Bruce Lee and I: A Biography and A Memoir

An extremely detailed informative book of a British white boy’s fascination with Bruce Lee and how it influenced him in venturing into the Hong Kong film industry.

Author Bey Logan

Published by Reel East Press

15 x 23 x 4.5 cm, 655 pages

Paperback, HKD$240

No stranger to Hong Kong films, Asian film expert Bey Logan releases his second book Bruce Lee and I: A Biography and A Memoir (2018), after his 36 Chambers of Kung Fu (2018) under his inhouse publishing Reel East Press. Bruce Lee and I: A Biography and A Memoir approaches things a bit differently, serving as an autobiographical look at a British white boy in Britain idolizing and then capitalizing on his fascination of the legendary Bruce Lee. The book chronicles Bey’s humble begins in small town Peterborough and then his adventures in the Hong Kong film industry. All stemming from Bruce Lee as the seed of adoration that grew into the very man. As a veteran of Asian audio commentary you really get the sense that the book is a lengthy written commentary.

With no shortages of Bruce Lee related books Bruce Lee and I: A Biography and A Memoir has to provide information that can raise it above the countless books especially after the much loved Bruce Lee biographical book Bruce Lee: A Life by Mike Polly released in the same year. Thankfully Bey provides much needed insider knowledge that sets it apart often divulging information from first-hand experience.

The book opens with a nice foreword from Ip Man’s very own Donnie Yen who is no stranger to Bruce Lee’s influence. Yen offers his little personal insight and support for the book. Its short and concise and sets a nice tone for the following pages.

The opening chapter focuses mainly on the earlier years of Bey Logan and how his fascination became an obsession. It provides a wonderful insight on a period and place where access to such a foreign product not being readily accessible. The subsequent chapters start breaking down each of Bruce Lee’s films; The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, Way of the Dragon, Enter the Dragon and Game of Death. As with the format of his previous book 36 Chambers of Kung Fu Bey goes from scene to scene (sometimes each individual frame) providing snippets of information. Breaking down locations, actors and at times the very reason for such incident occurring.

Bey is not afraid to be frank with some of his comments at times taking subtle and not to subtle digs at certain individuals. Bey gives respect to individuals where they are due but also at times mock other individuals that have crossed paths with him. Regular writer and authority of the Bruce Lee estate John Little gets a lot of mention in the book and it’s not always in a particularly good light. The book also provides a fascinating insight into the mechanization of the early Hong Kong film industry and the die-hard Bruce Lee fandom that Bey encounters during his journey. It’s also interesting to see how unbalanced the Hong Kong industry was during its period, where Bey a white male can just waltz into the studio’s unannounced or how meet ups with celebrities can be orchestrated with lies. Bey tackles the feuds that has formed among the years in Hong Kong as well as friendships made along the way.

At times the book can stray a bit of topic with information covering his costars on other projects but they all serve to paint a more vivid and informed subject matter. Your enjoyment will depend on how much you care about his rival star shooting on the same location. Where other books strictly focuses on Bruce Lee and only slightly sways to those encompassing around him, Bey stretches further with his detailed information on the likes of the Bruce exploitation and those long forgotten imitators.

Tighter proof reading would have greatly benefited the book, with multiple occasions Bey repeating information that he has already mentioned in the previous chapters. There is a constant notion of reinforcing the fact that Bob Wall lacks the relevant skills or how Unicorn Chan was a close friend or how Jimmy Wang Yu was a bitter rival. The book is also filled with some minor typos and text errors, in an instance the text will have an open bracket but fail to have a closing bracket, there was a break in paragraph even though the sentence has not finished and a place holder (in the form of XXXX) for the year of a film which I believe Bey was to return to but failed to do so in the end product. Though none of this takes away from the overall reading experience.

Other than a black and white pictures breaking up each chapter this book is pure text. The cover is a bit generic using the famous Game of Death tracksuit colour palette and a shadow of who I presume is Bey Logan. The physical book measures 15 x 23 x 4.5 cm so it’s a hefty book and provides a substantial read. The price offered on their official website is surprisingly steep at US$38.99 in comparison to those found at other retailers at HKD$240 (approx. US$30).

At 655 pages long the book offers a lot of information surrounding the Bruce Lee name whether directly or indirectly Bey goes through a lot. It is by no means a light read however it is definitely very well informed and insightful book to not only fans of Bruce Lee but also to Hong Kong cinema fans.