It was in 1973 that the United States was swept up in a kung fu craze. That year King Boxer (retitled Five Fingers of Death for its American release) topped the box office in the spring of that year. Soon other Hong Kong kung fu movies were also topping the box office charts, so that on the box office chart for May 16 1973 in Variety no less three kung fu movies were at the top of the chart. At no. 1 on the chart was The Big Boss (retitled Fists of Fury in the United States), starring Bruce Lee, who was then probably best known as Kato on the TV series The Green Hornet.
While the king fu craze began in 1973, work on what would become Enter the Dragon had begun earlier. Producer Fred Weintraub was convinced that there was a market for martial arts films made in the United States. He persuaded Warner Bros. to finance a martial arts films and also brought in Bruce Lee's production company, Concord. Warner Bros. signed a deal with Golden Harvest to distribute the film. Golden Harvest had been founded in 1970 and had begun to rival the Shaw Brothers in producing kung fu movies. Enter the Dragon would be the first kung fu movie in history to be produced by a Hollywood studio.
Michael Allin, who would later work on the movies Truck Turner (1974) and Flash Gordon (1980), was hired to write the screenplay for what was initially called Blood and Steel. Robert Clouse was hired to direct the film. He had earlier Darker Than Amber (1970) and Dreams of Glass (1970). As to casting, Robert Clouse had wanted Rod Taylor to play the character of Roper, a down on his luck gambler and martial artist. It was Bruce Lee who decided against Rod Taylor playing Roper, thinking that he was too tall for the role. It was then that John Saxon was cast as Roper. John Saxon was already trained in the martial arts, having a black belt in Judo and Shotokan Karate. In the role of Williams Rockne Tarkington, who had guest starred on such TV shows as The Andy Griffith Show and Tarzan, was originally cast. It was only days before production was set to start that he dropped out of the movie. Jim Kelly was then cast in the role. He was trained in Okinawan karate and had won several karate championships. Williams in Enter the Dragon would be his breakout role and would soon become an action star.
Enter the Dragon was shot on location in Hong Kong. The opening scenes were shot on Baker Street in Hong Kong. Other scenes were shot at Aberdeen Harbour in Aberdeen, Hong Kong and at Tai Tam Bay in Hong Kong. Several scenes were shot at Golden Harvest Studio. Some shooting was done in Los Angeles as well. By Hollywood standards Enter the Dragon was a B-movie. It cost only $850,000 to make.
While Enter the Dragon only had a production budget of $850,000, its marketing budget was over $1 million. The movie was heavily publicized months before its release, with such major publications as Esquire, Newsweek, Time, and The Wall Street Journal covering the movie. Its promotion kit included photos, cards, a flip book, a comic book, t-shirts, posters, and more.
Sadly, Bruce Lee would never see the premiere of Enter the Dragon. It was on July 20 1973 that he died of brain oedema at the age of 32. The world premiere of Enter the Dragon in Hong Kong was six days later, on July 26 1973. The North American premiere of Enter the Dragon was on August 17 1973 in New York City. Once the film expanded to the rest of the country in September, it topped Variety's box office chart for two weeks and stayed in the top ten of the box office charts for the next four weeks. It was in October, in its eighth week of release in the United States, that it once more went to number one. Ultimately, it grossed $25,000,000 in its initial American release.
While Enter the Dragon was a success at the box office, it initially received mixed reviews. According to Variety at the time, there was only one favourable review and four unfavourable reviews of the film among New York City critics. There were critics who recognized that Enter the Dragon was something special, as both Variety and The New York Times gave it favourable reviews.
As proven by the box office, audiences certainly loved Enter the Dragon. It seems possible that much of this was due to the death of Bruce Lee, already a popular star with fans of king fu cinema in the United States. Just as James Dean's death may well have spurred the success of Rebel Without a Cause (1955), it seems possible that Bruce Lee's death spurred the success of Enter the Dragon. It also seems possible that the kung fu craze, although it had faded somewhat from its height earlier in the year, also helped Enter the Dragon at the box office. Ultimately, it would seem that most of its success was due to audiences recognizing something that some critics did not. Quite simply, Enter the Dragon was a good movie.
Enter the Dragon was a blend of various genres, combining kung fu with tropes from spy movies and even the concurrent Blaxploitation movies. This made it seem starkly original at the time. Its script featured plenty of action, giving Bruce Lee and the other stars plenty of chances to show off their skills in the martial arts. Even the actors' performances were solid, particularly that of John Saxon as Roper. Enter the Dragon stood out even from other kung fu movies of the time, let alone other action movies of the time.
Enter the Dragon would have a lasting influence. While Bruce Lee was already well known in the United States at the time of its release, Enter the Dragon insured he would be remembered as a star. It would have an impact not only on further kung fu movies, but action movies in general. Movies from the two Kill Bill movies to The Matrix to the John Wick movies show its influence upon them. It would even have an influence on anime. Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama was a huge fan of Enter the Dragon. If many action heroes from Batman to John Wick utilize a blend of martial arts, much of it is due to Enter the Dragon.
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