The Legend Of Bruce Lee!
He was one of the most mesmerizing, iconic action stars of all time – and his road to stardom was not easy at all!
“Be Water!”
It’s one of the Action Star’s most insightful comments, and if you want to know why he said it and exactly what it means, there’s a terrific documentary that tells you!
On a recent flight, I came across a fascinating, candid look at the life of this Icon – and what it took to become an Asian Star in Hollywood!
He was one of the most incredible athletes to ever grace a movie screen – and now his daughter has spoken out about the disrespect being shown to her Dad!
More on that in a moment. First, check out the trailer for this incredible documentary:
His death stunned the world in 1973. Now, Bruce Lee is in the news again, as his portrayal in Quentin Tarantino’s 2019 film “Once Upon A Time In…Hollywood” is shocking to say the least!
Quentin has a scene in the film designed to show what an arrogant creep Lee was, and his daughter has come to her late father’s defense:
Shannon Lee has published an opinion piece on her father’s portrayal in the film….she says this:
“Why does Quentin Tarantino speak like he knew Bruce Lee and hated him? It seems weird given he never met Bruce Lee, right? Not to mention that Mr. Tarantino happily dressed the Bride in a knock-off of my father’s yellow jumpsuit and the Crazy 88s in Kato-style masks and outfits for Kill Bill, which many saw as a love letter to Bruce Lee. But love letters usually address the recipient by name, and from what I could observe at the time, Mr. Tarantino tried, interestingly, to avoid saying the name Bruce Lee as much as possible back then.
If only he’d take the name Bruce Lee off his lips now.”
I was always bothered by that scene in the film, and Lee’s daughter has finally spoken up about it as well. It’s a fascinating column and worth reading in its entirety, which you can do here:
Now, more on Bruce Lee. He only made 4 kung fu films before his tragic death – and was in the middle of filming “Game Of Death” when he died suddenly of a brain aneurysm. This film included an incredible fight against 7+foot tall NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar!
So why did Quentin Tarantino humiliate the legacy of Lee in his film? As the daughter points out, the Director used Lee’s iconic yellow fight suit in “Kill Bill” – but ignores the Icon?
I shared a look at Lee’s life and enduring legacy on this birthday – with lots of trivia and some cool footage as well – you can see it here:
Happy Birthday DJ Bruce Lee! Lee’s Amazing Nunchuck Ping Pong Match!
In Tarantino’s film, Lee is humiliated by Brad Pitt’s character – a stuntman on a film who gets fed up with Lee’s arrogant behavior on set. Of course, the “real” story of this humiliating encounter between stuntman and arrogant Actor supposedly involved a “pony-tailed action star” from the 90’s….
As an example, here’s a photo of a pony-tail clad action star from the 90’s, Steven Seagal…now, meet the REAL Stuntman who inspired Tarantino….check out the career of Gary Kent here:
Hollywood Legend Gary Kent’s “Shadows & Light!” This “Wednesday Bookmobile” Has The Wild Film Career Of This “Danger God”! His Charles Manson Encounter!
Of course, all of this only takes away from the more important point: Tarantino’s “Once Upon A Time In…Hollywood” is a love letter to the last innocent time in Tinseltown.
The Director filmed in many iconic locations, such as the oldest restaurant in Hollywood:
Musso & Frank just turned 102 years old, and is the only restaurant to have a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame!
Click here for more great stories about this iconic establishment – and a look at what I order every time I go – the best Martini in town!
Hollywood’s Legendary Musso & Frank Gets A Star On The Walk Of Fame! Iconic Restaurant’s 100th Birthday Celebration Is On!
I will always be a HUGE fan of Lee’s, and the documentary “Be Water” is a candid, insightful look at his life and legacy – but more importantly, really dives into the barriers he faced as an Asian Actor in the 60’s in Hollywood, and how he needed to escape to Hong Kong to become a star…
If you enjoy these posts, why not subscribe and never miss out? It’s easy, and there are NO ads of any kind, just stuff I like…click on the main page and “follow” me on the upper right…
Let me know if you watch this terrific film!
Categories: 70's Cinema, Action Films, Art, Books / Media, Cult Movies, documentary films, Extreme Asian Cinema, Great Films, Hollywood, Memoirs, Movies, Movies About Movies, Pop Culture, Talent/Celebrities
johnrieber 
I was still in Hong Kong when Bruce Lee died. He’s from a well-to-do family but he had a sense of justice. That was one of the reasons he learned Kung Fu to deal with the gangs. There were rumors around his death. The research was ongoing and I think it kind of concluded that it was not a murder. I’m not a Kung Fu fan but I respected Lee.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The documentary really gets into his family’s history as well…the rumors I heard involved him and the woman whose apartment he died in, bu the documentary takes great pains to point out it was a meeting with others there as well and he simply went to lie down in her room because of a migraine….who knows?
LikeLike
That was what I read.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great post John! And there’s the Seattle connection too. You’ll find tributes to him in Chinatown (now, International District) including where he would work out and his favorite meal at Tai Tung, Seattle’s oldest Chinese restaurant
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, the documentary dives fully into his life in Seattle as well…and shows his funeral and burial there too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi John, I do know Bruce Lee although I never watched any of his movies. This is a very interesting post about this film that featured him unfavourably.
LikeLiked by 1 person
thank you for reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Superb post John.
LikeLike
I still haven’t seen that Tarantino film, and it does sound as if he was needlessly unkind to a man who was a screen legend. I was never a fan of martial arts/kung fu films, but Bruce was undeniably the leading light of that genre.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pete, I think the daughter finally spoke out after Tarantino released a “novelization” of the film that is even more disrespectful…and I loved the film but hated how he poached real stories without credit…and everyone knows it was Seagal who was knocked out by a stuntman after mouthing off….the Lee documentary doesn’t shy away from his reputation at times, but considering Quentin stole the yellow jumpsuit from Lee for “Kill Bill”, why then trash him?
LikeLiked by 1 person
He was a classic in this own right! I’d love to see this doc
LikeLike