The Big Boss


The Big Boss is a 1971 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Lo Wei and Wu Chia-hsiang. Bruce Lee stars in his first major film in a lead role, and his first Hong Kong film since 1960. The film co-stars Maria Yi, James Tien, Tony Liu, and Nora Miao. Originally written for Tien, the leading role was given to Lee instead when the film's original director, Wu Chia-hsiang, was replaced by Lo Wei. The film was a critical success and excelled at the box office. Lee's strong performance overshadowed Tien, already a star in Hong Kong, and made Bruce Lee famous in Southeast Asia and eventually the world.
The film went on to gross nearly worldwide, against a tight budget of $100,000, approximately times its original investment. It was the highest-grossing Hong Kong film up until Lee's next film, Fist of Fury.

Plot

Cheng Chao-an, an unemployed rural Chinese mainlander, moves to Pak Chong, Thailand to live with his extended family and to work at an ice factory. He meets his cousin Hsu Chien when Hsu stands up to local street thugs who beat his kid brother. Cheng refrains from getting involved despite being tempted to, because he had sworn to his mother never to participate in any fighting, and wears a jade amulet as a reminder of his pledge.
Cheng begins his work at the factory. When an ice block is accidentally broken, a bag of white powder — obviously illegal drugs — falls out. Two of Cheng's cousins pick up the bag and are told to see the manager later that night, who tells them that the factory is a front for a drug smuggling ring led by Hsiao Mi. When Cheng's cousins refuse to join them, the manager sends his thugs to kill them and dispose of their bodies, thereby preserving the secret. Hsu Chien and Ah Pi, another of Cheng's cousins, go to Hsiao Mi's mansion to find out what happened to the Wang and Chang. Hsu doubts Hsiao's claims that he knows nothing and threatens to go to the authorities, leading Hsiao to set his gang on the duo. After a brutal battle, they are also killed. When the Chinese workers at the factory learn that Hsu and Ah Pi are missing, they refuse to work and start a riot against the Thai management, who are joined by a group of hired thugs.
Cheng still refuses to participate, but during the chaos, one of the thugs accidentally rips off and breaks Cheng's amulet. Enraged, Cheng jumps into the brawl and beats the thugs, causing them to flee. To reduce tensions, the factory manager makes Cheng a foreman, inviting him to a dinner that night to meet the boss. Everyone is happy that Cheng is the new foreman, except Chow Mei, because the others have forgotten about the missing men. Cheng promises to find out what he can about them.
At the dinner, the manager tells Cheng that the boss cannot make it due to a meeting with visitors from out of town. Several women arrive at the dinner table, sit next to Cheng, and ply him with cognac. Cheng gets drunk and spends the night with Sun Wu Man, a prostitute who attended the dinner. Cheng meets Chow Mei as he leaves the brothel in the morning, embarrassing him.
Because Cheng attended the dinner and got drunk, he did not follow up on his promise to speak to the police about the missing men. He tells his family when he returns home that he forgot. This causes much unease for Cheng's family and friends, who believe that Cheng is reveling in his new position instead of helping to look for their brothers. They resent him, except Chow Mei, who stands up for him.
Later, Sun Wu Man warns Cheng that his life is in danger and reveals that Hsiao Mi is running a drug trafficking operation. Immediately after Cheng leaves, Hsiao's son, Hsiao Chiun, sneaks in and murders Sun. Cheng breaks into the factory and first finds the drugs before discovering a hand, the head of Sun, and the head of Hsu Chien in the ice blocks. Cheng is surrounded by Hsiao Chiun and a group of his men. Cheng fights his way out, killing Hsiao Chiun and his gang in the process. He returns home to find that his remaining family members have been murdered, while Chow Mei is missing. Mourning his loss by a river, Cheng vows to exact revenge, even if he dies.
Cheng subsequently storms Hsiao Mi's mansion to fight him and his men. One of Hsiao Mi's disgruntled slaves frees Chow Mei, who was being held hostage in a cramped room used as a prison cell. She runs away to get help from the Thai police. Cheng finally kills Hsiao Mi after a fierce fight by deflecting the knife Mi throws at him with his shoe. Once he learns that Chow Mei is safe, he surrenders to the police when they arrive at the mansion.

