Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 21

Thread: Bruce Lee, My Brother

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,946

    Bruce Lee, My Brother

    Kin plan to produce Bruce Lee bio-pic
    Sun Jul 23, 3:12 PM ET
    HONG KONG - Bruce Lee's family plans to produce a film on the late martial arts star, the first such movie it has actively supervised, the Chinese company making the motion picture said Sunday.

    The film, which will be made by the Lee family and the Beijing Jian Yongjia film company, will be based on an upcoming biography of the late actor by Lee's brother, Lee Chun-fai, Beijing Jian Yongjia said in a statement.

    "Bruce Lee died young, but stories about him haven't stopped surfacing for 30 years. A lot of them were rumors fed by rumors and exaggerated. Bruce Lee's family didn't make its opinions known because they understood people's passion about Bruce Lee," the statement said.

    "As the members of the Lee family enter old age, to let people know the true story about Bruce Lee, Lee Chun-fai assumed responsibility and carefully organized materials kept by the family, writing the biography 'Bruce Lee,' a real and little-known true story," it said.

    The book will debut on Nov. 25, Bruce Lee's birthday, and Beijing Jian Yongjia will produce a series of films, TV shows and documentaries based on it, including a movie titled "Bruce Lee," it said.

    The Chinese news Web site Sina.com reported Sunday that Hong Kong comedian
    Stephen Chow of "Shaolin Soccer" fame is a likely lead actor and that the film is budgeted at $12.5 million, with filming possibly to start early next year.

    Hong Kong native Lee died in 1973 at age 32 from swelling of the brain. He is known for films in which he portrayed characters that defended the Chinese and working class from oppressors.

    The announcement of the film came on the 33rd anniversary of his death.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  2. #2
    This has potential. It seems that most believe the mythical Lee presented in "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story". All of us Kung Fu freaks know different. I wonder if they are really going to stick to the truth. It would be great to see a more accurate account of his life. I wonder how the fans would react to what really happened though...like the mythical version of the Wong Jack Man fight is something that everyone seems to love citing.

  3. #3
    not to slam this film project already, but what does Lee Chun-fai know about bruce? the majority of lee's life was spent in america, away from his immediate family. i question lee chun fai's credibility, and have an itchy feeling that this is just a flimsly attempt to profit off the fact he is bruce lee's "brother." the mention of bruce lee enthusiast stephen chow does bring back some trust in the film though, being who he is, his admiration for lee will hopefully b a positive influence in the production of the film
    Last edited by thedoodey; 07-24-2006 at 04:05 PM.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Location
    omaha, NE
    Posts
    2,199
    I have heard interviews withthe write of Dragon bruce Lee story who said that he hasd written to be like Ragin Bull but the project was teken away from him and it turned out how everyone saw it-- A show you watch at an amusement park. And Stephen Chow, I am sorry, I know he can act, BUT
    THAT WILL NOT WORK!. Now if he played Unicorn Chan's character, I think he could pull it off quite nicely.
    "For someone who's a Shaolin monk, your kung fu's really lousy!"
    "What, you're dead? You die easy!"
    "Hold on now. I said I would forget your doings, but I didn't promise to spare your life. Take his head."
    “I don’t usually smoke this brand, but I’ll do it for you.”
    "When all this is over, Tan Hai Chi, I will kick your head off and put it on my brother's grave!
    "I regard hardships as part of my training. I don't need to relax."

  5. #5
    Yeah casting on this project should be interesting. If they are going for realism, I wonder who'd they pick for these roles. Besides Bruce you've got Yip Man, Wong Jack Man, Linda, etc. I wonder who'd be best for those roles...and most important of all, who'd play a young Chuck Norris
    Last edited by The Xia; 07-26-2006 at 12:20 PM.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Lone Star State
    Posts
    2,223
    Hey But was not the Movie "Dragon "The bruce Lee story" based mostly on Linda Lee(his wife) book "Bruce lee, The man only i knew?"

