Movie Review: "Fist of Fury"

The main purpose of the paper is to study and review the film "Fist of Fury", filmed in 1972 and directed by Lo Wei that is known to be one of the most outstanding works of Bruce Lee. The film was made just after the release of Lee’s debut as the leading personage in the movie “The Big Boss” that was filmed by the same director, but the second movie is known to be a real breakthrough of young actor that opened his potential in the way the first movie failed to. The movie tells the story of one of the most famous Chinese folk heroes, Chen Zhen, the student of Huo Yuanja, the leader of the Ching Wu School. In the film, he fights with foreign enemies to defend his honor, the honor of his master, his school, and the justice that has to be restored. The movie has brought Bruce Lee to the level of the top film actors and made him well-known outside his country. Therefore, the movie should be regarded as one of the decisive moments in the career of the star and that is why it is really interesting and important to study this film and analyze it.

The movie begins with the return of the young student Chen Zhen to his school in Shanghai, where he finds out that his teacher has died. It is said that his master has died from a severe illness. Chen Zhen wanted to marry his fiancee, but now he understands that they need to postpone this event to better times as this tragedy deeply traumatizes the young man. At the funeral ceremony, Chen Zhen and the other students of the Chinese school are assaulted and offended by the people from the Japanese school. This abuse can not be forgotten and soon afterward Chen goes to the Hongkou District, where the dojo of the Japanese is situated. The protagonist fights with them to revenge the honor of his master, the members of his school, and himself. Chen defeats them all. After that, there is a situation in the park when the Sikh guard does not permit Chen to enter it, while the foreign woman and her dog get the permission. After that, the Japanese man tells Chen that he may get to the park in case he will behave like a dog. The hero becomes angry and beats the guard.

At that time, Hiroshi Suzuki, the Chinese schoolmaster, orders the students of the Japanese school to assail. They severely damage the school and leave it. When Chen Zhen returns to school, he understands that his actions resulted in serious harm to his school and schoolmates. They help him to escape from Shanghai. At that time Chen discovers that his teacher was poisoned by the cook and he kills him in revenge. His fiancee seeks Chen and they meet near the grave of his teacher. Suzuki sends policemen to arrest Chen, but he escapes and kills Suzuki’s translator. This makes Suzuki so angry that he sends his students to a Chinese school to destroy it and kill everyone inside. Chen defeats Suzuki and his friend, Petrov, but when he returns to school, he finds his schoolmates and the Japanese dead. The policemen come there to arrest him and he decides to surrender to protect the legacy of his teacher. The film ends when Chen makes the flying kick and the police open fire on the hero.

The movie is really exciting and spectacular. Bruce Lee is an extremely talented actor and the perfect fighter what is brilliantly demonstrated in the film. There is a real drama that is developing through the movie and we can see the evolution of the main hero as he becomes the real protector of his school, master, honor, and his own beliefs. He started as a student of his teacher and finally became the real strong man who deserves respect and honor. We can see that he is ready to fight not only for his reputation but for the reputation and respect of his schoolmates, school, and the legacy of his teacher that appears to be the highest value for Chen. In the end, we witness the death of the hero as there is no other variant for such a person. He is fair and he wins in the end – he defeats all his enemies. The fact that he is finally caught by the police and has to stay in prison is unfair and impossible for the real fighter and the real hero. Therefore, he prefers to die fighting which is the perfect death for such a person.

The main hero also demonstrates the image of the loyal student. I find it to be really interesting as it is possible to ask oneself what does it mean, and each individual will have another definition. Here, we can see that the student remains loyal to his teacher, his legacy, and lessons even after the death of the master. The legacy of the teacher has to continue its life in his students and that is the real characteristic of Chen. I find this thought to be extremely essential to understand.

Conclusion

In general, the film "Fist of Fury" is really dynamic and impressive. The audience can witness the series of beautiful fights where there is a bright demonstration of the acting talent of Bruce Lee. The film really opened his deep potential and made him the famous actor who is still known and respected all over the world.