 Blue Underground // Buy from Amazon.comAt the height of his international fame, the legendary Bruce Lee - along with his friend and student James Coburn and Oscar-winning screenwriter Stirling Silliphant - began to write what he believed would be the greatest achievement of his film career. Five years after his mysterious death, Lee's vision would finally be realized. David Carradine (KILL BILL), Christopher Lee (THE LORD OF THE RINGS), Roddy McDowall (PLANET OF THE APES) and Eli Wallach (THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY) star in this acclaimed cult hit that brings Lee's personal philosophy to the screen with a still-potent combination of mysticism, humor and martial arts mayhem. Well, I'm not sure what to make of this flick - having just sat through it, my head is a foggy mess that leaves me feeling like I have personally taken too many roundhouse kicks to the noggin'. Apparently, the "story" for this film originated with Mr. Bruce Lee himself - however, I can't see how he possibly thought this jumbled cornucopia of yucks, yuks and kicks would make for a good film. What we get is a bunch of cliches stacked one on top of the other (eager apprentice in search of knowledge, looking to prove himself, encountering a blind master, battling monkey men -- what, what?!?!) and the cheesiest dialogue you could imagine interspersed with lame action sequences that even my grandma could keep pace with. However, what I can appreciate is the total (and probably unintentional) cheeseball quotient that is clearly evident in watching this one in the year 2007 - this is not a good film by any means, but damn if it isn't incredibly entertaining -- it's an instant guilty pleasure, one in which I'm sure I will enjoy for years to come. To their credit, Blue Underground gives this one the de-luxe treatment, with the remastering in hi-def and tons o' extras packed into this 2 disc collection. It might not be Oscar-worthy, but it's a helluva lot better than the swill we're currently being served up in theaters, so I'll take my "Silent Flute" anyday! Video Blue Underground is known for giving the white glove treatment (no, not THAT type of white glove treatment) to its releases, and "Circle of Iron" is no different, boasting a high-defintion remastering to a nearly 16x9 anamorphic widescreen transfer. Colors and detail are spectacular, with the crisp, sharp images leaping off the screen. Wow. Audio As with the picture, the audio gets the royal treatment as well, as the DVD belts out a ear-canal-tearing Dolby Digital 6.1 DTS-ES remix that is guaranteed to piss of neighbors on BOTH sides of your house! Extras Closing Thoughts Entertaining - and often unintentionally hilarious - classic kung-fu flick + 2nd disc loaded w/ extras = well worth checking out for fans of Bruce Lee, "Kill Bill" Carradine or epic kung-fu action Labels: review |