    i mean who else would know Bruce lee personally than his wife Linda? I mean i think that the movie the dragon was very accurate and very true. I mean i think it was awesome that Lee was pursued by a demon and that the demon actually came to lees first school and shattered the glass door like that.

    and you can definately tell when you watch "enter the dragon" and the scene where he is in the hall of mirrors that Lee was teleported to the demon world and had to face his inevitable future and kills the demon with a pair of nunchaku. ( i mean the serious look on his face in that movie. )


    TWS
    It makes me mad when people say I turned and ran like a scared rabbit. Maybe it was like an angry rabbit, who was going to fight in another fight, away from the first fight.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Location
    omaha, NE
    Posts
    2,199
    he actually went at that demon with a sword in real life. But they gave him numchukas to give it that movie flash.
    "For someone who's a Shaolin monk, your kung fu's really lousy!"
    "What, you're dead? You die easy!"
    "Hold on now. I said I would forget your doings, but I didn't promise to spare your life. Take his head."
    “I don’t usually smoke this brand, but I’ll do it for you.”
    "When all this is over, Tan Hai Chi, I will kick your head off and put it on my brother's grave!
    "I regard hardships as part of my training. I don't need to relax."

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,946

    ttt for 2009

    here we go again...
    Kungfu star Bruce Lee's new movie to be shot
    www.chinaview.cn 2009-07-21 08:08:22

    BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Thirty-six years to the day after martial-arts film legend Bruce Lee died, a Beijing-based movie company announced Monday, that it would work with Lee's family to produce a movie portraying "the truest Bruce Lee" for his fans worldwide.

    Robert Lee, Lee's younger brother, will be the movie producer and his older sister, Phoebe Lee, will also help in making the movie, a news Web site Zhejiang online reported Monday.

    It is the first time that Lee's family has authorized a movie about the legendary star.

    Last year, a Bruce Lee's 40-part television series was aired on the Chinese mainland. The latest movie about the star was made 16 years ago in United States.

    "The movie will have three episodes describing the star's youth, his martial-arts film time, his great success and unexpected death," Robert Lee said at the movie's kick-off ceremony held Monday here.

    "There are many books or movies about my brother, but I think they are not even close to truth. I want to make the movie of a true Bruce Lee and then I have no more regrets in my life," 70-year-old Phoebe Lee said.

    The first part of the series will be shot next year, which will premier November 27, Lee's birthday.

    The production company says it has prepared four years for the movie. It did not reveal any candidates of the movie director and actor.

    Born in America in 1940, Bruce Lee had his first performance onscreen during childhood. He then became an outstanding martial artist and star of Kung fu movies, bringing Hong Kong films worldwide attention in the 1970s.

    Lee made 46 Kungfu movies. He died at age 32 in 1973, while starring and directing the movie "Game of Death" in Hong Kong.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  9. #9

    Whatever happened to?...

    A couple of years ago, there was some discussion going on about releasing a new Bruce Lee movie that was supposed to be animated in the style of Beowulf. Whatever happened to that?

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,946

    Bruce Lee: My Brother's Story

    Another singer turning martial actor.
    Bruce Lee film casts rising star as kung fu legend
    Last Updated: Monday, June 21, 2010 | 11:01 AM ET

    An up-and-coming Hong Kong singer and actor has been tapped to portray Bruce Lee in a film focusing on the martial arts legend's youth.

    Producers of Bruce Lee: My Brother's Story announced Monday that rising star Aarif Lee (no relation) has been cast in the lead role.

    The 23-year-old Lee, who has been mentored by veteran Cantopop singer and actor Leon Lai, released his debut album in 2009 and appeared in his first film — the drama Echoes of the Rainbow, which won an award at the Berlin International Film Festival — earlier this year.

    Lee's turn as a high school track star in the 1960s-set Echoes won accolades and earned him the 2010 Hong Kong Film Award for best newcomer. He is also set to appear in the not-yet-released Hong Kong film Frozen.

    The young performer paid tribute to a statue of Bruce Lee on Hong Kong's waterfront during a press conference Monday. He told reporters that his preparation for the project included watching the kung fu icon's films and practising his wing chung fighting style.

