Enter the Dragon: Difference between revisions

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[[File:194242Enter-the-Dragon-poster.jpg|frame]]
 
{{quote|''[[Don't Think, Feel|Don't think. Feel.]]''}}
 
'''''Enter the Dragon''''' is the fourth and final (completed) film of martial arts legend [[Bruce Lee]]. It premiered in August 1973, one month after Lee's untimely death. ''Enter the Dragon'' was the first of Lee's movies to premiere in America and the first to be recorded in English.
 
The story centers around Lee, a Shaolin monk and martial arts master, who is approached by Braithwaite (Geoffrey Weeks), a member of an international intelligence organization that wants Lee to become an undercover agent. The organization has been investigating a man named Han (Shih Kien), a former student of Lee's master, who lives in an island fortress and carries out a number of illegal activities (including kidnapping, drugs, and prostitution). Because they "know everything but can prove nothing," they need Lee to infiltrate Han's island during a martial arts tournament held by Han once every three years and gather evidence that will uncover his crimes. Other central characters of the film are fellow martial artist Williams (Jim Kelly), martial artist and unlucky gambler Roper (John Saxon), and another undercover agent named Mei Ling (Betty Chung). Though there is surprisingly little direct cooperation between the heroes, they each individually work to uncover the secrets of Han's underground operation, risking the deadly penalties imposed by Han and his [[Made of Iron]] bodyguard O'Hara (Robert Wall).
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''Enter the Dragon'' is still considered one of the finest martial arts films in history. It has often been praised for its ethnic equality, since it features heroes of European, African, and Asian descent. It also features Lee as a philosophical warrior, allowing him to tie in his own personal philosophies of martial arts (by virtue of his personally rewriting the script to add dialogue at the opening Shaolin Temple scenes). Of course, the real beauty of the film is in the exquisite fight sequences showcasing Lee at the top of his game, along with an excellent supporting cast and stunt crew (including future martial arts stars [[Sammo Hung]] and [[Jackie Chan]]).
 
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{{tropelist}}
* [[Action Girl]]: Lee's sister, Su Lin. The actress, Angela Mao Ying, would go on to be a martial arts star in her own right in Hong Kong.
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* [[Hero of Another Story]]: All of the heroic characters had ongoing and past adventures.
* [[Hoist by His Own Petard]]: {{spoiler|Han throws a spear at Lee, resulting in it sticking straight through a wall. As the fight continues, Lee kicks Han who ends up getting [[Impaled with Extreme Prejudice|impaled]] by said spear as it is still jutting out from the wall.}}
* [[HSQ]]: In-Universe example. While Lee was well aware of Han's operations from the get-go thanks to Braithwaite's intel, Roper and Williams weren't. In their perspective the tournament was mostly a rules based knockdown fight. Which they intern can rig, to hustle people for extra money. While people got hurt, no one got killed. Until Lee's fight with O'hara, which starts off relatively the same. {{Spoiler|When Lee kills O'Hara, albeit in self-defence, Roper and Williams seem to have second thoughts about the island and were about to talk about it in private. Unfortunately Han wanted Williams alone where he could accuse him of Lee's action against the guards. When Williams defies him, Han beats him to death with his steel prosthetic hand. Later on while attempting to sway Roper into joining his operation, Han gives him a first hand tour of his lair. It starts off simple with their own power plant, which is benign and explains how he was able to be self-sufficient on his island. Then Han introduces Roper to his daughters. While the introduction is awkward, ending with one of them throwing him on the floor, demonstrating their worth as personal guards. However harmless none the less. Then Roper stumbles upon his Opium factory, which makes Roper feel uneasy, but justifies the need for drugs as no different than any other business as another example of the law of economics. Just as Han, was that close to getting Roper to join him, citing his need for money to pay off his debts; Han ends the tour showing Williams corpse hung over a vat of Acid. Much to Roper's shock and horror. Roper initially says yes. However when Han tries to goad him into fighting Lee to the death, Roper takes Lee's side.}}
* [[If You're So Evil Eat This Kitten]]: Han tests Roper with a near-literal example of this. {{spoiler|Han places his pet cat onto a guillotine, Roper saves the cat, says "[[Cats Have Nine Lives|Now you got EIGHT left]]," and frees the cat. Han then knew that "there is a point you will not go beyond."}}
* [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]]: Roper.
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[[Category:Films of the 1970s]]
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[[Category:Hong Kong Films]]
[[Category:Martial Arts Movie]]
[[Category:Film]]