Best Bruce Lee Films
The Big Boss, Fist Of Fury, Way Of The Dragon & Game Of Death starring Bruce Lee are coming to stand alone 4K & Blu Ray on the 13th November 2023 From Arrow Video
The Big Boss (1971)
Star: Bruce Lee
Director: Lo Wei
The Big Boss Synopsis
An instant box office sensation upon its original release in Hong Kong in 1971, The Big Boss is the film that catapulted former child actor and Hollywood TV sidekick Bruce Lee to cinematic superstardom.
Cheng Chao-on (Lee) moves to Thailand to work at a factory alongside his uncle and cousins. However, a ruthless crime boss (Han Ying-chieh, Come Drink with Me) and his gang are using the factory to smuggle dope, and whoever stumbles upon this unfortunate secret promptly meets a grisly end. When some of Cheng’s friends and cousins disappear, he is forced to set aside the vow of pacifism he made to his mother and unleash his fists of fury in order to bring those responsible to bloody justice…
Directed by Lo Wei, The Big Boss forever changed the landscape of Hong Kong action cinema, signalling kung fu’s dominance over the genre for years to come. Lee’s big breakthrough now looks more glorious than ever in a 4K restoration with hours of insightful bonus features, including the restored 110 Mandarin Cut of the film that first stunned audiences in Hong Kong back in 1971.
Special Features
LIMITED EDITION 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY CONTENTS
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Walter Chaw
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella
DISC 1: THE BIG BOSS
- 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of the 99-minute 1983 version of The Big Boss, restored by Arrow Films from the original negative
- Original restored Mandarin, English and Cantonese mono audio
- Two English mono options, the standard mix and a Japanese mix with alternate score
- English subtitles, plus optional subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing for the English dubs
- Two feature commentaries, one by David Desser and one by Brandon Bentley
- Two alternate versions with lossless mono audio: the English Export Cut, featuring a rare alternate English dub track (some scenes in Mandarin); and the 100-min US Theatrical Cut
- Return to Thailand, a documentary produced and presented by Matt Routledge exploring the original filming locations
- Recently uncovered deleted and extended scenes, with optional commentary by Bentley
- The Not-Quite-Biggest Boss, a video essay by Bentley investigating the scenes still lost, such as the ‘saw-in-the-head’ scene
- Archive interviews with co-star Lau Wing and stuntman Tung Wai
- Bruce Lee Vs. Peter Thomas, a short video essay about the music for the English version
- Alternate credits sequences
- Trailer gallery, including a ‘Before The Big Boss’ reel and the trailer for lost sequel The Big Boss Part II
- Image gallery
DISC 2: THE BIG BOSS – THE MANDARIN CUT
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of the 110-min Mandarin Cut of The Big Boss, restored by Arrow Films
- Original lossless mono audio
- English subtitles for the Mandarin Cut
- Axis of English, a video essay by Will Offutt profiling the English dubbing actors for The Big Boss, Fist of Fury and The Way of the Dragon
- Unrestored raw scan of the Mandarin Cut (1080p only)
Technical Details
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Run Time: |
99 / 100 / 100 / 110 mins approx |
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Director: |
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Dubbing Languages: |
Cantonese, English |
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Certificate: |
18 |
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Actor: |
Bruce Lee |
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Aspect Ratio: |
2:35.1 |
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Subtitle Languages: |
English, English SDH |
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English, English SDH |
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Theatrical Release Year: |
1971 |
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Main Language: |
Mandarin |
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Number of Discs: |
2 |
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Region: |
Free |
Fist Of Fury (1972)
Star: Bruce Lee
Director: Lo Wei
Fist of Fury Synopsis
Bruce Lee’s second film for Golden Harvest, Fist of Fury, swiftly broke all the box office records set by his previous film The Big Boss, and launched one of the most iconic characters in Chinese action cinema in Chen Zhen, since played in other films by Jet Li and Donnie Yen.
Shanghai, 1910. Chen (Lee) returns from study abroad to find that his beloved martial arts teacher has died under mysterious circumstances. Chen immediately suspects members of a rival Japanese dojo, who bully his fellow students and denigrate the Chinese at every turn. Revenge on his mind, Chen starts a one-man war on the Japanese, making him public enemy number one – and he won’t go down without a fight!
Boasting many of Lee’s most iconic set pieces – not least when he tells his enemies that the Chinese are “not the sick men of Asia!” – Fist of Fury is a thrill-a-minute action spectacular that also turned out to be his final collaboration with director Lo Wei, who would attempt to launch the career of stuntman Jackie Chan (briefly seen in this film) a few years later in the sequel New Fist of Fury.
Special Features
LIMITED EDITION 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY CONTENTS
DISC 1: FIST OF FURY
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible), restored by Arrow Films from the original negative
- Alternate ‘English Export Cut’ viewing option with different opening and closing credits via seamless branching and alternate lossless mono audio
- Original restored Mandarin, English and Cantonese mono audio
- English subtitles, plus optional subtitles for the deaf and hard of-hearing on the English dubs
- Two feature commentaries, one by Jonathan Clements and one by Brandon Bentley
- Legend of the Dragon, an 82-minute overview of Lee’s life and career by film critic and historian Tony Rayns
- Visions of Fury, a featurette on Bruce Lee’s collaboration with Golden Harvest and Lo Wei, featuring interviews with co-producer Andre Morgan and martial arts experts Michael Worth, Frank Djeng, John Kreng, Andy Cheng and Bruce Willow
- New Fist Part Two Fist, a video essay by Bentley looking at the two competing sequels shot simultaneously in 1976
- Archive interviews with co-stars Nora Miao, Riki Hashimoto, Jun Katsumara and Yuen Wah
- Alternate credits sequence
- Trailer gallery, including a Chen Zhen trailer reel
- Image gallery
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Walter Chaw
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella
Technical Details
Way Of The Dragon (1972)
Star: Bruce Lee
Director: Bruce Lee
Way Of The Dragon Synopsis
Having established himself as the biggest box office draw in Hong Kong, Bruce Lee leveraged his success into a new deal with Golden Harvest that would allow him to write and direct as well as star in his own projects. He only got to complete one film under this deal before his untimely death, but it’s arguably his most personal and exciting: The Way of the Dragon.
Tang Lung (Lee) is a naïve country boy from Hong Kong who is shipped off to sunny Rome in order to assist a family friend whose Chinese restaurant is under threat from a local gangster. Training the waiters in self-defence while taking on Italian thugs single-handedly, the gangster decides to retaliate by flying in some of the best fighters from America (including Colt, played by Chuck Norris) and Japan to take Tang down. Soon the columns of the Colosseum will rumble with the sound of Tang Lung’s fury!
Lee’s only completed directorial effort is unlike any kung fu film that came before it, mixing thrilling action, stunning international location filming and charming humour in a way that would prove heavily influential on other Hong Kong filmmakers in the years since. It is accompanied by The Final Game of Death, a brand new 223-minute video essay taking you inside the making of Lee’s second, and tragically unfinished, film as writer-director.
Special Features
LIMITED EDITION 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY CONTENTS
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Walter Chaw
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella
DISC 1: THE WAY OF THE DRAGON (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentations in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible), restored by Arrow Films from original film elements, of the Hong Kong Theatrical Cut and the Japanese Cut via seamless branching
- Original newly restored lossless Mandarin, English and Cantonese mono audio on the Hong Kong Theatrical Cut
- Alternate lossless English mono audio on the Japanese Cut
- Optional English subtitles
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing on both English audio options
- Two feature commentaries, one by Frank Djeng & Michael Worth and one by Brandon Bentley
- The Way of the Camera, a documentary looking at Lee’s filmmaking and fighting method in his directorial debut, featuring interviews with Golden Harvest producer Andre Morgan, martial arts experts Michael Worth, Jon Kreng, Andy Cheng, Frank Djeng, David Yeung, film historian Courtney Joyner and actors Piet (Peter) Schweer, Jon Benn and John Saxon
- Meet the Italian Beauty, a newly filmed interview with star Malisa Longo
- The Scottish Soldier Meets the Dragon, a newly filmed interview with on-set observer John Young
- Newly recorded select scene commentary by ‘thug’ actor Piet Schweer
- Archive interviews with co-stars Jon Benn, Bob Wall and Hwang In-shik and production managers Chaplin Chang and Louis Sit
- Trailer gallery, including a Bruceploitation trailer reel
- Image gallery
DISC 2: THE FINAL GAME OF DEATH (BLU-RAY)
- The Final Game of Death, a brand new 223-minute video essay by Arrow Films that incorporates a new 2K restoration of all two hours of Lee’s original dailies from a recently-discovered interpositive
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
- Game of Death: Revisited, an earlier attempt to reconstruct Lee’s original vision from 2001
- Super 8 footage from 1974 of Dan Inosanto demonstrating the nunchaku
- Brief archival interview with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar from 1976
- Image gallery
Technical Details
Game Of Death (1978)
Star: Bruce Lee
Director: Robert Clouse
Game Of Death Synopsis
Five years after the release of Enter the Dragon and the death of its star Bruce Lee, director Robert Clouse was recruited by Golden Harvest to complete Lee’s last, unfinished masterwork, only a third of which was filmed before he died: Game of Death. The result is an exciting rollercoaster ride that blends Lee’s martial arts mastery with Clouse’s eye for nail-biting suspense.