    The movie is set to explore Bruce Lee's life before he became famous.

    Filming on Bruce Lee: My Brother's Story is set to begin shortly, with funding from studios both in Hong Kong and on mainland China
    * June 21, 2010, 12:00 PM ET
    New Bruce Lee Biopic Will Focus on Early Years
    By Dean Napolitano

    A new Hong Kong movie on martial arts star Bruce Lee will be filmed later this month to coincide with the 70th anniversary of his birth. “Bruce Lee, My Brother” will cover Lee’s teenage years in Hong Kong — where he trained in kung fu and worked as a movie actor — leading up to the time when he departed for the U.S. in 1959 at age 18.

    New Hong Kong film star Aarif Lee — who isn’t related to Bruce Lee — will play the legendary kung-fu master. Aarif Lee shot to fame early this year for his role in “Echoes of the Rainbow,” a poignant story about a close family struggling to make ends meet in 1960s Hong Kong. The film picked up four trophies at the Hong Kong Film Awards in April, including best newcomer for Lee.

    “Bruce Lee, My Brother” is a co-production from Hong Kong’s Media Asia and Chinese partners. The film has a tentative release date for November in Hong Kong, mainland China and other Asian markets, timed with the date of Lee’s birthday on Nov. 27. It isn’t yet clear if the film will get a U.S. release.

    There’s been growing interest in the legacy of Bruce Lee, who died at age 32 in 1973, including a tribute at the Hong Kong International Film Festival in March that included Lee’s wife and daughter.

    Media Asia is a major Hong Kong production company with a long string of hit movies, including the “Infernal Affairs” trilogy that was remade into the Academy Award-winning film “The Departed” from director director Martin Scorsese
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,946

    Bruce Lee, My Brother's Story

    Since 2006, this thread has been titled "NEW Bruce Lee movie" but now I'm changing it to 'Bruce Lee, My Brother's Story'

    A Glimpse into film on Bruce Lee
    English.news.cn 2010-07-21 13:59:14

    BEIJING, July 21 (Xinhuanet) -- A press conference was held Monday in South China's Guangzhou to promote the film "Bruce Lee, My Brother's Story," from Hong Kong director Wilson Yip, which is based on the kung fu star's early years, QQ.com reported.

    Along with director Yip, cast members Aarif Lee, Tony Leung, Christy Chung, Michelle Ye, Heung Kam Lee, Gong Mi and Xie Tingting also attended the ceremony. Bruce Lee's older sister and younger brother also appeared.

    July 20 was also the 37th anniversary of Bruce Lee's still mysterious death. People have remained divided as to whether Lee died from illness or murder.

    The film has been a work in progress for four years, and is expected to premiere in November.

    Aarif Lee, who plays the kung fu star in the film, resembles Lee and donned Lee's classic costume. In order to portray this character, the actor has trained intensively to develop a muscular physique. However, Aarif admitted the most difficult part for him was not the kung fu sequences but the dancing.

    Executive producer Manfred Wong revealed that the film, more than 100 minutes long, selects moments from Bruce Lee's boyhood, and that they are also planning a sequel about the legendary star.

    Hong Kong film stars Tony Leung and Christy Chung play Lee's parents in the film. As Bruce Lee fans, the stars said they were honored and excited to be involved in such a film.

    The film was authorized by Lee's family. After four years of preparation, the cast and crew vowed to present audiences with the kung fu star's real experiences. They also revealed that the film includes some never-before-seen stories from Bruce Lee's life.

    Filming began early this month and is set to be finished in August.

    Born in the U.S., Lee is considered one of the most influential martial artists of the 20th century. He was found dead in Hong Kong on July 20, 1973, at the age of 33.
    Leung, Chung join cast of Bruce Lee, My Brother

    22 July, 2010 | By Liz Shackleton

    Tony Leung Ka-fai and Christie Chung have joined the cast of Hong Kong studio Media Asia Film’s Bruce Lee, My Brother, which is being made to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the late action star’s birthday.

