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Game Of Death [1979]


RRP: £24.99
Our Price: £49.51 (subject to change)

Shameless cash in on Bruce's name.
Review date: 2008-05-27 Rating: 6 out of 10

As far as DVD releases go, this is rather good. Bruce Lee fans should purchase this for the special features and the chance to see all the footage that he filmed for his unfinished movie. The actual full length film contained in this package, and any other Game Of Death release, is an insult to Bruce's memory and to the intelligence of it's viewers. It's important to note that Bruce's original vision for Game Of Death was nothing like what we have here. They seem to have taken the footage he filmed and plonked it onto the end of an entirely different film. They could have at least stuck to Bruce's original plot idea. Instead they've simply made a generic film, added footage of Bruce at the end and called it Game Of Death as a cash in attempt knowing that people would flock to see it hoping to see thier idol's lost film. The Bruce Lee look-a-like who plays the lead looks nothing like Bruce, has bad acting and the fighting ability of a wooden dummy. He also wears huge clown shades throughout the movie to hide his un Bruce like face. In fact so unlike Bruce is he that in one scene when the actor turns to face the camera, they have clumsily superimposed Bruce's face over the actor's. This is perhaps one of the all time greatest unintentional laugh out loud scenes in movie history. It's up there with the storm trooper banging his head.

So don't buy this for the film itself but for the extras, which are great. If you're looking for the definitive Bruce Lee movie, look no further than Enter The Dragon. As Bruce only made four movies in his life (Big Boss, Fist Of Fury, Enter The Dragon, Way Of The Dragon) there's no reason not to own all of them. This isn't really a Bruce Lee film but some special features with a film tacked on.

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Reviews


Quick Reviews!
Review date: 2007-10-29 Rating: 10 out of 10

POSSIBLE SPOILERS!!

Structurally and historically a mess, Lee's final film had the potential to be the greatest ever martial arts movie. Unfortunately, Lee died well before filming was completed, and his vision was never finished. However, the producers managed to finish the film by taking what had already been filmed, mostly fight scenes, and make a story round it, one based roughly on the many pages of scripts and ideas that Lee had left behind. As Lee's original story was so complex though, and probably only he could have made it the way it should have been, the finished product is a mere shadow of the what was in Lee's head.

The story sees Lee's character, a famous martial artist and actor faking his own death so that he can uncover the corruption of those who had previously tried to kill him. Not even his girlfriend is aware that his death was a fake. As the film progresses, Lee stalks the bad guys, his girlfriend gets suspicious, and Lee reaches a pagoda where he must overcome the trials of each floor in order to reach the top, and fulfill his revenge. Lee's original script focused much more on the Pagoda scenes, with each floor showcasing a different martial arts style that Lee must overcome, using his own 'way of no way' style. With each floor completed, he would achieve a higher level of spiritual and fighting skill.

The fight scenes are easily some of the best ever filmed, skillfully thought out, and beautifully directed, and no-one since has been able to capture the technique, skill, or intensity of Lee. The other fight scenes are also good, including the motorcycle scene, and Shower room fight. If anyone has any of the Hong Kong Legends DVDs they feature many deleted scenes, the Game of Death one being particularly good- The glass house fight is a classic.

The actors brought in to finish shooting are unsure of themselves, which comes across on camera, but this is understandable considering they were finishing a film starring a man who had died years before. The music is excellent, the story messy, but the fights stand out. The overall tone of the film is dark and ominous, as Lee's character is almost killed mysteriously, then fakes his own death, and the ending is not conclusive. Footage of Lee's own funeral is used, adding to the tone. However, it is a vital piece of work for any fan of Lee and should be remembered for its ideas, if not for how it eventually turned out to be.

This 2 disc special edition contains many special features, and as with the other Lee films in this collection, they are all necessary for fans. There are deleted scenes and documentaries- but the real draw is the 40 minute cut of the film's fight scenes as Lee originally planned them. A tragic glimpse at what could have been.

A hack job, but still quite entertaining
Review date: 2007-07-13 Rating: 6 out of 10

Even 34 years after his death, Bruce Lee remains on of cinema's most enduring pioneers. Not only was the man incredibly cool, funny and clever but he was a tremendous athlete and a very profound individual. Because of his tragically short life and film career, it makes sense that anything at all related to Bruce Lee should be examined and even appreciated. That's where 'Game of Death' controversially comes in.

