Did you know that after Bruce Lee died, a number of Asian actors took on very similar names for an endless line of Bruceploixtation martial arts flicks, all looking to cash in on the posthumous brand. There was a Bruce Li, a Bruce Lai, a Bruce Le, a Bruce Ly, a Bruce Lie, and a Bruce Lei. That last one also went by Dragon Lee but his real name was Moon Kyoung-seok and while he hardly ever garnered his iconic predecessor's mass appeal, he's certainly no less appealing than Jean-Claude Van Damme or Dolph Lundren (and likewise looks best when he's stripped his shirt for his cartwheels, bicep flexes, and tiger claw poses). In Mission for the Dragon, the chances to go topless come with some regularity as his character clearly prefers fighting bare-chested than with the encumbrance of a royal blue smock. Or even that fancy mirrored vest.
The central conflict here involves a beloved father who may have been murdered or may just be missing. More likely to hold your attention than daddy's whereabouts are the film's wacky audio tracks, both the sound effects (recalling the '80s-era arcade game Space Invaders) and the dubbed vocals (which, for all I know, might be performed by one underpaid actor doing multiple cartoonesque, often-accented voices). Be sure to keep the subtitles on despite the English dialogue, simply for the pleasure of seeing "(whips)" and "(thuds)," "(screams)" and "(grunts)" at the bottom of your screen. This feature also permits you to appreciate sterling bits of dialogue like "You can't recognize the truth," "Prepare to die," and "I must kill or be killed." Statements like that last one only gain depth and nuance when paired with "(emotional music)."
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