    Leung and Chung will play the parents of Bruce Lee in the film, while singer-songwriter Aarif Lee plays the action star who passed away in 1973 at the height of his popularity. Leung most recently starred in action epic Bodyguards And Assassins, while Chung is known for her erotic roles in Pan Nalin’s Samsara and Nonzee Nimbutr’s Jan Dara.

    The $4.5m (HK$35m) project is co-produced by Media Asia Films and mainland Chinese firms J.A. Media, Beijing Antaeus Film, Beijing Meng Ze Culture & Media and J Star Group. Raymond Yip Wai-man is directing with Manfred Wong producing.

    Shooting will be finished in late August and the producers have set a tentative release date of November this year in China and Hong Kong.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Huntington, NY, USA website: TenTigers.com
    Posts
    7,718
    "Lee made 46 Kungfu movies. He died at age 32 in 1973, while starring and directing the movie "Game of Death" in Hong Kong."

    46???? Boy, I would love to see the other 42.....
    "My Gung-Fu may not be Your Gung-Fu.
    Gwok-Si, Gwok-Faht"

    "I will not be part of the generation
    that killed Kung-Fu."

    ....step.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    The Chi (Chicago)
    Posts
    950
    Quote Originally Posted by The Xia View Post
    This has potential. It seems that most believe the mythical Lee presented in "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story". All of us Kung Fu freaks know different. I wonder if they are really going to stick to the truth. It would be great to see a more accurate account of his life. I wonder how the fans would react to what really happened though...like the mythical version of the Wong Jack Man fight is something that everyone seems to love citing.
    Are you saying he wasn't a great fighter? I had always wondered. Things like the last paragraph of this wiki entry don't help:

    "Lee was involved in competitive fights, some of which were arranged while others were not. Dan Inosanto stated, "There's no doubt in my mind that if Bruce Lee had gone into pro boxing, he could easily have ranked in the top three in the lightweight division or junior-welterweight division."[36]

    Lee defeated three-time champion British boxer Gary Elms by way of knockout in the third round in the 1958 Hong Kong Inter-School amateur Boxing Championships by using Wing Chun traps and high/low-level straight punches.[37] Hawkings Cheung, his fellow Wing Chun street fighter, witnessed the event. Lee knocked-out Pu Chung, a Cai Li Fo fighter, in the roof tops of Hong Kong in a 1958 Full-Contact match. The match was refereed by Wong Shun Leung.[38][39]

    The following year, Lee became a member of the "Tigers of Junction Street," and was involved in numerous gang-related street fights. "In one of his last encounters, while removing his jacket the fellow he was squaring off against sucker punched him and blackened his eye. Bruce flew into a rage and went after him, knocking him out, breaking his opponent's arm. The police were called as a result."[40] The incident took place on a Hong Kong rooftop at 10 P.M. on Wednesday, April 29, 1959.[41]

    In 1960 in Seattle, Lee backfisted and broke a man's nose after Lee saw him harassing a Chinese girl while Lee was taking a walk. This fight was witnessed by James DeMile in 1960.[citation needed]

    In 1962, Lee knocked out Uechi, a Japanese black belt Karateka, in 11 seconds in a 1962 Full-Contact match in Seattle. It was refereed by Jesse Glover. The incident took place in Seattle at a YMCA handball court. Taki Kamura says the battle lasted 10 seconds in contrary to Harts statement.[42] Ed Hart states "The karate man arrived in his gi (uniform), complete with black belt, while Bruce showed up in his street clothes and simply took off his shoes. The fight lasted exactly 11 seconds – I know because I was the time keeper – and Bruce had hit the guy something like 15 times and kicked him once. I thought he'd killed him."[43] The fight ended by Bruce knocking Uechi the length of the gymnasium.[44]

