Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
Documentary on the legendary martial artist Bruce Lee, with a focus on the production of his unfinished film Game of Death. Using interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, Lee aficionado John Little paints a portrait of the world's most famous action hero, concluding with a new cut of Game of Death's action finale, reconstructed from Lee's notes and recently-recovered footage.
This documentary earns its distinction primarily through the remarkable archival reconstruction of Game of Death's finale using Lee's original notes and newly recovered footage — a genuinely singular cinematic event. The reconstructed action sequences showcase Lee's unparalleled physicality and his jeet kune do philosophy in motion, making the ending a genuine highlight. Novelty is high because no other documentary has assembled this specific lost footage in this way, giving fans an unprecedented window into Lee's creative vision. Cinematography is above average given the quality of the recovered footage and how Little frames the archival material, though it's constrained by the nature of documentary work. The talking-head interview segments are functional but unremarkable in presentation, and as a portrait of Lee the narrative structure is competent rather than revelatory for those already familiar with his life. Acting scores low as this is a documentary relying on interview subjects rather than performers.