Bruce Lee Comes Back From The Dead Night at Popcorn Reef, Featuring a Live DJ Set by LethalEthan at The Tenth Ave Arts Center [4/29/24]

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Featuring the San Diego Premiere of Director David Gregory's ENTER THE CLONES OF BRUCE documentary and Severin's new restoration of THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN, with a live DJ set by LethalEthan of Severin and Rendezvous before the films and during intermission

Co-Presented by The Casual Company at The Tenth Avenue Arts Center Downtown

Doors open and LethalEthan's DJ set starts at 6:00 PM on the main stage

Films start at 7:00 PM

Our next show at The Tenth Avenue Arts Center is our most extravagant yet, and we can't wait for you to experience it. To understand what the hell we're doing, we've first got to ask you a question. Are you aware that there's an entire subgenre of cinema called "Bruceploitation?"

Back in the early 70s, Bruce Lee was just hitting the peak of his fame when he tragically passed away. So in a move...arguably for the money...Hong Kong producers started cranking out films with Bruce Lee lookalikes, billing them as biopics on his life, unauthorized sequels to his hit films, and everything in-between.

But in true exploitation fashion, what might have started as a tasteless cash grab ended up yielding something quite special. The films themselves are wild. The action sequences in many of them are top-notch. And what shines through when you watch them today is that "Bruce Lee," when he's being played in a film by another actor, becomes something more than a man through the magic of cinema. It's a wonderful form of immortalization that makes you think about how legacies can live forever on film.

So...what's happening on April 29th? Severin's David Gregory has made a feature-length documentary on the Bruceploitation phenomenon titled ENTER THE CLONES OF BRUCE, and we’re bringing you The San Diego Premiere of it, fresh off the rave reviews it received at last year's Tribeca Film Festival.

Then, we're going to play what is assuredly the craziest Bruceploitation film of all time - THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN - which has been newly restored by Severin for their new THE GAME OF CLONES box set that's hitting stores this May. In this film, the soul of "Bruce Lee" travels to the underworld and has to fight all sorts of familiar film characters, including Dracula, The Godfather, The Exorcist, Emmanuelle, James Bond, "Clint Eastwood", and more.

And, yes...you've guessed it right. That's not all! We’ve asked our friend LethalEthan from Severin and Rendezvous to do a live DJ set to some of our favorite Bruceploitation trailers. That action will be happening from 6-7, and then again during intermission between films.

It's a one-of-a-kind night that you'll never get to experience again, at least in this lifetime. On April 29th, we're bringing Bruce Lee back from the dead at The Tenth Avenue Arts Center. Be there, or get Wing Chunned.

ENTER THE CLONES OF BRUCE Synopsis:

Within hours of his 1974 funeral, Hong Kong movie studios began to produce hundreds of unauthorized biopics, spin-offs and rip-offs starring a competing roster of Bruce Lee lookalikes. Over the next decade, ‘Bruceploitation’ would become a staple of global cinema. Director David Gregory – whose award-winning documentaries include LOST SOUL: THE DOOMED JOURNEY OF RICHARD STANLEY’S ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU and BLOOD & FLESH: THE REEL LIFE & GHASTLY DEATH OF AL ADAMSON – now examines this fascinating phenomenon via interviews with Bruce Li, Bruce Le, Bruce Liang and Dragon Lee; martial arts legends like Angela Mao, David Chiang, Phillip Ko and Sammo Hung; and the producers, directors, distributors and experts – along with copious clips from the films themselves – that for the first time reveal the history, controversy and legacy behind one of the most bizarre genres in movie history.

ENTER THE CLONES OF BRUCE Trailer:

THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN Synopsis:

The multiverse has never been filled with this much madness. Easily one of the most unhinged and surreal martial arts spectacles to ever escape from Hong Kong, THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN finds the spirit of Bruce Lee (Bruce Leung Siu-lung) battling through the Underworld against Dracula, James Bond, The Godfather, "The Exorcist," Emmanuelle, some mummies, and more. But he's not alone! Along the way, Bruce befriends the One-Armed Swordsman, Caine from the TV show KUNG FU, and last but not least, Popeye the Sailor. Previously only available via crusty bootlegs, THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN has been preserved by Severin Films from the only known film elements in this universe—or any other.

THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN Trailer:

PLEASE NOTE:

-This show is at The Tenth Avenue Arts Center (930 10th Ave, San Diego, CA 92101)

-Soft drinks, along with candy, chips, cookies, and crackers will be available for purchase during the show.

-We cannot allow you to bring alcohol into the venue, but smoking is allowed at The Top of the Tenth, both before and during the show if you want to step out.

-If you are visibly intoxicated or under the influence of drugs, we cannot allow you into the venue. Thanks for your understanding.

-There will be no delivery of tickets via shipping or email - we'll simply have your name on the list at the door (plus however many tickets you buy). Please bring your ID for verification purposes to check in. We can check in partial parties too, so if you're buying for multiple people and you're arriving at different times, don't worry about it.

-If you have any questions at all, please contact eddie@popcornreef.com