    In Oakland, California in 1964 at Chinatown, Lee had a controversial private match with Wong Jack Man. According to Lee, the Chinese community issued an ultimatum to him to stop teaching non-Chinese; when he refused to comply he was challenged to a combat match with their top fighter Wong Jack Man.[40] Wong had mastery of Xingyiquan, Northern Shaolin, and Tai chi chuan while being a direct student of Ma Kin Fung. The arrangement was that if Lee lost he would have to shut down his school, if he won then Lee would be free to teach Caucasians or anyone else.[40] Wong denies this, stating that he requested to fight Lee after Lee issued an open challenge during one of Lee's demonstrations at a Chinatown theater,[45] and that Wong himself did not discriminate against Caucasians or other non-Chinese.[46] However, contrary to this claimed motive is the signed formal letter manifested by Dan Chan with signatures by the martial art community, including Chan and Wong, as a petitioned document by the community does not correspond to the motive of responding to an open challenge.[original research?] "That paper had all the names of the sifu from Chinatown, but they don't scare me." — Bruce Lee[47]

    Wong and witness William Chen stated that the fight lasted an unusually long 20–25 minutes.[48] Individuals known to have witnessed the match included Cadwell, James Lee (Bruce Lee's associate, no relation) and William Chen, a teacher of Tai chi chuan. According to Bruce Lee, Linda Lee Cadwell, and James Yimm Lee, the fight lasted 3 minutes with a decisive victory for Bruce. "The fight ensued, it was a no holds barred fight, it took three minutes. Bruce got this guy down to the ground and said 'do you give up?' and the man said he gave up." — Linda Lee Cadwell[40]

    Wong Jack Man published his own account of the battle in the Chinese Pacific Weekly, a Chinese-language newspaper in San Francisco, which contained another challenge to Lee for a public rematch.[49] Lee had no reciprocation to Wong's article nor were there any further public announcements by either, but Lee had continued to teach Caucasians.

    Lee's eventual celebrity put him in the path of a number of men who sought to make a name for themselves by causing a confrontation with Lee. A challenger had invaded Lee's private home in Hong Kong by trespassing into the backyard to incite Lee in combat. Lee finished the challenger violently with a kick, infuriated over the home invasion. Describing the incident, Herb Jackson states,

    One time one fellow got over that wall, got into his yard and challenged him and he says 'how good are you?' And Bruce was poppin mad. He [Bruce] says 'he gets the idea, this guy, to come and invade my home, my own private home, invade it and challenge me.' He said he got so mad that he gave the hardest kick he ever gave anyone in his life.[50]
    Bob Wall, USPK karate champion and Lee's co-star in Enter the Dragon, recalled one encounter that transpired after a film extra kept taunting Lee. The extra yelled that Lee was "a movie star, not a martial artist," that he "wasn't much of a fighter." Lee answered his taunts by asking him to jump down from the wall he was sitting on. Wall described Lee's opponent as "a gang-banger type of guy from Hong Kong," a "****ed good martial artist," and observed that he was fast, strong, and bigger than Bruce.[51]

    This kid was good. He was strong and fast, and he was really trying to punch Bruce's brains in. But Bruce just methodically took him apart.[52] Bruce kept moving so well, this kid couldn't touch him...then all of a sudden, Bruce got him and rammed his ass with the wall and swept him up, proceeding to drop him and plant his knee into his opponent's chest, locked his arm out straight, and nailed him in the face repeatedly." — Bob Wall[53]"
    I was on the metro earlier, deep in meditation, when a ruffian came over and started causing trouble. He started pushing me with his bag, steadily increasing the force until it became very annoying. When I turned to him, before I could ask him to stop, he immediately started hurling abuse like a scoundrel. I performed a basic chin na - carotid artery strike combination and sent him to sleep. The rest of my journey was very peaceful, and passersby hailed me as a hero - Warrior Man

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,946

    My Brother vs. My Brother's Story

    I'm not changing the thread title again until I hear more...
    New biopic 'Bruce Lee, My Brother' explores kung fu icon's life in Hong Kong before stardom
    By Min Lee (CP) – 13 hours ago

    HONG KONG — Bruce Lee's path to stardom and his early death is a familiar story. Less has been said about the early days of the young man who would grow into a global kung fu icon and model of Chinese ethnic pride.

