Upon his death in 1973, Bruce Lee left a legacy of martial arts and kung-fu that left ripples across the cinematic landscape that was especially challenged in Hong Kong which tried, wave after wave of imitators to recapture the magic and grace of the fallen star. While most of the projects were relegated to cult status at best, filmmaker Matthew Mallinson attempted a different approach with this meta-take on the legend of Bruce Lee which now comes packaged together in a special 40th Anniversary edition from The Film Detective.
Also, as a result of delays, Fist of Fear, Touch of Death is now available for pre-order on The Film Detective website in a limited-edition Blu-ray ($24.99) or on DVD ($19.99)—With a pressing of just 1,500 Blu-rays. Fans can secure a copy (which will be shipped ASAP) at www.thefilmdetective.com/fist-of-fear.
As the world gathers for a new kung-fu display, participants from around the world including Fred Williamson, Ron Van Cleef and Aaron Banks converge in New York to determine a possible successor to Bruce Lee. As the competitors are getting ready for the competition and the hosts are filling everyone in on the life-story behind Bruce's obsession with martial arts, this basic background sets the stage for the ensuing bout to determine the true successor to Bruce's legacy.
Overall, “Fist of Fear. Touch of Death” is a tough watch. Like most Bruceploitation movies, this one tends to alter reality in an effort to present Bruce Lee as a mythical figure that's far different from how normal life resulted. The use of overdubbing actual interviews of Bruce to attempt to pass off the story they're trying to tell in their film as originating from his philosophy comes off as a cheap tactic to tell a fictional tale. The meta-aspect of trying to associate the real-life actors and performers into a mix between film reality and a fictional reality makes for a hard-sell. This is due to “Fist of Fear” going against established knowledge of Bruce and his fate for its own purposes. That makes for an even more disjointed tale when mixed with various clips of old-school kung-fu movies that are either used to showcase a younger Bruce's fascination with the stories of his relatives or explaining why he developed an interest in martial arts against his family's wishes. These changes are pretty insulting to his legacy while the different film-stock for these scenes allows for a lower-quality approach to slip through.
Moreover, the main factor in “Fist of Fear Taste of Death” is that these clips and shorts tend to come off as incredibly bland and dull. Even If you're able to get over the insult, you'll still find that the lack of competent action really limits the appeal of the film. The supposed fights in the competition that signal the original purpose of the movie are brief, underwhelming and done in an entirely comical approach that there's very little of interest for those expecting a full-on action-fest. The clips from the samurai movie intended to showcase the legacy of Bruce's family are a poor substitute since these are available as a separate film rather than being associated with this film. Getting to watch actual celebs like Fred Williamson and Ron Van Clief in action are somewhat enjoyable on that front but on the whole, there's nothing else about this one that's worthwhile.
As a continuation of Bruce's legacy, “Fist of Fear Taste of Death” is an outright travesty and way too good to be considered an insult and disgrace to his history while those looking for an action film are better left looking for the main film used as flashbacks for Bruce's grandfather. Avoid this thing at all costs and watch an actual Bruce movie one more time or one of his more respectful tributes instead of this thing.