Cast

  • Bruce Lee as Cheng Chao-an , a young man who, along with his uncle, travels from Guangdong, China to Pak Chong, Thailand to stay with his cousins. Before departing, he swore an oath to his mother to not get into any fights. This is made legitimate by Cheng wearing his mother's jade amulet necklace to serve as a reminder to that oath he swore.
  • Maria Yi as Chow Mei, a typical damsel in distress; Cheng's only female cousin
  • James Tien as Hsu Chien, a martial artist who commonly fights with the local gangs
  • Nora Miao as a local cold drinks vendor
  • Li Kun as Ah Kun
  • Han Ying-chieh as Hsiao Mi, owner of the Wanli Ice Factory, in actuality a front for his drug-trafficking operation
  • Lau Wing as Hsiao Chiun, Hsiao Mi's son
  • Kam Shan as Ah San
  • Ricky Chik as Ah Chang
  • Li Hua Sze as Ah Wang
  • Billy Chan Wui-ngai as Ah Pi
  • Lam Ching-ying as Ah Yin
  • Marilyn Bautista as Miss Sun Wu Man, a prostitute
  • Chan Chue as the factory manager
  • Chom as Ah Sheng, the factory foreman
  • Tu Chia-Cheng as Uncle Liu, Cheng's uncle
  • Ma Man-Chun as Old Ma
  • as Hsiao Mi's henchman and gatekeeper

    Background and conception

The four years following the cancellation of The Green Hornet were difficult and frustrating for Bruce Lee. In 1970, he was incapacitated for several months after damaging a sacral nerve in his lower back while weightlifting. Money became tight as roles in Hollywood proved hard to come by, and wife Linda had to work evenings at an answering service to help pay the bills. Bruce was still keen to develop film and TV projects in Hollywood, but Warner Bros. was reluctant to accept a TV script project he had developed, and production on The Silent Flute had to be suspended indefinitely after a three-week trip to India with James Coburn and Stirling Silliphant to scout locations for the movie proved unproductive. In light of these recent events, Coburn suggested to Bruce that he try his luck in Hong Kong's growing film industry.
In spring 1970, Bruce paid a visit to Hong Kong with his young son Brandon. Unbeknownst to Bruce, he had become famous there due to reruns of The Green Hornet on TV, and the enthusiastic reception he received took him by surprise. He was invited to appear on popular HKTVB chat show Enjoy Yourself Tonight, where he was interviewed and gave a board-breaking demonstration.
Encouraged by the interest in Hong Kong, Bruce asked his childhood friend Unicorn Chan to pass on his CV to Shaw Brothers, Hong Kong's largest film production company. They offered Bruce a long-term contract but only US$2,000 per film, which Bruce declined. Another offer appeared unexpectedly from Raymond Chow, a film producer who had in 1970 left Shaw Brothers to form a new company, Golden Harvest. Chow, aware of the rejected offer from Shaw Brothers, had been impressed by Bruce's interviews on Hong Kong television and radio, and also by his confidence during a long-distance phone call. During that phone call, Lee determined the best action movie playing in Hong Kong and assured Chow that he could do much better.
In June 1971, Chow sent one of his producers, Liu Liang-Hua to Los Angeles to meet and negotiate with Bruce, who signed a contract to make two films for Golden Harvest for US$15,000. This eased the Lees' financial worries and permitted Linda to quit her job.
Shortly after the contract was signed, rival film companies tried to poach him away from Golden Harvest, including Shaw Brothers, with a new and improved offer. A film producer from Taiwan told Bruce to rip up the contract and promised to take care of any lawsuit. Bruce, a man of his word, had no intention of considering the offers, although it did give Chow cause for concern.
With the contract signed, Chow hastily arranged a meeting with his Golden Harvest executives and an old friend called Ma Thien-Ek, a Thai businessman, film distributor and cinema owner. They knew that Shaw Brothers were making a Muay Thai boxing film in Thailand, and wanted to make their new film there, which would also help to keep costs down. Fatty Ma, an expert in Thai affairs, offered to help with locations and expenses.

Production

Writing

Veteran Chinese novelist and screenwriter Ni Kuang was commissioned to create a script based loosely on Cheng Chi-Yong, a prominent Chinese figure in Thai society in the early 20th century. Ni Kuang changed the name of the character to Cheng Chao-an, after Chao'an county in eastern China, the home of Cheng Chi-Yong's ancestors. He also developed the idea of Cheng being sent by his mother to live and work with fellow Chinese migrants in Thailand, after his father had been killed in a fight. She gave her son a jade necklace symbolising peace, protection and good fortune, as a reminder to avoid trouble.
It was not unusual in Hong Kong cinema for the director to amend the script during filming, and The Big Boss was no exception. When Lo Wei replaced the original director in late July 1971, he was unhappy with the script and re-wrote it, without Bruce's knowledge. Lo later recalled, "I wouldn't tell him I was re-writing the script for fear of affecting his morale. In my hotel room, he would often discuss the script with me which would leave me tongue-tied, so I would tell him I needed to rest, and as soon as he left I would be burning the midnight oil in order to get the script ready for the next day's filming."