YOUNG BRUCE LEE Blu-ray Review

Cine Asia:

From his birth on November 27th 1940 to his departure for San Francisco in 1959, discover how Bruce Lee lived through war and persecution and survived the brutal street-gangs of 1950's Hong Kong before going on to live his dreams.

Produced by Robert Lee, Bruce Lee's younger brother, and based on his own first-hand experience, Young Bruce Lee is a breathtaking and evocative homage to the man who, uniquely, brought the power and majesty of Chinese Kung Fu to millions around the world.

Showcasing an incredible hi-impact tribute to the celebrated Coliseum fight from Way of the Dragon, Young Bruce Lee is an inspirational motion picture event that is not to be missed!

Bruce Lee never goes out of style.  As an adult he only made a few films, but he made a huge impression on worldwide audiences and brought Hong Kong cinema into the larger world's consciousness.  There has been no shortage of films seeking to capitalize on his iconic image, from the original glut of Brucesploitation films in the 70's and 80's, all the way through to biographical features over the years which only tenuously resemble the truth.  However, while Hollywood tackled the artist as a young adult in America with Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, no one had really focused on where the man came from.  His youth has been an untapped resource for understanding the phenomenon that was Bruce Lee, until now.

Young Bruce Lee (AKA Bruce Lee, My Brother) is an attempt to show where Bruce came from.  The story comes from his younger brother Robert, and while it is certainly a pretty glowing account, it does have quite a bit of backstory on Bruce and his family relationships that has not really been explored on screen. 

The film follows Bruce from birth through his time as a child star in Hong Kong cinema and ultimately to his forced exile to the USA as a young adult.  A lot happened along the way, and Bruce wasn't always the tough guy we saw on screen. 

Critical response to the film has been rather tepid as it relates to the film's thematic content, with our James Marsh commenting that,

BRUCE LEE, MY BROTHER is little more than an ornately decorated vessel - that looks great, sounds great, yet contains almost nothing of real interest.

I can't help but agree with this statement.  The film never really finds a narrative flow, there is little discernible plot and the seems to merely be a series of vignettes of Bruce's young life.  It doesn't really succeed in being engaging in the way it should, the vignettes prove that there is ample material and good feeling surrounding a project like this that it should have been better.  However, it never really gels.

On the other hand, the film is technically superb.  The cinematography is absolutely top-notch and stylistically very forward.  The entire film looks as though it was shot on a sound stage, but in a very interesting and endearing way.  Even the outdoor scenes are lit as though they are modeling product shots, which could be annoying, but the way it is done is simply breathtaking.  All of this stylistic license helps to create an aura around Bruce that foreshadows his ultimate position among the Gods of Asian cinema, and for every moment I was left bored by the story telling, I was awed by the visuals twice as long. 

Overall, Young Bruce Lee is a mediocre film that was shot beautifully and is well-worth watching if only for the technical achievement that it is.

The Disc:

Cine Asia have managed to maintain the visual spectacle that is Young Bruce Lee in a remarkable way on their Blu-ray disc.  The image is bright and clean and I cannot imagine it looking any better.  Absolutely stunning job with the video portion of this disc.  The audio is equally good with a robust DTS-HD MA 5.1 track that includes crisp, clear dialogue and potent and punchy action sequences.  The surrounds are utilized well, and the bass is as well.  All around a very solid A/V presentation for a film that certainly deserves this kind of treatment.

The extras on the disc are massive and will take you a long time to sift all the way through.  First of all, there are at least 15 short behind the scenes featurettes averaging 5-7 minutes, all of which take a look at different aspects of production and the filming of different sequences.  Some are very informative and substantive, others are just goofy behind the scenes type stuff, but they are all fun.  Also included is a feature length commentary with Bey Logan which is very interesting and a good mix of anecdotal information, scene specific commentary, and historical background both regarding the events of the film and the filming process in Hong Kong and China.  Very interesting listening.  Logan knows his stuff and never lets the commentary get dull.  There are two more featurettes, one is a Cine Asia exclusive that gives more background on Bruce Lee as a person and a cultural phenomenon.  If you are a Lee fan, it probably won't teach you anything, but it is certainly interesting for the novice.  Also, and I normally wouldn't pimp this but I thought it was cool, there is a promo short for Cine Asia that runs about 25 minutes that is really well put together.  It plays like a commercial for Cine Asia, but I also found that it really gives you a feel for the label and their goals.  Very good work guys, you managed to make me enjoy watching a commercial!

Overall, I recommend this Blu-ray of Young Bruce Lee.  The film certainly has its flaws, and they are many, but it is just too damned pretty not to watch at least once!