Most people will know that Bruce died before completing the film and only shot a sequence of fights taking place in a pagoda. In an effort to bring this footage to the big screen, a plot was written to accomodate the pagoda sequence. Five years after Bruce's death, new footage was shot using a number of techniques to fill in the gaps. The story centres of Billy Lo, a martial arts superstar who's talents are wanted by the 'syndicate'. When Lo repeatedly refuses, he is shot during filming... but survives to take his revenge. Adopting a number of disguises, with the help of his friends, Lo takes on the 'syndicate'.

You'll either be of the opinion that this film was a shameless cash-in on a dead icon's talents or a genuine effort to bring lost Lee footage to the fans. Either way, there's no hiding the fact that 'Game of Death' is a hack job.

Because of Lee's absence for 75% of the film, a couple of stand-in's are used as well as clips of Bruce's earlier films. The techniques used to maintain the illusion range from plain awful (superimposed heads) to quite good (fake beards and sunglasses). Bearing in mind that Lee's earlier film 'Fist of Fury' including hokey disguises, I don't have a problem with that part. However, I think all will agree that using Bruce's real funeral footage to double as Billy's fake funeral was tasteless.

In order to fill out the running time, the supporting cast have a lot more to do than in Bruce's earlier films. Also, there is more in the way of action. In fact, it's the most action-packed Bruce Lee film which doesn't include Bruce Lee! While the doubles are not as fast or skilled as Lee, they still provide some good punch-ups. This is where 'Game of Death' becomes watchable, the film moves at a decent pace and contains some fun fight sequences... before we get to the main event, the real Bruce Lee 'Game of Death' footage. The fight between Lee and Abdul Jabbar is one of the most bizarre but entertaining fight sequences of his film career, while the nunchuka duel is unique. Thankfully, this sequence appears at the end, ensuring that the film ends more on a positive note.

If you're in the mood, or doing a Bruce Lee marathon, then 'Game of Death' is certainly watchable. Bolstered by John Barry's excellent score, the film isn't a complete waste of time and if you're willing to suspend disbelief then you might be OK. It's just frustrating to think how things would have been with the Dragon still alive.

The second best, if not BEST Bruce Lee film...cracking stuff!
Review date: 2007-04-15 Rating: 10 out of 10

Now I know at least 80% of the film is not Bruce Lee, but rather Bruce Li pretending to be Bruce Lee (plus some rather cleverly edited shots from earlier Bruce Lee movies to make it seem as though it's Bruce Lee), the last 20 minutes (20%)IS Bruce Lee! The 40 minute ending fight sequence has been dissapointingly cut down to 20 minutes to make it fit in with the rest of the movie, but you can watch the full 40 minute version, (which is much better and more satisfying, and deserves a watch) on the second 'special featues' disk.

You'd have probably been better off without me telling you all that, I just thought I'd better let you know, in case of any confusion whilst watching the film. But overall, it is an absolute CRACKER, and a must for any martial arts, or Bruce Lee fan. A fine addition to any DVD Collection!

The extras are better than the film!
Review date: 2007-02-28 Rating: 10 out of 10

OK like many people have said this is one of the worst Bruce Lee rip off films ever produced, the trouble is Bruce Lee died before it was finished, so what the good old Hollywood boys did is get a stand in actor and use odd bits of film footage that they had. The end result a very average and I am being generous when I say average film.

So why have I rated it so highly? the recent DVD release's have included a second disk with the uncut version that Bruce himself was working on, about 45 minutes of Bruce lee heaven, completely different in plot to what the film company had released, you get to see Bruce Lee and two other actors that you will recognise from other Bruce lee flicks trying to climb to the top of the pagoda. This includes Bruce lee fighting one of his most famous students Dan Inosanto in a double nunchaku battle! I feel that if Bruce Lee had not died this might of been his best film.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Colleen Camp
Bruce Lee
Dean Jagger
Gig Young
Tai Chung Kim

Creators:
Bruce Lee (Primary Contributor)
Bruce Lee (Producer)
Bruce Lee (Writer)
Gig Young (Primary Contributor)
Andre Morgan (Producer)
Raymond Chow (Producer)
Jan Spears (Writer)

Director(s):

Recording label: Contender Entertainment Group
Manufacturer: Contender Entertainment Group
EAN: 5032438505135
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 2
Format: Anamorphic, Box set, PAL,
Release date: 2001-10-01
Number of discs: 2
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Audience rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 96 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1979-06-08
Language: Cantonese Chinese (Original Language)

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