Bruce Lee: A Life
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Average rating3.5
"A biography of the movie icon Bruce Lee"--
"Bruce Lee made martial arts a global phenomenon. He bridged the divide between Eastern and Western cultures. He smashed long-held stereotypes of Asians and Asian Americans. And yet, almost a half-century after his sudden death at age thirty-two, there has not been a definitive account of the film legend's life. Until now. Following years of research that included more than one hundred interviews--with Lee's family, friends, business associates, and even the actress in whose bed he died--Matthew Polly has constructed a complex, humane portrait of the icon. Polly explores Lee's boyhood as a child star in Hong Kong cinema; his troublemaking teenage years that got him sent away to America; his beginnings as a martial arts teacher, eventually becoming instructor to movie stars like Steve McQueen; his struggles as an Asian American actor in Hollywood and frustration seeing roles go to white actors in eye makeup; his eventual triumph as a leading man; his challenges juggling a skyrocketing career with his duties as a father and husband; and his shocking death, which even today remains the subject of controversy. This is an honest, revealing, and long overdue look at an impressive yet imperfect man whose personal story was even more entertaining and inspiring than any fictional role he played onscreen."--Dust jacket.
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Executive Summary: I found the book dragged a bit in places, but overall was a pretty good. I learned a ton about Bruce Lee that I never knew.
Audiobook: Jonathan Todd Ross does a solid job. For nonfiction I always want a forgettable narrator. What I mean by that is I don't want them to stand out because the book should do the talking. I don't want voices or dramatic flair. I also don't want to be lulled to sleep. Mr. Ross accomplished this
Full Review
I don't remember how old I was when I first saw a Bruce Lee movie. I suspect it was Enter the Dragon, and I was probably a teenager. I grew up loving Asian media, especially anime and martial arts movies. This book gave me the itch to rewatch Enter the Dragon for who knows how many times, and even though it's been probably over 10 years I still know a bunch of the lines.
I would often dream of learning martial arts one day, but never followed through (largely because my parents could never afford it when I was a kid and by the time I had the money myself my desire to learn had mostly dwindled).
I still love Martial Arts movies, but I don't watch them like I used to. It's largely in part to Bruce Lee. Moreso than I realized before reading this book. By the time I was growing up those films were pretty prevalent, good, bad and everywhere in between.
I never realized what a pioneer Bruce was. I also didn't realize what a shitty husband he was. They say never meet your heroes, and for good reason. While I never met him, this book showed me that Bruce Lee wasn't quite the idol material he's often made out to be. He made some good movies, and was a great martial artist. But he like all of us were flawed.
He overcame a misspent youth to go on to inspire millions and died tragically young. I've probably watched his son Brandon's movie the Crow 10x more than I've watched Enter the Dragon, and it's a shame that tragedy has seemed to follow this family.
Overall if like me you loved Bruce Lee growing up, you may find this a pretty interesting read. I especially liked some of the family history as well as the inside details on how Bruce finally managed to break through American cinema and launch the Martial Arts invasion in the US.
