Dragon The Master: Reviews

Didn't anyone tell these guys that the infamous Bruceploitation era ended over 20 years ago? Hell, I should be happy because I'm one - out of the few hundred lost causes on this entire planet - that gets sheer enjoyment out of watching a good 'ol Bruce Li/Le/Dragon Lee flick. The good ones, at least. And when I say good, that doesn't exactly mean "good" (if you catch my drift). Producer Joseph Lai, no stranger to run-of-the-mill chopsockies, revives the Bruceploitation genre that ended in the late 70's; and wiped out for good in the early 80's. Now, it's 2003 and we have "Dragon The Master" starring a Bruce Lee-wannabe that calls himself Dragon Sek. You know, that name actually sounds pretty cool - that is, until you find out he's a Bruce Lee clone.

"Dragon The Master" (such an inventive title, eh?) is pretty much that - a Bruceploitation film for the new millennium. It has everything you want in a Bruceploitation film: A Bruce Lee look-alike, a low-budget, horrible acting, bad dubbing, senseless plot and lots of meaningless action. The martial-arts scenes, choreographed by Willie Ho and Lam Moon Wah, are excellent. If only the camera work and editing had a little more expertise, the scenes could probably stand up to some of Yuen Woo Ping's work. That may be a tough statement, but you'd be surprised how good the choreography actually is.

The plot... fuck. Do I have to go over the plot? I'm only asking because I didn't get some of it. Okay, I didn't get a lot of it. All I know is that everything revolves around a Bruce Lee-type computer game (of all things). The game is designed by Shelly, who happens to be Dragon Sek's sister. Shelly works for a computer software company that has a hard-on for the game. Basically, the company steals the game from Shelly to make their own money... blah, blah, blah... throw in Billy Chow (from "Fist of Legend"), an ass-kicking actress bitch, Jackie Cheng (yes, a Jackie Chan wannabe, equipped with Drunken Boxing), Sho Kosugi (just kidding, that's actually Roy Cheung of "The Mission") some triad members and Dragon Sek - and there you have it...

Crap. How can I forget. What good is a Bruceploitation flick without a "Game of Death" pagoda scene? Yep, this has one. The last floor of the pagoda has Dragon Sek going up against Billy Chow. The movie is actually worth seeing for this fight alone. Damn, that Dragon Sek guy does Bruce Lee well.

I only wish they cut the computer game-plot and other bullshit by 50%; and gave us more screen-time with Dragon Sek, after all, he's supposedly the star. The guy looks as much like Bruce Lee as Dragon Lee or Bruce Li does. The difference: Dragon Sek has got Bruce Lee's fighting style, movement, and mannerisms down to a chicken bone. If he was a little less thick and had a real name, the guy can make a career out of making top-notch pseudo-Bruce Lee films.

All in all, "Dragon The Master" is pretty fucking lame. I barely sat through it. As for Dragon Sek? That guy's the closest thing we'll ever see to the real Bruce Lee.

RATING: 4/10 (8/10 for Dragon Sek's performance)