Enter the Dragon

The last film completed by Bruce Lee before his untimely death, Enter the Dragon was his entr'8ee into Hollywood. The American-Hong Kong coproduction, shot in Asia by American director Robert Clouse, stars Lee as a British agent sent to infiltrate the criminal empire of bloodthirsty Asian crime lord Han (Shih Kien) through his annual international martial arts tournament. Lee spends his days taking on tournament combatants and nights breaking into the heavily guarded underground fortress, kicking the living tar out of anyone who stands in his way. The mix of kung fu fighting (choreographed by Lee himself) and James Bond intrigue (the plot has more than a passing resemblance to Dr. No ) is pulpy by any standard, but the generous budget and talented cast of world-class martial artists puts this film in a category well above Lee's primitive Hong Kong productions. Unfortunately he's off the screen for large chunks of time as American maverick competitors (and champion martial artists) John Saxon and Jim Kelly take center stage, but once the fighting starts Lee takes over. The tournament setting provides an ample display of martial arts mastery of many styles and climaxes with a huge free-for-all, but the highlight is Lee's brutal one-on-one with the claw-fisted Han in the dynamic hall-of-mirrors battle. Lee narrows his eyes and tenses into a wiry force of sinew, speed, and ruthless determination. --Sean Axmaker

uuid: 390B4212-7832-4758-95AE-164E61EB1385
upc: 0085391592129
title: Enter the Dragon
theatricalDate: 19-08-1973
purchase date: 16-07-2006
publisher: Warner Home Video
published: 01-07-1998
price: $12.98
net Rating: 4.5
MPAA Rating: R
minutes: 102
last lookup time: 174732839.013117
genre: Action & Adventure Heroes
fullTitle: Enter the Dragon
features: Anamorphic Closed-captioned Color Widescreen NTSC 2.35:1
director: Robert Clouse
currentValue: $4.25
created: 174732837.910501
country: us
aspect: DVD
asin: 6304981635