Circle Of Iron (The Silent Flute)
From A Story By Bruce Lee
At the height of his international fame, the legendary Bruce Lee - along with his friend and student James Coburn and Oscar -winning screenwriter Stirling Silliphant - began to write what he believed would be the greatest achievement of his film career. Five years after his mysterious death, Lee's vision would finally be realized. David Carradine, Christopher Lee, Roddy McDowall and Eli Wallach star in this acclaimed cult hit that brings
Lee's personal philosophy to the screen with a still-potent combination of mysticism, humor and martial arts mayhem.
Circle of Iron-also known as The Silent Flute- has now been remastered from its original negative and features exclusive Extras that honor the legacy of Bruce Lee, including an all-new interview with David Carradine.
Member Reviews
A Captivating Watch - clovejoy
I kept this one longer than usual and saw it twice before returning it. I never do this!
There was something unusually provocative about this one. It's a rare thing in movies to see profound wisdom mixed with extreme violence. I think what made this work is that the violence was never gratuitous, but rather illustrative of the wisdom portrayed in stepwise fashion.
The martial artist is but one form of the warrior archetype in search of enlightenment. I think the wisdom in this film applies equally well to any and all forms of the warrior as hero.
I look foward to watching it again.Original Story Co-written By Bruce Lee - bwod
Bruce Lee, the master Kung Fu martial artist and actor was working on a movie treatment with James Coburn and Stirling Silliphant, which would help him break through and become a bona-fide movie star in America, at a time when Asians usually found work as characateurs (e.g. Hop Sing from Bonanza). He moved back to Hong Kong, making some low-budget, but highly acclaimed Kung Fu movies, earning far more than he would in America. Thus The Silent Flute (aka Circle of Iron) was set aside. Lee died suddenly in 1973, and the rights to the movie went to David Carradine, afterwards.
As a Bruce Lee vehicle, I can only say that it might have been much better, had he starred in it himself. Since he didn't, and David Carradine chose to take on the role (actually roles, as he plays four characters in the film), it is noteworthy for two reasons. Far from your typical chop-socky show, this movie actually gets you thinking about the meaning of life from a Taoist perspective. Secondly, Carradine, who was the star of the hit television show "Kung Fu", does an admirable job as the blind master, and three other roles.
This is not a "Quality" production, but it held my interest, throughout. The scenery in the film is outstanding. The locations were all in Israel, and the history of the region comes through in almost every shot. I recommend this movie, especially if you are interested in the philosophy behind the martial arts. One and a half thumbs up.THE SILENT FLUTE IS DIFFERENT ~ GREAT MARTIAL ARTS FANTASY in ZEN/DAOIST PHILOSOPHIC PARCEL 4 Stars - SqueakyChair
SNAPSHOT: Interesting. Die-hard fight-fans won't like it. More philosophical in it's fight fare. Even paced. A good movie with morale out-come and value rendering. A little hoakey by today's standards. I liked it very much.
MORE THOUGHTS: Bonus Features on this Disc are very insightful !! A Tribute to Bruce Lee by his friends. The original name on the script was Silent Flute and it was screened in some cities under that name. Where Circle of Fire comes from even the stars of the film don't known. But it is marketed under that title now. David Carradine considers it possibly his finest work. It is a tribute to the early Bruce Lee Philosophy before his arrogance and then untimely death. I am hard pressed today to find in it the life changing values it gave me when i was young and it was new.
Might i suggest these good more traditional M.A.Films from ZIP.ca
" Iron Monkey "
~~> http://www.zip.ca/browse/title.aspx?f=titleId(114112)%7emps(25)
" Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon "
~~> http://www.zip.ca/Browse/Search.aspx?f=wc(Crouching+Tiger%2c+Hidden+Dragon)~t(-1)
"House of Flying Daggers (2004)"
~~> http://www.zip.ca/browse/title.aspx?f=titleId(128555)
FINAL WORD: ~ EXCITING NEW MARTIAL ARTS PREMISE AT THE TIME ~ or SoSaysSqueakyChair
Member Reviews
Read All...
A Captivating Watch - clovejoy
I kept this one longer than usual and saw it twice before returning it. I never do this!
There was something unusually provocative about this one. It's a rare thing in movies to see profound wisdom mixed with extreme violence. I think what made this ...Original Story Co-written By Bruce Lee - bwod
Bruce Lee, the master Kung Fu martial artist and actor was working on a movie treatment with James Coburn and Stirling Silliphant, which would help him break through and become a bona-fide movie star in America, at a time when Asians usually found work as ...THE SILENT FLUTE IS DIFFERENT ~ GREAT MARTIAL ARTS FANTASY in ZEN/DAOIST PHILOSOPHIC PARCEL 4 Stars - SqueakyChair
SNAPSHOT: Interesting. Die-hard fight-fans won't like it. More philosophical in it's fight fare. Even paced. A good movie with morale out-come and value rendering. A little hoakey by today's standards. I liked it very much.
MORE THOUGHTS: Bonus ...