http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/06/FINISHING-THE-GAME-Kicks-and-Misses.aspx In July 1973, martial arts action star Bruce Lee died unexpectedly at age 32.  Not long after, his last finished film, ENTER THE DRAGON, was released.  It became an international success and that along with his untimely passing made him more than just a star; he became a legend. Lee left behind a dozen minutes of an action sequence of GAME OF DEATH, a film he thought of as a passion project.  So we have a studio with 12 minutes of film featuring one of the biggest stars of the time in its vault.  What a shame.  What a waste.  If only they could salvage it, they’d make a fortune.   But how to do that?  Why not use the footage and awkward camera angles of someone else made up to look like Lee?  This sounds like a stupid idea that couldn’t possibly take hold, even in Hollywood – except that’s what really happened.  GAME OF DEATH “starring Bruce Lee was actually released six years after his death. Filmmaker Justin Lin uses that as a starting point for FINISHING THE GAME, a mockumentry about the process of casting a Bruce Lee replacement.  Presumably, Lin wants to make some statement about the role of Asian-Americans in the film industry, but what that statement is isn’t clear.  Lin’s first theatrical movie was the highly regarded indie project BETTER LUCK TOMORROW.  He followed that with studio films, ANNAPOLIS and THE FAST AND FURIOUS: TOKYO DRIFT, both only so-so, though the latter did well at the box office. In the filmmakers notes distributed to the press, Lin says the idea for FINISHING THE GAME came to him before BETTER LUCK (2002), but he was glad that he waited until he had film industry experience.  I suggest that was a mistake.  Had he made the movie when he was more of an outsider, he might have been less self-referential to the business, making it more accessible.  And in any event, it is so long after the actual events occurred and they are so obscure to most movie-goers, I don’t see how the average fan will relate. en-US Critics Rant info@criticsrant.com Subtext Version 1.9.4.0 http://www.criticsrant.com/images/default_gravatar_bullhorn.png http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/06/FINISHING-THE-GAME-Kicks-and-Misses.aspx 77 60 http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/06/FINISHING-THE-GAME-Kicks-and-Misses.aspx#2017 oh cool brokun1 http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/06/FINISHING-THE-GAME-Kicks-and-Misses.aspx#2017 Sat, 03 Nov 2007 16:13:38 GMT