6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Young, up-and-coming martial artist, Bruce Lee, challenges legendary kung fu master Wong Jack Man to a no-holds-barred fight in Northern California.
Starring: Billy Magnussen, Terry Chen, Teresa Navarro, Ron Yuan, Philip NgAction | 100% |
Biography | 14% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 1.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
First, there was Bruce Lee. Then, there was Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story. Now, there's Birth of the Dragon, a highly fictionalized recount of the true-life, highly publicized, but private and secretive clash between Bruce Lee -- the film and television icon -- and Wong Jack Man, a more traditionally oriented Kung Fu master. But the film is also as much the story of a pair of Lee's students, and one in particular whose forbidden love for a Chinese girl sees his allegiances challenged and code compromised, creating as much, if not more, chaos around him than even the growing rivalry between the masters. The film can be fun, the film can be silly. It's well made and largely enjoyable on the surface, but fans looking for a more traditionally oriented Lee biopic will not find it here.
Enter the Birth of the Dragon.
Birth of the Dragon features an agreeable 1080p transfer. Despite some erratic source noise -- which can be rather severe in certain lower-light scenes -- the image presents very well, offering a fairly stable, organic and filmic, appearance. Textural bounties are evident throughout. Close-ups yield satisfying complexity. City environments spring to life with not shortage of tangible concrete and brick work. Clothes are sharp and precise. Image clarity extends to every inch of each frame; there are no soft or smudgy corners to be seen. Colors are abundant and refined, offering plenty of punch and effortless nuanced saturation. Black levels are deep and honest with only a few occasions when they drift into murky crush. Flesh tones appear accurate. This is a satisfying presentation from Universal.
Birth of the Dragon features a well-rounded DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Music plays with effortless width and clarity; it's suitably big and precise throughout the range and offers an agreeably modest surround implementation. The track additionally offers well defined environmental ambience. City din -- pedestrian chatter, passing traffic -- draw the listener into the film's bustling urban exteriors while restaurant chatter, rolling waters heard from a pier, and other inconsequential but location-specific elements enter the stage with impressive precision and placement. Crowd chants and cheers immerse the listener into a fight around the 33-minute mark. Smaller action sounds never struggle to find just the right positioning or depth. Dialogue is clear and refined with positive front-center placement.
Birth of the Dragon contains four featurettes, all lumped under a single banner called 'Birth of the Dragon:' Behind the Scenes that
altogether run less than six minutes. A
DVD copy of the film and a voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy are included with purchase.
Birth of the Dragon is not be the Bruce Lee biopic its title might lead one to believe it to be. It strays, it meanders, its focus isn't laser-like, but at the same time it's a surprisingly enjoyable little film that's built on quality acting, well-drawn characters (again ignoring any liberties the movie may take with them), sharp fight choreography, and a decent, if not fairly hackneyed, love story that propels much of the plot. Perhaps the film's most interesting angle comes in the exploration Lee's and Wong Jack Man's dueling philosophies on the place of Kung Fu both in their own souls and in the greater world around them. If one approaches the movie with an open mind and sets aside all expectations and want for adherence to fact over fiction, one may find the movie to be a fairly enjoyable diversion. Universal's Blu-ray offers quality video and audio alongside a few extras. Recommended.
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