daylight. The Godfather and The Exorcist wouldn't even hold up in court as rip offs except for the fact they are constantly called by their monikers. But all this is what gives THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN its charm. It is refreshing to know that an independent Hong Kong studio would use all these characters, effectively thumbing their nose a la Bruce at the law. That couldn't even come close to happening in today's corporate ruled movie industry *cough, cough AVENGING FIST cough, cough*.

Review by William W.

CHINATOWN CONNECTION (movie review)

Year: 1988
Starring: Bruce Ly, Lee Majors II, William Ghent, Fitz Houston, Art Comacho, Brinke Stevens
Directed by: Jean-Paul Ouellette
Running time: 96 minutes

Lee Majors II is Warren Houston a LA cop forced to partner with John Lee Chan played by Bruce Ly after Chan's partner is shot in the line of duty.  Houston is one of those classic lone wolf cops who doesn't need a partner, especially one like Chan who doesn't like to use his gun.  Chan trains the "kung fu cops", a group of policemen/woman who are sent to him because they lack discipline and control.  Together Chan and Houston team up to find who is putting poisoned cocaine on the streets of LA.

I was in the the middle of this when my friend walked in and started watching it with me.  He came in during a scene in which Houston (Lee Majors II) is attacked in his apartment by a killer dressed all in black wielding a pair of swords.  Houston is crawling around on the carpet trying to load his pistol as his attacker stands over him swing his swords around hitting crap off his desk and table.  He is basically right in front of him and the guy is swinging side to side and not down.  My friend says, "That is a terrible ninja." to which I replied, "Well, this is a terrible movie, so what do you expect!"

I can forgive a movie if the story is bad, the acting sucks, etc as long as the action is entertaining.  In CHINATOWN CONNECTION the action is just boring, the gun fights are a snore and the fight scenes are just sloppy.  Bruce Ly aka Henry Yu Yung also is the martial art choreographer on the movie.  Henry Yu Yung is a Chinese actor who has had parts in many Hong Kong movies including classics like CHINATOWN KID, THE 36th CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN and THE AVENGING EAGLE.  In CHINATOWN CONNECTION he is dubbed and it is almost as awful as his hair cut.   

So they rename Henry Yu Yung as Bruce Ly so people will associate him with Bruce Lee, but the exploitation doesn't stop there because they've also got Lee Majors II.   Turns out Lee Majors II isn't a rip off of Lee Majors, but Lee Majors actual son.  But wouldn't that make him Lee Majors Jr?  I guess Lee Majors was going for something a little more classy like King Henry VIII by using roman numerals.  I will keep that in mind if I have kids.

Anyway, unless this is on TV and it's free then don't go out of your way to watch it or buy it.  Unfortunately, I already bought it so I could write this review so I'm screwed.  Don't make the same mistake I did.  I want my money back.  I mean you it's pretty sad when in the movie credits the producers thank Royal Crown Cola.  Even in third world countries they can get Coca-Cola!

SOUL BROTHERS OF KUNG FU (movie review)

SOUL BROTHERS OF KUNG FU (1977)
aka The Tiger Strikes Again, Kung Fu Avengers, The Last Strike
Starring: Bruce Li(credited as Ho Chung Tao), Lo Meng, Carl R. Scott, Ku Feng, Kong Do, Lee Hoi San
Directed by: Hwa I Hung
Run Time: 91 minutes

Wong Wei Lung(Li), his girlfriend, and Shaosan(Meng) illegally immigrate to Hong Kong via a raft and end up working crummy small time jobs.  On day working at the port they save Tommy(Scott) from being beaten up by some goons who work for crime boss, Chien, which then gets Wei Lung and Shaosan get fired from their jobs.  Shaosan is tired of being poor and is always gambling, while Wei Lung becomes a competitive fighter and wins the championship.  Chien won't have anymore interference from wei Lung and sends his three goons to work him over which ends up with Wei Lung's girlfriend getting killed and Wei Lung put in the hospital.  The doctor tells Wei Lung that he won't be able fight anymore, but he is not having any of that and goes to his friend's country home to train.  In the meantime Shaosan meets girl who actually works for Chien and she turns Shaosan against Wei Lung.  Fully recovered Wei Lung sets out to take out the fighters who killed his girl, his ex-best friend and big boss Chien.

I had been putting off watching this one for a while, but was pleasantly surprised because I really enjoyed.  In fact I say this is now one of my favorite Bruce Li movies.  The story wasn't anything ground breaking, but it moves along a good pace with lots of good fights.  The fighting is fast and brutal, but unfortunately marred by some heavy editing.  I thought I bought the "uncut" version, but I was suckered, you can read my DVD review here.  Bruce Li is pretty good here too with some nice hand and feet work and some cool nunchuk scenes.  He totally destroys a watermelon!  There is only a little bit of comedy, but not the usually goofball stuff we are used to with some of the flicks.  The movie is mostly played serious with all Bruce Li's friends not even surviving to the end credits.

They even pay "tribute" to Bruce Lee a few times.  Wei Lung and Shaosan's apartment has Bruce Lee posters all over the walls and while Wei Lungs read a Bruce Lee book, I mean magazine, his girlfriend points out, "He went too high, too quickly and that's why he died so early in life."  Luckily, we won't have to worry about that happening to Bruce Li.  Then later on in the movie when Wei Lung wins the championship a reporter calls him the "second Bruce Lee", but then he says that Bruce Lee "is the Chinese I most admire".

Although, the movie is called SOUL BROTHERS OF KUNG FU there is only one "brother" in the movie and that would be a very young looking Carl Scott.  But I guess they were brothers in spirit right?  What little comedy there is usually stems from Scott's antics and his t-shirts.  In fact there are lots of funny t-shirts on display here, my hats off to the wardrobe department.  Carl Scott mostly gets beaten up and thrown around and in the end strung up.  The only black guy in the movie and you hang him?  Not very PC.  Scott does has a very nice looking sparring session with Bruce Li on a rooftop, one of the best fights of the entire movie.

An intentionally funny scene happens after Lo Meng meets a girl in a club and outside they are jumped by some thugs.  Lo Meng beats them up all and one guy ends up with his pants split up the ass.  I didn't even notice it at the time, but when I was doing some screen captures I saw and it's pretty funny.  Keep your eyes peeled if you watch this, it is classic!

A good movie, entertaining, lots of wacky 70's t-shirts to laugh at and you don't fall asleep between fight scenes.  This one has got it all!  I also counted five ball shots and it should've been more, but my "uncut" version had them cut out.  What the hell?! Don't cut out my ball shots!