Billy Lo (Lee) is a kung fu superstar in the Hong Kong film industry whose happy life with his girlfriend Ann (Colleen Camp) is being intruded upon by a threatening group of American gangsters led by Dr Land (Dean Jagger) and henchman Steiner (Hugh O’Brian), intent on bringing Billy under their control. When Billy refuses, their lethal response sets about a chain of events where a disguised Billy turns the tables on the syndicate, fighting his way through the city for his and Ann’s freedom.
With fantastic fight choreography by Sammo Hung, the leading inheritor to Lee’s throne at that time, and a much-beloved music score by John Barry, Game of Death was an international smash hit that helped to keep Lee’s star burning bright long after he was gone. It is accompanied here by its 1981 sequel Game of Death II (Tower of Death), one final star vehicle for Bruce Lee made using more rare footage found in the studio vaults.
Special Features
LIMITED EDITION 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY CONTENTS
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- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing on the films by Walter Chaw
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella
DISC 1: GAME OF DEATH (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible), restored by Arrow Films from original film elements, of the international cut and the Japanese cut of Game of Death via seamless branching
- Brand new 2K restoration of the International Cut of Game of Death II by Arrow Films from original film elements
- Original restored English mono audio on both cuts
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
- Feature commentary by Brandon Bentley & Mike Leeder
- The Song I’m Singing Tomorrow, an interview with star Colleen Camp
- Deleted and extended scenes from the Chinese-language versions of the film, including two alternate endings (some material in standard-definition)
- Archive interviews with co-stars Dan Inosanto and Bob Wall
- Behind-the-scenes footage as featured in Bruce Lee: The Legend
- Rare pre-production sales featurette from 1976 with new commentary by Michael Worth and producer Andre Morgan
- Fight scene dailies directed by Sammo Hung
- Locations featurette from 2013
- Trailer gallery, including Bruceploitation and ‘Robert Clouse at Golden Harvest’ trailer reels
- Image gallery
DISC 2: GAME OF DEATH II (BLU-RAY)
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation of Game of Death II as well as the Hong Kong Theatrical Cut titled Tower of Death (contains some standard-definition material)
- Original lossless English mono audio on Game of Death II
- Original lossless Cantonese, Mandarin and English mono audio on Tower of Death
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing on Game of Death, and optional English subtitles on Tower of Death
- Feature commentary by Frank Djeng & Michael Worth, co-producers of Enter the Clones of Bruce Lee
- Archive interview with co-star Roy Horan
- Alternate Korean version with unique footage, presented in High Definition with original lossless mono audio and English subtitles
- Alternate US video version in High Definition with lossless English mono audio, via seamless branching
- Alternate end credits sequence for Game of Death II
- Trailer gallery
- Image gallery
Technical Details
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Run Time: |
100 / 96 / 87 mins approx |
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Director: |
Bruce Lee Robert Clouse Ng See-Yuen Sammo Hung Corey Yuen |
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Dubbing Languages: |
Cantonese, English |
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Certificate: |
18 |
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Actor: |
Bruce Lee Colleen Camp Dean Jagger Kim Tae-jeong Roy Chiao |
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Aspect Ratio: |
2:35.1 |
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Subtitle Languages: |
English, English SDH |
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Theatrical Release Year: |
1978 |
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Main Language: |
Mandarin |
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Number of Discs: |
2 |
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Region: |
Free |
More Sammo Then Bruce???
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