I never heard of anyone rating this absolute classic so bad!!! Like one of the other commentators mentioned, you have to look at it from a stand point of 1973. For that time it was extremely progressive. Being black myself, I was surprised that they would even touch on the Cop’s vs Blackman Issue. Prior to this movie in 1973 I have never seen this before. The Scene with Williams picking many woman was just for a laugh and I never saw it otherwise. Bruce playing a monk was a good way to explain why he was such a good fighter. Him being a monk would also explain why he was not interest in woman. And Roper picking the main hostess was also well explained, since they “got it on” way earlier then the scene where he was asked “to pick one”. As I can remember, all the characters in the film only had one name…so it wasn’t just Lee! My point is, not everything has to be broken down in terms of race or negative intensions…somethings just made sense in the context of the Story. A lot of the movie’s of our current time are absolute crap, because movie maker’s concentrate too much on representing everybody in a positive light rather than letting the story take the lead. Thank god that we still have classic films like this one to look at... 

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

You make some good points, some of which I agree with (it was progressive to show Williams fend off the racist cops and I wasn't stating Lee just having only that as a name as problematic, as you say everyone seems to mainly have just surnames in this). I guess a lot of my criticism stems off of how it falters in comparison to Lee's other work (partic. Way of the Dragon) and so in the context of his output it suffers in my view and to precisely criticise it from that point in history not now in saying Lee's other work was capable of better in terms of representation. My views aren't particularly unique mind, there's been criticism written on this probably more scathing than mine as I actually still enjoy the film for what it's worth. Most people who do hate the film dismiss it as b-movie trash!

@eddieparker945

8 ай бұрын

He was the 80's or 90's! How do you expect a whippersnapper to understand an Era before his own without property educating himself? He must be Quentin Tarantino's son or something 👎

@reel_reflections

8 ай бұрын

@@eddieparker945 I don't understand the comparison.. wasn't Tarantino born in the 60s? Besides I was one of those who despised his depiction of Lee in Once upon a Time in Hollywood. I think it's pretty obvious if you watched my series on Lee I revere him.

Quite simply the best martial arts movie ever. And the best martial arts star

Not over rated its just unbeatable imo its just so cool 🎥👍

Yes it is. Director Clouse (Closeau more likely) had no clue how to shoot fight scenes. A lot of closeup and medium shots on upper body movements, but rarely shows the full physical action.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

I fully agree with you, it's incredibly frustrating, even if at times it's a practical solution to some of the actors' limitations.

Over-rated? As a long time Bruce Lee fan I'm admittedly biased, but, trying to put that aside I still don't think it is. It has very clearly stood the test of time. I'm listening as I tap this out on my phone and you just said you felt the film is overloaded with lead characters. Lol man I couldn't disagree more. I thought they handled the three leads really well. My one complaint is that Lee deserved top billing, solo. Saxon gave a great performance, but Lee is why most of the audience was there, and he put in so much work behind the scenes on that and all his films. He had earned that spotlight and even after he died they didn't quite give it to him. Not every film is for everyone, and that's cool. We disagree here(obviously😂), but I appreciate your opinion just the same.

@reel_reflections

10 ай бұрын

Thanks fir the comment. My problem is that there are for all intents and purposes three leads and for dubious reasons. There should have been one, Lee himself.

You make some very valid points. Look forward to your Game of Death video and hope that you cover The Final Game of Death Blu-ray including the nearly four hour documentary.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

I will include it @Cheekster777 yes. I'll discuss it separately alongside Lee's 40 minute footage that was previously released too. But first the 1978 Game of Death 😆

Hell no. Its def not overrated

Enter the Dragon is a product of its time & has to be viewed as such, it's an almost perfect martial arts movie, minus the slightly poor pacing, the theatrical cut is definitely the way to go, which removes the opening monk scene & makes for a better watch overall.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

Thanks for the comment! And interesting channel you have too! Yeah for reasons I explained to me it isn't a great martial arts film and the director's cut definitely is preferable in my view. I understand I'm probably in the minority on this and it won't be the last time I'll be I'm sure.

