Synopsis: Cashing in on Bruce Lee after his death, The Dragon Lives Again follows Lee after he has died and wakes up in hell. After opening a gym and fending off the King of the Underworld's naked wives, Lee sets out to stop the most evil people in hell from taking over. Aiding him is the One-Armed Swordsman, Caine, and Popeye. Together, they take on a host of wild characters in one of the craziest Bruceploitation films ever made! (96 Mins)

 

Vengeance Video UK DVD Synopsis: After his mysterious death, Bruce Lee arrives in purgatory to find the place has been over taken by a group of the most famous outlaws of all time: a Godfather, the Man with No Name, the Exorcist, the Blind Swordsman, 007 and Emmanuelle. They are plotting to overthrow the King of the Underworld, so Bruce steps in to rid the place of their unwelcome antics. Aiding him in his fight is the One Armed Swordsman and Kai Chung Kane- Kung-Fu! Non stop action from start to finish plus the rotary kicks of Bruce Liang make this race a must for all Kung-Fu and Bruce Lee fans! (86 Mins)

 

Views: After passing, Bruce Lee awakens from his long sleep in purgatory with (what looks like) a raging boner. While the King of the Underworld waits for him to waken, his concubines swoon over their new arrival, with one mentioning how Bruce Lee was such a big star in life and the Hollywood stars that he taught. As another concubine points out that he doesn't look like Bruce Lee, the first reminds her that our faces change when we enter death – hence why he is unrecognisable as the real Bruce Lee! Between the King of the Underworld threatening him with earthquakes, and a gang of popular (yet dead) fictional characters terrorising hell, Bruce opens a martial-arts school and eventually steps up to take them all on – often dressed as the character of Kato from The Green Hornet (1966). Then there's the part where we learn that our hero actually carries his power in his penis, as they discuss the 'third leg of Bruce' between themselves, and things get even crazier from there...

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Predating the majestic Marvel Cinematic Universe by decades with its collection of heroes, anti-heroes and villains in one bizarre crossover flick, The Dragon Lives Again offers viewers the chance to see Bruce Lee (or that of a clone) face-off against, or share the screen with, characters such as the One-Armed Swordsman, Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman, Clint Eastwood's Man With No Name, 007 himself James Bond, Count Dracula, sex vixen Emmanuelle, a Korean Mafia Godfather, Popeye, Laurel and Hardy, The Exorcist, and others including Caine from the old Kung Fu television series – it's genuinely one of the most outrageous movies and plot-lines you may ever experience! Produced by Alex Gouw and the awesome Goldig Film Company; the same guys behind films such as Bald Headed Betty (1975), 10 Magnificent Killers (1977), Kung Fu Master Named Drunk Cat (1978), Kung Fu Genius (1979), The Gold Connection (1979) and many other classics, The Dragon Lives Again was written by assistant director Telent Leung and Law Kei – bit-player of over 70 movies and director of films such as End Of The Wicked Tigers (1973), The Golden Triangle (1975), Amsterdam Connection (1978), The Tigress Of Shaolin (1979), The Gold Hunters (1981), Rendezvous Of Japanese Kanto (1993), Gunmen (1995), Hero Youngster (2004), and this insane piece, of course. I must also note that this wouldn't be his only attempt at a Bruceploitation flick, with the fun Bruce Lee The Invincible (1978) following only a year later, this time starring Ho Tsung Tao (Bruce Li) as the leading man...

