This epic TV series, first broadcast on China's CCTV-1 network in 2008, was initially released in the U.S. in a truncated three-hour film version. Here in its original form, Legend of Bruce Lee offers a somewhat leisurely retelling of the life of the iconic martial arts champion who later became an international film star. In this initial 10-episode volume, the young Bruce Lee grows up in a Hong Kong where he faces discrimination from the colonial British population and violent Chinese street gangs. After a gang fight leaves him hospitalized, Bruce's parents send him to the United States, where he settles in Seattle and is soon teaching martial arts, as well as falling in love with an American girl named Linda Emery. After facing a series of professional and personal setbacks, Bruce gains prominence by winning a national karate championship, which proves to be a turning point in his life. Much of the power in this series is generated by Danny Chan, an actor who bears an uncanny physical resemblance to his legendary character and captures much of his charisma. But Chan is also a capable dramatic performer, and his scenes with Michelle Lang, who plays Linda, make for solid relationship drama. By U.S. TV standards, the pacing here is a bit slow, but Lee fans will likely enjoy this Chinese perspective on his compelling life. Recommended. (P. Hall)
Legend of Bruce Lee: Volume One
Well Go USA, 3 discs, 451 min., not rated, DVD: $24.99 March 20, 2017
Legend of Bruce Lee: Volume One
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