Enter the Fat Dragon by Sammo Hung (Review)
After Bruce Lee’s death in 1973, a cotton industry of imitators sprung up, all hoping to cash in on the superstar’s demise and legend. With names like Bruce Le or Bruce Li, it’s a safe bet to say that most of these films were as unoriginal as their star’s names. Enter the Fat Dragon, on the other hand, doesn’t come across as a mindless scheme to cash in on something. Rather, it comes off as part homage and part parody. But that doesn’t mean it’s that great of a film.
Sammo Hung plays Ah Lung, a hapless pig farmer who’s sent to Hong Kong to help out his uncle. Lung is obsessed with Bruce Lee, adopting Lee’s haircut and style of dress, as well as his martial arts skills. Once arriving in the big city, it’s only a matter of time before he finds trouble. Of course, he does everything with a good heart, but that doesn’t mean that he’s any less of a bungler.
The main reason that anyone interested in Bruce Lee would be interested in this film is Sammo Hung. I’ve always found it amazing that anyone as portly as Hung, who studied at the Peking Opera with Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao, can move that quickly and smoothly. At times, his acrobatics rival those of his former classmates. In addition to his speed and agility, he as all of Bruce’s mannerisms down to a T: the little gestures, the quick little steps, the high-pitched yelps, even the tasting his own blood.
The movie cops scenes from various Bruce Lee films throughout its length. The best is the opening scene, which is taken directly from the opening of Enter the Dragon. Lung enters Hong Kong riding in the prow of a boat, which he soon sinks in the course of one of his Bruce Lee fantasies. The final scene also contains references to Enter the Dragon (complete with a Black Belt Jones lookalike of sorts), as well as The Big Boss.
I didn’t go into great detail about the plot, but for good reason. It’s just not all that interesting. Suffice to say, a lot of hijinks occur with mistaken identities, Lung’s bungling, etc. If you’re not a fan of the sort of humor that seemed to pervade Jackie Chan’s early ’80s movies (think Wheels on Meals), then you’ll probably grow very tired of this film very quickly. But if you’re a rabid Bruce fan, you might get a kick out of watching Hung parody and pay homage to your hero.
DVD Specs
Nothing special here. No extras, aside from being able to jump to certain chapters. The video quality is very poor; it looks like an old VHS. You’ll see dust and scratches all over the place. No remastering has been done. Audio is what you’d expect as well. This looks to be a straight transfer from film, and using an old print to boot.