    A new $4.6 million Chinese-language production scheduled for release two days before what would have been Lee's 70th birthday on Nov. 27 aims to fill the gap. Drawing from the memories of Lee's siblings, "Bruce Lee, My Brother" traces the actor's life growing up in Hong Kong before he left to study in the U.S.

    "Many people know about his movies and his fighting philosophy after he became famous. But very few people know about his family, his parents, his first love, what he did on movie sets as a young actor," producer Manfred Wong told The Associated Press.

    "This production offers a new perspective to understanding a person. We see someone who is real and fragile. The Bruce Lee we see in his films is deified," said Wong Yiu-keung, head of the Hong Kong Bruce Lee fan club and an adviser to the film.

    Lee honed his craft as a martial arts instructor in the U.S. before making his debut in the short-lived TV series "The Green Hornet." Struggling to break into Hollywood, he returned to his hometown Hong Kong, where he catapulted to global fame with hits like "The Big Boss" and "Fist of Fury" before passing away in 1972 at age 32 from swelling of the brain.

    "Bruce Lee, My Brother" tells the story of the years before that.

    Audiences see Lee courting his first love interest, launching his entertainment career as a popular child actor and pained by a childhood friend's drug addiction. He flashes his ballroom dance moves, starts training in the Chinese kung fu style of wing chun and takes part in an inter-school boxing competition.

    Cast in the lead role is Hong Kong newcomer Aarif Lee, who is not related to the late actor. The sharp facial features of the 23-year-old singer-songwriter who hails from a family of mixed Chinese, Malaysian and Middle Eastern heritage make him a credible stand-in for Bruce Lee, whose mother was part German.

    The shoot was partly a history lesson for the young actor, who was born some 15 years after the death of the character he portrays. He said he knew little about Lee before taking on the role except that he was an "amazing fighter," but he came away from the production admiring Lee's "multifaceted" personality.

    "He was a very charismatic young man when what most people know about him was his fighting. But actually there's much more of Bruce Lee," Aarif Lee said.

    The production was based on input from Lee's younger brother Robert and his two older sisters. Lee's daughter Shannon Lee and widow Linda Lee Cadwell, however, were not involved and there have been suggestions of interfamily controversy.

    Shannon Lee didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment sent through the Bruce Lee Foundation, where she serves as president.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,946

    Opens this weekend in PRC & HK

    Okay, I'll change the title of this thread once more...
    'Bruce Lee, My Brother' Tracks Star's Early Life
    4:55 AM 11/24/2010 by Karen Chu


    Aarif Rahman stars as Bruce Lee in "Bruce Lee, My Brother."
    Hong Kong Stars Life Recalled in Siblings' Memories

    HONG KONG – Authenticity is the heart and soul of the new biopic Bruce Lee, My Brother, the early life story of the man who had put Hong Kong action films on the map, director Raymond Yip told The Hollywood Reporter.

    As the film’s title declares, Bruce Lee, My Brother pieces together the superstar’s childhood -- Lee would have turned 70 on Sunday -- and young adulthood from his surviving siblings’ memories. Lee’s elder sisters Phoebe and Agnes, along with eldest brother Peter – who passed away in 2008 – served as consultants for the biopic, while his younger brother Robert was one of the film’s co-producers.

    “It was a challenge for us to create authenticity in the film,” Yip said. “The project has been in development since 2006. The Lee family supplied us with all the details and the tidbits of their family life. So we took great care to be loyal to the truth and avoid anything that felt fake, which made it rather difficult for us in terms of creating the structure of the script. But the Lee family was very pleased with the result, especially with how close it was to what actually happened.”

    The biopic took years to put on the screen, not least because of the obviously difficult task of finding a young actor to play the role of the iconic megastar. “We’ve been on the lookout for a possible candidate all over China since 2008, but no one could capture the Hong Kong spirit of the young Bruce Lee,” Yip explains. Thanks to the writer-director team of Alex Law and Mabel Cheung, who invited the film’s producer, writer and director Manfred Wong to a screening of their opus Echoes of the Rainbow, the search for a perfect match to play Bruce Lee was over.