@lamNoJedi

11 ай бұрын

The music in the theatrical is better .

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

@@lamNoJediyeah the music is definitely a highlight. It's distinct and enjoyable.

My favourite Bruce Lee movie. 😎 Thank you friend. 🙏🏻

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

Thank you for commenting as always. I can't say I share the same fondness for it I am afraid!

@cheekster777

11 ай бұрын

@@reel_reflections - It is by no means one of the best martial arts movies ever made but it’s is my favourite Bruce Lee movie. I’ve previously rated it 7/10 (2013) and 8/10 (2019)

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

@@cheekster777 I think I'd have rated it around a 7 previously too.

I've just seen 'Enter The Dragon' on the big screen tonight. I managed to invest in the Arrow Video Bruce Lee at Golden Harvest Blu-Ray set a fortnight ago after seeing your reviews and have purposely waited to see 'Enter The Dragon' after not seeing it in maybe 5 years so I could see the film this evening. The film is definitely my least favorite of the Bruce Lee movies that he made with Golden Harvest. It's really difficult to explain. I think I saw the film first way back in the late 90s when it was shown trimmed on BBC1. It certainly felt that there were a lot of control in terms of the tone and to the story, which felt quite soulless, if I can say that. The characters, despite having flashbacks and some texture, just lacked an emotional punch. Maybe it was because a Martial Arts film wasn't concerned much with how the characters feel. There certainly wasn't enough action for me, compared to what we got from Bruce's HK films. They felt much shorter here. The music by Lalo Schafrin is still really top notch, such a fun theme and really enjoyed the cues in the underground scenes. I appreciated the look of the film very much and I loved the comic book feel, especially in the cavern scenes and the shadow work from the nifty lighting by Gilbert Hubbs. When I revisited the film tonight, I agreed so much what you said. It felt weird seeing the film re-issued as a 15 when I saw it this evening. It did feel Bruce wasn't the main lead as advertised. Whilst I enjoyed John Saxon and Jim Kelly, it did feel we had to wait a long time for Bruce to showcase his talents and then when he did appear, they felt quite quick. The first half of the film took its' time but as soon as Lee went to the caverns a second time, it felt too rushed in getting the film to the finale. I always felt Bruce was a wonderful screen actor. Whilst he must have been thrilled to have been in this film, I felt he seemed somewhat reserved in his persona. Perhaps it was the character, but compared to the HK films, the fans will notice something was different in Lee's performance here. Maybe it was to cater to the western audience. Especially in the second half, Lee certainly felt pushed to one side in having his character having some personality. It was for dramatic emphasis but I wasn't really into the slow-mo shots when Bruce was fighting in the cave. And you're right, the photography was a little off with the fight scenes where it was hard to make out who was in frame when Bruce was fighting. Shih Kien was a great villain as Mr. Han, dubbed by Keye Luke. I totally forgotten how brutal and charismatic the character was. I always felt the scene where Mr. Han kills Williams and having the women totally drugged up and laughing in the background went on for ages. I completely agree with you that something felt very off with this film. The film felt very choppy in places, especially with the character of Mei Ling and also the demise of Bolo. I always felt Tania, played by Ahna Capri, should have survived the finale. I really didn't think they should have killed her off. Angela Mao Ying was brilliant as Lee's Sister, she was wonderful in her action scenes, all choreographed by Bruce. It felt more bittersweet watching this film for it's 50th Anniversary and that Bruce never got to see this at the Premiere. Yes, the version in the Cinema I saw was the theatrical cut but still had the additional music cues in certain scenes from the Special Edition. It's not controversial, I totally understand your reasons.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

Thank you for the thoughtful and engaging comment @Mikeshirleyforever! That's great you saw it on the big screen! You do make some really good points re. your criticism of the film, particularly with your own ambivalence and frustration towards it, which goes a long way in expressing how I feel about it in general too. Also glad you picked up the box-set, I'm sure you'll love it.

I think this is an excellent review. Unfortunately, Lee left us only a handful of films, and he died before he was able to commit his best work to film. I enjoy "Enter the Dragon" as a chance to see him in action, regardless of the overall quality of the film. We also get to see Angela Mao and Jackie Chan as a bonus.

@reel_reflections

6 ай бұрын

Thank you for the comment and kind words Masuda! I agree, any footage with him is a bonus! As tragic as his untimely demise still feels it is incredible to see how much he did accomplish in a short period of time.

I hated enter the dragon, just because of most the reasons you mentioned, UNTIL i gave it another chance and it came on telly in the noughties i believe, where it was uncensored and the nun chuk scene WOWED me. So then i accepted that the movie is a product of its time, with a shallow story, but some exceptional sequences, which may not have been filmed well, but exceptional either way.

You're absolutely right, its not. There's a scene Bruce Lee waa all serious in the front ahd the extras were just laughing in the background, Also thees a scene where he junps up into a tree to hide, but everyone can tell its just a reverse jump..... Alnost forgot, the extras in white uniforms, theyre wearing black belts, but they didn't even do the punches correctly. Plus if Han was such a deady and badass, why have all those white belts on his island ?

Well done! That's a review which is neutral and not biased. Many people in the western world, especially the so called "first world", USA, UK, France, Spain, Germany, Itay, Australia etc., are imo a bit too enthusiastic about the movie. I dont want to bring up some "race" stuff here, but i (i am German) realize many people from the so called 2nd or 3rd world, Africa, South-America and other countries dont like ETD too much, they prefer Bruce's other three movies which he did before. Today i say ETD is the most overrated Martial Arts movie ever! It gets hyped up by rich western people since it is a Hollywood production, and some pathological liars like the Americans Robert Clouse and Bob Wall (both RiP!) were in it. People are so blind and dumb that they dont realize ETD is a cheap copy of a James Bond movie, but the Bond character is basically split into three people, Lee, Williams and Roper. Lee is the best fighter, Roper is the ladies man who bangs the girl Tanja, and Williams is the guy with the funny lines. Bruce himself was afraid to the end the producers Fred Weintraub, Paul Heller and the Director Robert Clouse would cut the movie so together, that the Roper character is basically the main character, and his character Lee only his sidekick, like Roper is The Green Hornet and Lee is again like Kato, what Bruce experienced in "The Green Hornet" series. I mean the movie wasnt really a Bruce-Lee-Movie. And his character is only the guy who takes out the antagonist in the end, but he is not really the main character, Roper is on par with him. And this is no critic on John Saxon! He was brilliant, and i like he is burried very close to Bruce in Seattle. If the Lee character would have beaten Bolo and have a romance with Tanja, then it would have been a movie in which the Lee character is the leading character, but it isnt. I mean it was obvious this female agent Mei-ling=Meiling was interested in Lee, but even to her he just had a little smile and nothing else. It was like Lee was forbidden to have feelings for a woman. But that seems to me like a chinese thing. Bruce himself was the opposide, a ladies man and womanizer, but many traditional chinese have problems with that. And when you see the footage which was taken during the filming, Ahna Capri (the "Tanja" actress) was much more intrested in Bruce Lee then John Saxon ;). Only as "Martial Arts" movie ETD is still very good. But the problem is it wasnt a real MA movie, it was like of a Bond movie. And in totality, i say: Kiss of the Dragon >>>>>>>>> Enter the Dragon Because in KOTD, the real life best martial artist (Jet Li) was the protagonist, hero and main character in the movie, the cop Liu, Jian. He saved the (blond) girl Jessica (Bridget Fonda), and he took out the bad guy Jean-Pierre Richard (Tcheky Karyo) and his bodyguards (the two guys with the dyed blond hair). In ETD this would have been like Mr. Lee saves Tanja (Ahna Capri), takes out Han (Shek Kin), and defeats O'Hara (Bob Wall) and Bolo (Bolo Yeung). But Lee was only allowed to beat Han and O'Hara, not saving Tanja or beating Bolo as well.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

Thank you for the thoughtful and lengthy reply. It is interesting to think about how the film is perceived differently elsewhere and you make some good points. It's still an enjoyable romp for sure and I'm glad we have it. Interesting you bring up Kiss of the Dragon. I grew up on that Jet Li film too. I'll certainly have to revisit that for the channel at some point!

@chrisbach1533

11 ай бұрын

Sure :). Your reply was so quick. I edited it a bit. Please read this again, i added something about Kiss Of The Dragon and Enter The Dragon: Kiss of the Dragon >>>>>>>>> Enter the Dragon Because in KOTD, the real life best martial artist (Jet Li) was the protagonist, hero and main character in the movie, the cop Liu, Jian. He saved the (blond) girl Jessica (Bridget Fonda), and he took out the bad guy Jean-Pierre Richard (Tcheky Karyo) and his bodyguards (the two guys with the dyed blond hair). In ETD this would have been like Mr. Lee saves Tanja (Ahna Capri), takes out Han (Shek Kin), and defeats O'Hara (Bob Wall) and Bolo (Bolo Yeung). But Lee was only allowed to beat Han and O'Hara, not saving Tanja or beating Bolo as well.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

@@chrisbach1533 I see, you're actually comparing the faith each film has in their leads essentially. I guess the difference being almost 30 years of progress in screen representation helps. Ultimately Li followed Lee. So there's a ready made marketable template there historically speaking anyway. It would have been fascinating to see Lee, after EtD's success how much more he'd be able to exert his screen presence in subsequent Hollywood efforts.

@chrisbach1533

11 ай бұрын

Sure the 30 yrs make a huge difference. Many things changed. But since so many people say Jackie Chan is the sucessor of Lee, i say Li is. I could imagine Li as "Lee" in ETD, and i could imagie Lee as "Liu Jian" in KOTD. Oh yeah that would be great if you do a review on "Kiss of the Dragon" at some point. Its one of my favorite movies of all time. Its a mixture of Martial Arts, Action (gun shooting scenes), Drama, Thriller, Love Story (even held low key but its there), Family Story (sad story of Jessica and her daughter Isabel), different Music is in it (Hip Hop, Reggae, sad music, etc.), all in one package. And i like this dark atmosphere in the fall in Paris (according to IMDB, the movie was filmed September 2000 to January 2001).

Enter the Dragon draws parallels with James Bond's Doctor No. The three main characters are a deconstruction of James Bond , Lee the fighter , williams the everyman , roper the suave ladiesman. Han is a Dr No clone. At the time James Bond movies were popular so the film tried to include those elements to appeal to the western audience. Enter the dragon was actually a flop in asia because people grew up with that culture, were as in the west the exoticism of asia appealed to the west. Etd is still a touchstone film and gateway to many into martial arts movies and martial arts in general.

@reel_reflections

10 ай бұрын

The cultural feedback loop is interesting. You go from Bond to ETD back to Bond being influenced by it with Man with the Golden Gun. I think it is telling that ETD didn't do so well in Asia given the desire to see as much of Lee as possible in the wake of his death, perhaps it has something to do with the Western depiction of Asia in the film.

I agree with most of your points. I always found the film to be a bit pretentious. I also agree that John Saxon seems to be a shadow James Bond character. The fights seem wasted, they should have allowed Bruce Lee to direct those screens or Sammo Hung to step in.

you were right on with all but this film. i think you need to watch this again. this was made to introduce Lee back to the American audience. Saxon was a fairly well known name and gave him 2nd bill and I am sure he had to have a decent part Bolo.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

It's pretty well documented Bruce fought with the director Clouse and crew to get his vision across on screen, sometimes successful sometimes not. The result is a deeply compromised picture in my view.

Bruce Lee was in a lot more than just 4 movies !! what about the Orphan 1959 , Marlowe 1969 and many other HK films in his childhood. your over analysing a 1973 film in 2023 , a movie that has shaped peoples lives and influenced generation after generation this film broke so much new ground ..and for its time and still now Bruce Lee shines in this film ! and its a classic for a reason long after we have left this mortal coil . I could type a book on why your wrong . Also Bolo Yueng was in a lot of movies before enter the dragon .

@reel_reflections

8 ай бұрын

Is a figure of such reverence (by your own standards) not worthy of 'over-analysis' as you call it? I like to hold those who I do revere up to much scrutiny. And Enter the Dragon as both a 'Bruce Lee film' and 'martial arts' film falls short of his best and most truthful depictions imo.

Love your channel… That said I think the monk scenes are weak… I get the philosophy etc… but it weakens Lees character , as explaining why’s … you’d expect a master like Lees character would have known all that as primary education as a monk… it’s a bit like explaining to Michelangelo when he’s going to sculpt to make sure his chisels are sharp…

@reel_reflections

10 ай бұрын

Thank you for the kind words @BRUQBEATS. Yeah I can see why it comes across as clunky or a bit functional but I still think it is better to have it in than not, it's plausible to have the elder know more than Lee as it were.

The film has a few exceptional sequences, but otherwise it's a low-budget exploitation picture typical of the period. It's viewed best as a showcase for the skills and stellar charisma of Bruce Lee. That being said, in terms of its status as a martial arts film, I don't think the choreography is all that ingenious compared to other less successful genre films of the early '70s. And yeah, to a certain extent the inclusion of other characters may have diffused the focus on its star, but I think the racial diversity had more to do with broadening the movie's appeal than a lack of confidence in Lee. To suggest that Lee is anything less than the lead just doesn't bear scrutiny. I do believe, however, that the racism in Hollywood at that point in time was either blind to, or simply unprepared and afraid to address, the obvious sex appeal of its Asian star. And it STILL is, for the most part.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

I agree the casting I think reflects both points it's lack of confidence in Lee to carry the picture and appeal to wider markets. Definitely agree on the last point also; the possibility of Lee engaging in any romantic aspects particularly with non-Asian women is seemingly out of the question. Compare with the scene with 'the Italian beauty' in Way of the Dragon for example (as problematic as that scene is).

I want that t shirt ! My favourite guitarist.

@reel_reflections

11 ай бұрын

Yeah mine also! It's actually a rather old t-shirt now. Got it a few years ago.

You have offended my family and you have offended the Shaolin temple. Those subplots were necessary to give Lee's character motivation other than catch the bad guy or he probably wouldn't have taken the assignment otherwise he was a monk after all and not a official secret agent. Also when he faces off against O'Hara there would have been no real tension in that scene other than Lee knowing he was a tough character from the film footage he was shown. Roper and Williams were both in a lot of trouble and the tournament was a opportunity to possibly escape their problems. If Han had not killed Williams Roper might have joined them as a distributor to make enough money to pay off his debts to the mob.

Брюс Ли смотрел смонтированный фильм ,, выход дракона,, , но без музыки. Он пришёл в полный восторг и кричал : ,, вот оно ! Это то , что я хотел !,, При этом он сотрясал воздух ударами рук. Для меня загадка , как он проводил оставшиеся дни жизни ? Почему не снимал новые сцены к фильму ,, игра смерти ,, ? Он же был трудоголик и не минуты не мог усидеть на месте. Есть ли фото последнего дня жизни Брюс Ли ? Говорят , что он сильно похудел перед смертью ? Покажите последние фото Брюс Ли , если они есть ?

Yeah, couldn't put it better myself really. Only "good" thing for me I suppose about it was it was a gateway film lol. As in, "Who's this guy!?" Dig away, aha. lol It's hard to explain but like say with his other 3 films. I feel if I changed just one thing it'd have a huge BAD knock on effect to something else in the film. Thus why would I change anything? I just wouldn't. They're all solid. This on the other hand is like.. where the fuck do I start lol Oh yeah and I fucking hate that fight.. er Saxon vs Yeung. SUCH a disappointment.. WHY!? Saxon can't even fucking fight. Not even believable lol. Always should have been Lee V Yeung. I mean you've seen the still of them together? RIght there. Enough said haha

That’s ok see what you think 40 years from now

@reel_reflections

7 ай бұрын

I'm curious.. why 40 years?

The movie was disappointing because bolo vs Bruce lee didn't happen. Why did they make saxon fight bolo.

@reel_reflections

10 ай бұрын

Because the film doesn't have the confidence in Lee as a lead. So we are saddled with Saxon to appease those who may not have had the 'confidence' in Lee either. Essentially, it's a compromise. Like much of the film in my view.

@peterhaye8537

9 ай бұрын

Nonsense, there was no point for Lee to face Bolo as his actions from an emotional point of view was to infiltrate the tournament & defeat Han, whilst seeking revenge for the person who was responsible for the death of his Sister, O'Hara. There was no motivation for Lee to have specifically faced Bolo, which is why Saxon was given the honours in that regard, it had nothing to do with the studio not having the confidence in Lee, not sure how you reached that conclusion.

@reel_reflections

9 ай бұрын

@@peterhaye8537 What would you rather see as a viewer? Saxon versus Bolo? Or Lee, an actual martial arts star in a fight scene with him? We got the worse of the two options (there's no emotional reason for Saxon to specifically fight him either). Why? To give Saxon equal weighting in the film as a joint star. Hardly nonsense. It's the studio covering their bases (and compromising as a result) in case a white western audience doesn't take to an Asian lead (thankfully they did).

Whilst I wouldn't say that Enter The Dragon is 'problematic' but out of all of Lee's adult films I'd say it's his weakest. I say adult as I've seen some of his child films so they don't count. For many years all I'd seen was Enter The Dragon out of all his films. But when I managed to see the Hong Kong made one, I knew that they were superior. Even if the first time round they were the dubbed ones. I did mistake the black sticks he used in Enter The Dragon for nunchakus, not realising the film had been cut. Of course nowadays with the passage of time they're all available uncut. This being said I don't count Game of Death as it's incomplete and Game of Death 2 is nothing to do with Bruce Lee. Some valid points you raise here. But I agree with another poster here, saying it's a product of its time. Even David Walliams said at a Bond Q&A that we should not look at films from the past via the lens of today. All being said Enter The Dragon is a great film but just not on the same level as Way of the Dragon and Fist of Fury.

Quentin Tarantino said this was a POS.

@reel_reflections

10 ай бұрын

Despite my issues with Enter the Dragon, I'd rather watch it than most of Tarantino's work anytime! I'm usually at odds with his taste anyway and we all know how well received his depiction of Lee was in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood...

@Craigolcfc

7 ай бұрын

The movie is 50 years old ffs. Can't believe the criticism in here. He should have fought him and he should have done this etc. This film is an absolute classic and elevated bruce lee to become a screen icon.

For the most part I agree with most of your points and I also have pointed out these flaws with this film but I do disagree that the British Army is the heroic element because they came in the film AFTER the fight was over! So they looked like the Bumbling Cowardly Keystone Cops instead of the Hardcore Green Beret Soldiers they should have been and came way earlier. Other than that Enter was a mediocre effort by Warner Brothers and only holds up due to Lees presence and fight scenes.

The movie was made in 1973 not 2023