Bullet Points: Bruce Le’s Greatest Revenge
Truth in advertising and Bruceploitation movies aren’t exactly synonymous with one another. With that said, one might be skeptical about just how great 1979’s Bruce Le’s Greatest Revenge actually was. I will admit, I was a bit skeptical myself but knew there was only one way to find out…
- New Kid on the Block: Chin (Bruce Le, Bruce’s Deadly Fingers) has just moved away from home to begin martial arts training under the tutelage of Master Ho, although I don’t think we ever see Master Ho actually teaching Chin anything. We do see some of the more experienced martial artists busting Chin’s balls for his technique… but fortunately for Chin he does have some allies at the school, including Master Ho’s daughter, Master Ho’s #1 student Chai (Tong Yim-Chan, Heroes Two) and two goofs who become Chin’s comedic sidekicks played by Hon Kwok-Choi (My 12 Kung Fu Kicks) and To Siu-Ming (Bruce Lee in New Guinea). When Master Ho needs a package picked up from a warehouse down by the docks, it is Chin and his two sidekicks that are tasked with the pick up.
- On the Waterfront: When Bruce and his friends get to the docks, Bruce can’t help but notice that some of the Chinese dock workers are being bullied and pushed around by some of the Japanese and even some of their fellow countrymen who are on the Japanese payroll, most notably Mr. Tau Foo (Yam Ho, Bolo), who walks around with a bullwhip and he’s not afraid to use it. Bruce is seething… but what can he do?!? Master Ho forbids his students from getting into fights, so Chin picks up the package and heads back to Master Ho’s school.
- Extreme Consequences: What happens next is a clear illustration of how badly the Japanese and their allies treat the Chinese dock workers. When one of the dock workers is caught taking a peek inside one of the crates he is busting his hump moving and sees that they contain guns, that dock worker is sworn to secrecy and warned not to utter a word about what he saw inside that crate. The dock worker complies and goes home for the night… that same night the Japanese show up at his door, kill the dock worker and brutally rape his daughter. When the other dock workers find out what happened to their friend, they turn to Master Ho for help. But Master Ho denies their request, he doesn’t believe kung fu is for fighting and believes the dock workers should go to the authorities for help.
- Rules Were Made To Be Broken: Despite Master Ho’s edict, Chin can’t help but intervene when he sees some of his fellow countrymen being beaten by a Japanese dude with a Hitler mustache… Shortly after that incident, Chin and Chai happen upon a girl that is being harassed by some of the bad guys and despite the odds being stacked against them, Chin and Chai throw the no fight rule out the window and whoop all the bad guys’ asses. And that’s about the time the Japanese Boss (Ku Feng, Dynamo) sends for the heavy artillery in the form of The Mongolian (Bolo Yeung, The Clones of Bruce Lee), who shows up and starts god damning everything and everyone.
- Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner: The Japanese are not happy about these recent developments and want to know who dare stands up to them… the weasel Mr. Tau Foo is more than happy to throw Master Ho and his students under the bus, citing that they would be the only ones skilled enough to go toe to toe with the Japanese contingent. This eventually leads to Master Ho receiving a dinner invitation so the two sides can clear the air and reach some sort of understanding… I didn’t believe that was going to happen, none of Master Ho’s students believed that was going to happen, the only one who took this as a good faith invitation was Master Ho, which is why he foolishly went to the dinner alone. Ho eventually figured out that everything wasn’t kosher and he did so in dramatic fashion when he flipped over the dinner table… then Master Ho got the ever loving crap kicked out of him. Afterwards his nearly lifeless carcass was dumped outside his school and Master Ho’s dying words to his students were “re-venge… re-venge”.
In my estimation, Bruce Le’s Greatest Revenge delivered on its promise of greatness. I would probably rank Enter the Game of Death a notch higher, but anytime you can get Bruce Le against Bolo Yeung and Ku Feng in the same movie you are in for a treat.
And if you are into treats, I have a treat for you in the form of these Bonus Bullet Points…
- If You Ever: …wanted to see Bruce Le rip the pony tail off of a long haired Bolo, then Bruce Le’s Greatest Revenge is the movie for you.
- AKA: In a great example of deceptive Bruceploitation marketing, Bruce Le’s Greatest Revenge was also released as Way of the Dragon 2, despite having no actual connection to Bruce Lee’s 1972 film, The Way of the Dragon.
- Words of Wisdom: “Don’t be a lazy bones.” – Ah Chin
- If You Ever: …wanted to see Bruce Le rip a hoop earring out of Bolo’s ear, then Bruce Le’s Greatest Revenge is the movie for you.
- Bastard Count: I counted a total of 9 “bastards” in Bruce Le’s Greatest Revenge with the best one being “bas-tard” as a dying man’s last word!
