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Reply With QuoteHere's a thought, he's dead.
In recent years, I have become really interested in the life and work of Bruce Lee.
What thoughts do you have about him?
Here's a thought, he's dead.
Bruce was to martial arts what Elvis was to Rock'n'Roll.Originally Posted by Ste
The martial arts philosophy he developed Jeet Kune Do (Way of the Intercepting Fist), was a martial arts style rooted in Wing Chun, and taking additional elements from many other martial arts that created a very effective style for street fighting (fast and brutal and very efficient), not as stylised as the movies would have you see most kung fu.
Read most of his books, was a very interesting character.
Onkar
His motto for JKD, "absorb what is useful, discard the rest, is something I've tried to take as an axiom for life. The guy was gifted in many ways and more intelligent than he was given credit for. Yet another tragic example of someone with so much to offer taken from us before his potential was realised.
And he was a cha cha champion
Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii igh Yaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
Ohh and I loved the way he spoke! His mouth never matched his words... strange but useful for confusing deaf people I would have thought
Jackie Chan is more entertaining!
Im a big fan - he died way too young.
Bruce Lee was the first poster on my wall as a kid. I loved him. Watched all the films he ever did. Still watch them when they are on tv. Still unsure why he died so young. I loved Brandon's films too "The Crow" being one of my favourites. He also died so young. I have a daughter called Amy Lee - guess where the Lee came from?
Too rude to share.
I never really appreciated the Bruce Lee Movies when I was younger. My Dad liked them but they didn't do much for me.
However in later years , somewhat disillusioned by mainstream offerings I became more interested in foriegn cinema. and in particular asian films. (Started with Crouching tiger hidden dragon) , I moved onto more obscure films. Fong Sai Yuk , Tai Chi Master, Films of Jackie Chan and Jet Li, etc and ultimately/eventually I found my way back to the Bruce Lee movies.
They show their age, they're not as polished as some but you cannot deny the man had something special. I would have loved to see where he would have been now in his career had be still been alive.
Read The Tao Of Bruce Lee by Davis Miller - it's about the best book I've ever read on Bruce Lee. Very intelligent and well-informed, and dispels a lot of the myths about his life.
Not least the idea that he was actually like one of the characters from his movies, a sort of martial monk.
I suppose you could argue that his approach to martial arts is similar to the whole idea of MJ - absorb the most useful (or aesthetically pleasing) aspects of lots of different dances and then mix them together.
Of course, then there is the problem of these different dances eventually separating out, like oil and water...
I have always loved watching Kung-fu movies, and he was the one who brought it into the mainstream.
His style based on what worked, the posturing was just that - posturing and seperate from his art. Only with Jackie Chan (and the other 'brothers' - Samo and the one I can't remeber) did the posturing actually start to become incorporated into the movement and martial arts. He did true H2H fighting rather than the wire work that more traditional kung-fu films seemed to use around that time.
I always attribute the following image/philosophy of movement to him: Your body is made of 95% water... You should move like water- able to gently engulf and absorb and move round/with obsticals. Able to find the path of least resistance to your goal. Able to be as powerfull as a wave breaking rocks. Able to pull like the strongest current and float like the calmest pond.
again:
Bruce Lee is definitely the forefather of martial arts on the big screen. I'm not a big fan of Chinese fighting styles, but I do like what he did.
As an aside, if you're interested in a more modern film which doesn't involve lots of string-fu, you could do a lot worse than watch Ong-Bak. It's a bit choppy in terms of plot and cinematography, but has some of the best fight scenes I have ever seen in a film. Another is The Warrior King...same guy, similar vibe but a bit more stylised. No wires in that one either.
this is a man thing isn't it.
Noooooo!this is a man thing isn't it.
The man was like Kung Fu's answer to Astaire! And he wore cute shoes.
Most people, when they think of Bruce Lee, think about the shouting and the fighting technique etc.The guy was gifted in many ways and more intelligent than he was given credit for. .
Believe it or not, I generally find much kung fu film action quite tedious (well apart from some film which I watched over and over again with wing chun and thai boxing in it). But Bruce made it look quite beautiful. Incredible body isolation and speed.
BUt what really impresses me is what drove him. The quest for constant improvement be it in cha cha or fighting arts. Also the quest to make the Chinese respectable in the United States. His love for the Chinese.
The Chinese were seen as almost subhuman when they worked California's railroads and I heard Melvyn Bragg say how Americans still feel uncomfortable about voting for an oriental. America fears the Chinaman.
Bruce wanted to show America and the world that the Chinese weren't the pathetic little people. so often ridiculed (and still ridiculed in film), a perception that I feel was prevalent in American minds. Chinese men were sexually inferior, had small genitalia , were kinky etc etc. Watch how Western films often emasculate the oriental male. Orientals were also sneaky (they are of course responsible for "Chinese whispers"). Bruce wanted people to get away from the idea of slitty eyed Chinese. He wanted people to see that Chinese had powerful and sophisticated art.(I am impressed by the quality of his art work also).
In a way I went through a long period of feeling that Bruce contributed to a stereo type of the Chinaman as an irrational and over emotional creature who jumped around and made monkey noises. Chinese people endured a lot of Bruce Lee type insults and still do.
But watching his "Lost interview" made me realise more of what made him tick. He wanted to be an antidote to 200 years of Western imperialism and Western centricity.
I wish that I could have met him and chatted to him. I am interested in his kung fu and unusual prowess but I do think that these were just the medium for self expression and his USP on behalf of the Chinese. I am also interested in his understanding of the inner secrets in a man's heart namely the desire for self expression. Most of all I am interested in his heart for his own people. He swam against the tide and was able to change Westerner's perceptions of the Chinaman.
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