“Don’t think. Feel! It’s like a finger pointing away to the moon. Don’t concentrate on the finger, or you will miss all that heavenly glory”
Starring Bruce Lee in his final completed film, Enter the Dragon introduced martial arts to a global audience. Lee’s charisma and fighting expertise were known to many at the time, but this film helped his persona explode, creating a worldwide fan base. It has the thrilling fight sequences that we all come to expect when watching a Lee movie, but also takes a close look at themes of discipline, self-control, and honour.
History
Enter the Dragon was the first major Hollywood–Hong Kong co-production. It was the result of a landmark partnership between Warner Bros. and Hong Kong’s Golden Harvest studio. Whilst already being popular in the Asian market, this was Bruce Lee’s big push to win over American audiences. Lee had previously struggled to break into Hollywood, and one of the most glaring examples of this was during his work on the television series The Green Hornet. Lasting only one season, he felt he was often typecast and underutilised.
The success in Asia of his previous films The Big Boss and Fist of Fury showed the commercial potential of Kung Fu movies. If only they could break into the Western mainstream. To ensure this happened, Lee heavily influenced the story and choreographed the fight scenes himself. The tournament structure and espionage narrative provided an accessible framework for a broader audience. Casting ensured that American actors John Saxon and Jim Kelly were used to provide cross-cultural appeal. Even so, Lee was clearly the centrepiece and the star that everyone wanted to see.
Importance
Enter the Dragon is regarded as a landmark in global cinema. It transformed martial arts films from a niche genre into a worldwide phenomenon. It was a watershed moment in the global circulation of martial arts cinema, not simply because of its action, but because it changed how martial arts were viewed as a whole. It broke down barriers between Hollywood and Hong Kong cinema, opening the door for future collaboration
At the time, the intensity and realism of the fight scenes redefined what could be achieved in an action movie. This propelled Bruce Lee to worldwide stardom and paved the way for many future stars. Without Enter the Dragon, it’s very possible there wouldn’t have been the explosion of martial arts cinema in the 70s and 80s. Lee’s performance challenged long-standing Hollywood stereotypes of Asian men by presenting a hero who was intelligent, disciplined, and physically unmatched. This helped pave the way for stars such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li, and Donnie Yen and fundamentally changed how martial arts and Asian representation were viewed around the world.
Legacy
Enter the Dragon remains a defining achievement in film history. It encouraged audiences to seek out Lee’s previous movies (myself included), and helped cement many of these as classics as well. It will feel a little rough around the edges for modern audiences, but there is no denying the impact it had on release. His death at age 32 meant we never got to see how his work would evolve. While this is one of cinema’s biggest losses, I imagine Lee would have been deeply proud of the success and impact of his final completed film.
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