    Aarif Rahman, a 23-year-old singer-songwriter who made his acting debut (and stole the show) in Law and Cheung’s film, was locked in as the young Bruce Lee. “Including Lee’s brother Robert, we were quite amazed by how much Aarif resembles Bruce. No one can say for sure whether an actor really embodies Bruce’s spirit except for his family. So it was a go from then on,” Yip recalled. The film began pre-production in March to push for a November release, in time for what would have been the pop culture icon’s 70th birthday.

    The Hong Kong-born Rahman, of Malay-Arab-Chinese ancestry, will have to shoulder any potential sequels for the Bruce Lee life story said Yip, who doesn’t rule out further retelling of the later chapters in the martial arts master's, such as his time in Los Angeles and his return to Hong Kong to make the Golden Harvest films that made him a global screen legend.

    “We certainly hope to continue telling Bruce Lee’s story, but it depends on how this one is received, especially on the public reception of Aarif as Bruce Lee. Lee was a legendary figure. Who plays him in the film is the biggest issue for us as filmmakers. But I have faith in Aarif,” Yip said.

    Produced by Hong Kong’s Media Asia, Beijing Antaeus Film, Shanghai TV Media, Beijing Meng Ze Culture and Media, and J’Star Group, the HK$36 million ($4.6 million) biopic has been snapped up at this month’s AFM by distributors in over 10 territories, including Japan for over $1 million.

    Although the biopic tracks the early life of the kungfu master from the moment he was born in San Francisco, to his Chinese opera actor-father Lee Hoi-chuen (played by The Lover’s Tony Leung Ka-fai) and Eurasian mother Grace (played by Jan Dara’s Christy Chung), old Hong Kong plays a role as the film’s biggest co-star. The film shows Lee and his friends as fixtures in the mid-century Hong Kong film industry, a chance for the filmmakers to recreate the studios of the former colony's first golden era of Hong Kong cinema, reenacting scenes from famous films of the age. “Bruce Lee grew up on soundstages. But the films-within-a-film were also a way for us to recapture the collective memories of the Hong Kong people,” Yip said.

    Bruce Lee, My Brother opens on November 25 in Hong Kong and China.
    Needs a kick
    Movie review: Bruce Lee, My Brother / PG, 129min
    by Lynette Koh
    05:55 AM Nov 24, 2010


    If you're thinking of watching Bruce Lee, My Brother for a good dose of Jeet Kune Do-style martial arts the screen legend was known for, here's a word of advice: Don't.

    The beatings in this film, which chronicles Lee's early years, are mostly administered by his father, popular Cantonese opera singer Lee Hoi Chuen (Tony Leung Ka Fai).

    Still, the film's premise seems like a good idea - in theory.

    Co-directed by Manfred Wong and Raymond Yip, it's a loose account of the action star's growing-up years in Hong Kong in the 1940s and '50s, based on the recollections of his younger brother, Robert.

    Unfortunately, Lee as a young man (Aarif Lee) simply does not seem very interesting at all. He seemed to have spent most of his time horsing around with a group of friends in scenes resembling a cross between a boy band music video and Fighting Spiders.

    The problem is not with the actors: Newcomer Aarif does a decent job in conveying the martial arts legend's charisma and confidence. The rest of the cast also delivers solid performances.

    However, the film tries to touch on too many things and ends up as a disjointed series of events. It never delves too deeply into any one facet of Bruce's life. He's supposed to a popular actor but the filming scenes simply serve as an excuse to introduce characters from Hong Kong cinema's golden age, like classic film actor Shek Kin. Likewise, the love interest of a teenaged Bruce appears out of nowhere and disappears just as quickly.

    Such a revolving-door cast of characters, set against a distracting backdrop of the Japanese, then British, occupations, simply did not engage us, we started checking our watch around the 100-minute mark.

    In the film, Lee's father often says that all he wants is for the family to be zheng zheng qi qi, which literally means "tidy".

    One wishes that the film had been just as neat. Lynette Koh

    Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •