Fifty years ago, on July 20, 1973, Bruce Lee died. Who is behind the Chinese-American cinematic martial arts icon? This is the question that filmmaker Bao Nguyen explores in Be Water!, which tells the story of a man, a family, two conditions and two film industries, separated by the Pacific Ocean. It deconstructs the myth, through the voice of Bruce Lee himself, by recalling the obstacles that the artist faced, and reaffirms the importance, still relevant today, of the representation of minority groups in cinema. A magnificent portrait, which restores the complexity – which he was so often denied – of a man torn between two worlds.
Born in San Francisco (California) in 1940, Bruce Lee grew up in Hong Kong, where his father sang in the opera. At age 13, he practiced wing chun, a traditional Chinese martial art focused on close combat. More gifted for fighting than for school, he was already a child star of Hong Kong cinema when he was sent, at 18, to live with his parents’ friends in Seattle (Washington). He founded a school there where he taught jeet kune do (“the way of the intercepting fist”), the philosophy and martial practices that he synthesized from other disciplines. He set about creating a network of schools to develop this discipline, when he was caught up, in the mid-1960s, by cinema.
In Hollywood, Asian characters are played by white actors, often in makeup; the roles are confined to excessive, extremely stereotypical characters, or to lackeys. Noticed during a martial arts demonstration, Bruce Lee plays Kato, the precious butler of the Green Hornet, in the eponymous series (1966-1967).
Flexibility and fluidity
Paid as an extra, he added dialogue to his role, initially mute, and broke the myth of the “model minority” attached to Asian people, then opportunely opposed to blacks, who demanded civil rights. “He refused to play characters who demeaned the Chinese,” says his widow, Linda Lee Cadwell. He knew that the only way to promote himself was to create his own roles. »
This is how he imagined the series Kung-Fu (1972-1975), which would be broadcast by ABC. But America wasn’t ready for an Asian hero, and ABC hired David Carradine for the lead role. Bruce Lee returned to Hong Kong and made the martial arts films – Big Boss (1971), The Fury to Conquer (1972), The Fury of the Dragon (1972) and Operation Dragon (1973) – which made his reputation and had a massive influence the fight choreography of Hollywood cinema. Having died suddenly at the age of 32, he did not have time to savor his successes.
Bao Nguyen draws on little-known, finely presented archives: letters written by Bruce Lee (and read by his daughter, Shannon Lee), family photographs, behind-the-scenes videos from his filming or at his home. Archives collected from close friends of the star: his wife, his daughter, his brother, his friends, his students – including basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and actor Dan Inosanto (The Game of Death, 1978) –, of cinema professionals with whom he worked. The witnesses only appear on screen at the moving end of the film.