''They Call Me Bruce?'' (also known as ''They Call Me Bruce'') is a 1982 American

action comedy film The action comedy is a film genre that applies to action films where humor plays a much more central role. While early films feature stuntwork and humor, academic Cynthia King wrote that the genre only came into its own as a mainstay of the Americ ...

directed by Elliott Hong, written by David B. Randolph and starring

Johnny Yune Johnny Yune (October 22, 1936 – March 8, 2020), Korean name Yoon Jong-seung (), was a South Korean and American actor, singer and comedian. He played the lead in the 1980s films ''They Call Me Bruce?'' and ''They Still Call Me Bruce''. Early ...

and

Margaux Hemingway Margaux Louise Hemingway (born Margot Louise Hemingway; February 16, 1954 – July 1, 1996) was an American fashion model and actress. The granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway, she gained independent fame as a supermodel in the 1970s, appear ...

. A

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

kung fu movies Kung fu film () is a subgenre of martial arts films and Hong Kong action cinema set in the contemporary period and featuring realistic martial arts. It lacks the fantasy elements seen in ''wuxia'', a related martial arts genre that uses historical ...

, it became a

sleeper hit In the entertainment industry, a sleeper hit refers to a film, television series, music release, video game or other entertainment product that was initially unsuccessful on release, but eventually became a surprise success. A sleeper hit may have ...

. The film was followed by a sequel, ''

They Still Call Me Bruce ''They Still Call Me Bruce'' is a 1987 American action comedy film directed by James Orr (filmmaker), James Orr and Johnny Yune and starring the latter. It is a sequel to the 1982 film ''They Call Me Bruce?'' Plot The film begins with Bruce i ...

'' (1987), which also starred Johnny Yune.

Plot

The film opens with a young boy running to meet his grandfather (played by Yune), who lies dying on his bed. The young boy sadly explains that he could not find the medicine required to cure his grandfather's ailment and wonders aloud who will take care of him after his grandfather dies. His dying grandfather attempts to reassure the young boy and explains that he should go to

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. He further explains that when he was younger and working as a merchant marine, he met "the most beautiful girl" in America and tells the young boy that if he goes there, she will take very good care of him. As the young boy is asking how to find her, his grandfather dies and the film fades to black. When it fades back in, quite some time has passed and the young boy, who is now an adult, has arrived in America and has begun working as a chef, catering to some gangsters in California. The gangsters, who call the man "Bruce" due to his resemblance to the famed

martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the pres ...

Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...

, are having trouble keeping their "boss of bosses" happy and are trying to come up with the perfect solution to distributing cocaine to all of their clients throughout the United States. Some previous attempts at moving the drug have resulted in busts and the boss of bosses is not happy. Through a series of misunderstandings, Bruce makes it into the local newspaper as a hero, having thwarted an attempted robbery at the local market. Bruce's boss, Lil' Pete, sees the newspaper and quickly devises a plan, putting Bruce in control of moving the cocaine across the country and using Freddy, a stooge associated with the drug lords, as Bruce's

limousine A limousine ( or ), or limo () for short, is a large, chauffeur-driven luxury vehicle with a partition between the driver compartment and the passenger compartment which can be operated mechanically by hand or by a button electronically. A luxu ...

chauffeur A chauffeur () is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or a limousine. Initially, such drivers were often personal employees of the vehicle owner, but this has changed to s ...

. He convinces Bruce (who already wants to go to New York City to find the lady of whom his grandfather spoke) that he should drive to New York, not fly, as flying would rob him of seeing the beautiful countryside. Bruce agrees, and the rest of the film follows an unknowing Bruce delivering what he thinks to be Chinese

flour Flour is a powder made by Mill (grinding), grinding raw grains, List of root vegetables, roots, beans, Nut (fruit), nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredie ...

to associates of the gangsters across the country, and the interactions he has with the people on this trip.

Cast

Releases

The film was given a

limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

theatrically in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Film Ventures International Film Ventures International (FVI) was an independent film production and distribution company originally located in Atlanta, Georgia, during the 1970s. FVI garnered a notorious reputation within the industry for producing films that were highly ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in November 1982. Despite never being in more than 325 theaters, the film was a surprise success and grossed $16,894,678 at the box office.

Reception

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

of ''The Chicago Sun-Times'' gave the film a mixed 2-star review. He wrote ''They Call Me Bruce?'' had a few funny scenes, but the main flaw was being "a satire of a nearly satire-proof genre. Real kung-fu movies are so implausible and so inane that it's hard to make a satire".

Home video

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

of the film was released on April 29, 2003 by

Madacy Entertainment Madacy Lifestyle Marketing (formerly Madacy Entertainment) was a company based in Mount Royal, Quebec, that published DVDs, CDs and VHS tapes. Most of the products were frequently seen in many discount stores in the United States and Canada, ofte ...

, with some minor changes. Various scenes were cut, one of which was the removal of a short scene of

nudity Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing. While estimates vary, for the first 90,000 years of pre-history, anatomically modern humans were naked, having lost their body hair, living in hospitable climates, and not ...

involving a woman disrobing while Bruce is in a

hot tub A hot tub is a large tub full of water used for hydrotherapy, relaxation or pleasure. Some have powerful jets for massage purposes. Hot tubs are sometimes also known as "spas" or by the trade name Jacuzzi. Hot tubs may be located outdoors or ...

. A 25th-Anniversary DVD edition of ''They Call Me Bruce?'' was released on June 30, 2009, by Liberation Entertainment. The film is a high-quality transfer from a newly discovered 35 mm print, which the studio calls "pristine", and also restores the scenes that were cut from the original DVD release.

References

External links

* *{{rotten tomatoes, they_call_me_bruce 1982 films 1982 martial arts films 1982 action comedy films 1980s parody films 1980s martial arts comedy films American action comedy films Films set in California Films about cocaine Films about immigration to the United States Fiction about immigration Films about Chinese Americans Films about Korean Americans Cultural depictions of Bruce Lee Action films about Asian Americans 1980s English-language films 1980s American films Films scored by Tommy Vig English-language action comedy films