Well, I’ll be. Bruce Lee (Philip Ng) was a prick. Huh. That didn’t come across in the movies I grew up with. I’m thankful it did not, but not pleased with Birth of the Dragon. Was this film not supposed to be about the legend of Bruce Lee? How the man went from street punk to international movie star? Well, Birth wasn’t too keen on showing li’l Bruce, Bruce the pupil, or Bruce the trainee … nor was it terribly keen on showing the growth or inspiration of Bruce’s ambition. It was, however, keen on showing the knock-down drag-out between Bruce Lee and his Chinese rival, Wong Jack Man (Yu Xia)
I’m sorry, but I cannot see “Wong Jack Man” without thinking “Wolfman Jack.” This must have been quite confusing in the early 1960s for fans of both martial arts and the Top 40 countdown.
In the 1960s, Bruce Lee was making cheesy chopsocky films and using his endless supply of students as dragon fodder. And even white guys got to learn San FranKungFu. Uh oh. Birth of the Dragon claims that the Orient objected to Bruce teaching Kung Fu to Americans. Apparently, he didn’t have a franchise license or something. I’m not sure why anybody cared; Americans obviously didn’t learn it very well. And yet, Chinese Kung Fu master Wong Jack Man traveled abroad seeking penance, showdown, and perhaps a son he could name “Hugh.” If Wong Jack Man did sail an ocean to teach Bruce a lesson, it was likelier about civility or grammar or civics. He came to fight like circus clowns come to discuss politics.
Aside from Philip Ng’s abysmal acting (dude, you were born to kick ass; that’s it), there are two huge disappointments 
with Birth of Dragon. First, as discussed earlier, Bruce Lee comes off as a dick. Constantly. His overblown parade of “ME ME ME” peacockery is off-putting in any language. I dunno exactly what Kung Fu secrets Prometheus Lee stole for Westerners, but they sure didn’t include humility. The second is that this story almost entirely told through white guy Steve McKee (Billy Magnussen), the man who became pupil to both Bruce Lee and Wong Jack Man. That’s a neat trick, no? Here’s a movie about the battle between two Kung Fu legends and you managed to make the story All About Steve.
I’m being overly critical because Birth of the Dragon deserved choice consequence, but the film wasn’t quite as bad as I’m letting on. The Kung Fu in the film is fairly decent and that’s essentially why the movie was made. The thing is, however, nothing in this film is good enough to erase the tarnishing of Bruce. And if push comes to roundhouse shove, the key thing I learned here is that if you’re good enough at Kung Fu, apparently gravity no longer applies. Yeah, go sell that to Birth of the Hidden Dragon. Crouching Frog ain’t buyin’.
Two masters with reputations at risk-o
Their showdown won’t be at all brisk-o
One horrible scar
O’er cable car
I left my myth in San Francisco
Rated PG-13, 103 Minutes
Director: George Nolfi
Writer: Stephen J. Rivele & Christopher Wilkinson
Genre: The diminishing of a legend
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Fans of Wong Jack Man
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: Fans of Bruce Lee
