Ang Lee and his son Mason have been preparing for this project for years.
“Unaccepted both as an American and a Chinese, Bruce Lee was a symbolic bridge between the East and the West. He introduced kung fu to the world, was a martial arts scientist, and also an exceptional artist. He revolutionized not only martial arts, but also cinema,” he explained during an interview with the portal Deadline director.
“I feel that I have to tell this story. Tell about this wonderful, unique man who, despite his petite stature, had extraordinary strength. And who, thanks to incredibly hard work, turned his dreams into reality,” he added.
Ang Lee is an Oscar winner for the films “Brokeback Mountain” and “Life of Pi”. He has also produced such productions as: “Sense and Sensibility”, “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, “Caution and Desire” and “Hulk”. His filmography ends with “Twin” from 2019. His son Mason appeared, among others, in the comedy “The Hangover in Bangkok”. He also has roles in “Limbo” and “Who Killed Cock Robin”.
Bruce Lee was born on November 27, 1940 in San Francisco. When he was three months old, he moved to Hong Kong with his parents. It was then that he appeared in a movie for the first time – held in the arms of his father, who was an actor, in the drama “Golden Gate Girl”. At the age of five, Lee starred in the drama “The Birth of Mankind”, and at the age of eight he appeared in the movie “Fu gui fu yun”.
When he was 13, he started training kung fu, and a few years later also boxing. In the late 1950s, he returned to the United States with his family and they lived again in San Francisco. In the USA, Lee began studying philosophy at the University of Washington. In 1963, he published his first book on kung-fu and opened a kung-fu school called “Jun Fan Gung-Fu Institute”. He soon created his own style of Jeet Kune Do.
He appeared in over 30 films, series and television programs, the most famous of which are those shot after 1964, when he returned to the USA.
The roles Bruce Lee played always involved fight scenes. This quickly made him an icon of Eastern martial arts. The impact of his film roles began to go beyond mere entertainment. He became a propagator of Eastern martial arts and related Eastern ideologies, and one of the heroes of pop culture. American sociologists also claim that Lee had a significant influence on the assimilation processes of the Chinese in American society.
Bruce Lee’s most famous film was Enter the Dragon, which was released in US theaters on July 26, 1973, just a few days after Lee’s sudden death. This film has become a symbol of the victory of the weak and excluded over the powerful of this world.
Bruce Lee died on July 20, 1973. He was 32 years old at the time. The lack of an official announcement regarding the cause of death caused the media to spread rumors and conspiracy theories about the cause of the star’s death. After an autopsy, it was officially announced that Lee’s death was due to cerebral edema caused by mixing painkillers with narcotics. Years later, Lee’s biography stated that he had health problems just a few months before his death. Bruce Lee was buried at Lake View Cemetery in Seattle.