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But here, it's the fantastic Bruce Leung Siu Lung who stars as the clone of Lee! Having spent the previous years as a bit-player in numerous titles for Shaw Brothers, Golden Harvest and others, in titles such as The Lady Hermit (1971), The Blade Spares None (1971), Lady Whirlwind (1972), 14 Amazons (1972), Hapkido (1972), The Thunderbolt Fist (1972) and Seven To One (1973), Leung would soon start to get the role of leading man soon after alongside Jimmy Wang Yu and Chen Sing in The Two Cavaliers (1973) with Ng See Yuen giving him the chance to shine as the star in Kidnap In Rome, Call Me Dragon, and Little Godfather From Hong Kong in 1974. While proving himself as a comic star and incredible martial artist, Bruce would also double up duties in most of his projects as the fight-choreographer, allowing him to utilise his skills and win over fans with his blistering kicks and fast moves. Here, Bruce joins his equally talented father, Leung Siu Chung, to deliver some of the wildest kung fu action ever seen at that time. Father of both Bruce and the brilliant Tony Leung Siu Hung, Siu Chung choreographed the action for over 60 films from the late 1960s through to the early 80s. These included many of the aforementioned titles of which Bruce Leung appeared in as well as films like The Devil Warrior (1969), Lady Of Steel (1970), Gold Snatchers (1973), A Girl Called Tigress (1973), The Master & The Kid (1978), Sun Dragon (1979) and Kung Fu Executioner (1981) which would also be his last. Interestingly, this wouldn't be the only Bruceploitation flick he would choreograph with Bruce Lee True Story (1976) and the fun Dragon On Fire/Enter Three Dragons (1978) sandwiching either side of The Dragon Lives Again.

 

Leung is joined by a host of familiar faces and exciting names of the time such as Korean martial-arts actor Shin Il Ryong – seen in The Double Crossers (1976) and Jackie Chan's To Kill With Intrigue (1977) – who stars as the Godfather, and awesome kung-fu star Nick Cheung Lik who does a great job as the One-Armed Swordsman. Of course, this wouldn't be the first Bruceploitation film he would appear in, with roles in titles such as Bruce's Fingers (1976), Return Of Bruce (1977), Bruce & Shaolin Kung-Fu (1977), Bruce Lee The Invincible (1978), Bruce Lee In New Guinea (1978) and more through to the early 80s. Comedy kung-fu actor Hon Kowk Choi appears as the Chinese Caine, while the illustrious Eric Tsang (whose film credits are almost around 300 in total) pops-up in an early role as Popeye, which is often hilarious. Recognisable bad-guy of this era, Fong Yau, stars as The Exorcist with Wong Mei playing Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman. Prolific actors Simon Yuen, Tang Ching and the great Cheung Hei co-star with the latter playing Dracula – leader of the outlandish zombies who appear dressed in skeleton-jumpsuits as seen in the original Karate Kid (1984). Eurasian actor Bobby Canavarro – seen in films such as The Death Of Bruce Lee (1975), Cleopatra Jones & The Casino Of Gold (1975), and Dynamo (1978) – stars as Clint Eastwood, while Alexander Grand delivers a turn as James Bond. Of course, Grand had actually starred with the real Bruce Lee in both Fist Of Fury (1972) and Way Of The Dragon (1972), going onto appear in films such as Fist Of Unicorn (1973), Boxer Rebellion (1976), Chinatown Kid (1977), Crystal Fist (1979), and Sun Dragon (1979) as well as Bruceploitation films such as Dragon On Fire/Enter Three Dragons (1978), The Dragon The Hero (1979), Bruce Vs Bill (1981) and The Clones Of Bruce Lee (1981)...

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While far from perfect, although considered pure cinematic gold by many, The Dragon Lives Again is one of the best parodies of the kung-fu sub-genre known as Bruceploitation. While fight filled, funny, and very colourful, the film still has a number of slow moments that tries too hard to explain itself for something so ridiculous. Regardless, once you have watched this film it will be hard to remove it from your head, as it's entertainment values are so enjoyable. Released as part of The Game Of Clones Bruceploitation Collection from Severin Films, The Dragon Lives Again has never looked better with a new restoration that really shows the film in its best presentation ever!

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Overall: Demented yet hilarious, fight filled and wacky, The Dragon Lives Again is a worthy kung-fu comedy that you'll never forget!

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Severin Films Blu-ray Extras: Audio Commentary with Michael Worth & Frank Djeng, Deleted Scenes, Audio Essay by Lovely Jon, Severin's Kung Fu Theatre with Michael Worth, Trailer

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Vengeance Video DVD Extras: Optional Mandarin Audio, Trailer Gallery, Stills Gallery