Uriah43
This movie takes place in a mythical world in which certain warriors fight for the honor to face a man known as "Zetan" (played by Christopher Lee) in order to obtain a mysterious "Book of Enlightenment" that he keeps under his personal protection. That being said, having fought and been disqualified in a contest to be allowed to find and defeat Zetan, a warrior named "Cord" (Jeff Cooper) sets off on his own and subsequently encounters several trials which serve as lessons that mold him into a better fighter and a more enlightened person as well. Now, from what I understand, this movie was influenced by Bruce Lee with the intention of blending martial arts and Zen Buddhism together. And while it certainly offers some interesting insights and showcases some beautiful scenery, the film as a whole didn't necessarily impress me all that much. For starters, although it certainly had some good actors, none of them performed that spectacularly. On that note, I didn't much care for the acting of Jeff Cooper and I thought that the limited role given to Eli Wallach (as "the Man in Oil") was a big waste of talent. In addition to that, despite the good cast, I thought that the "lessons" conveyed lacked both depth and any real meaning which caused the film to suffer as a result. In short, I don't consider this to be a good movie by any means and I have rated it accordingly. Below average.
thinker1691
Bruce Lee was perhaps the world greatest Martial Artist. His many films prove to his audience that he was indeed that. As for being a writer, there is much to be desired. This is one of Bruce Lee's written works and called " The Circle of Iron. " It was originally conceived to be a teaching tool for the young student. In this offering, David Carradine plays, The Blind Man / Monkeyman / Death / Changsha all of who are guides and teachers to Cord the student (Jeff Cooper.) Cord's task is to find and defeat Zetan (Christopher Lee). Roddy McDowall and Eli Wallach round out the cast and provide philosophical statements for Cord. This film itself is a hodgepodge of information and Zen philosophy, designed to instruct those who seek to learn the Path or DOW. For audiences seeking lots of excitement and physical Martial arts confrontation, this movie is somewhat of a disappointment. Still there is enough to keep the student from wondering off till the lesson is learned. ***
Comeuppance Reviews
Circle of Iron is an extremely interesting and worthwhile movie that even non-action movie fans can easily enjoy.From a story by Bruce Lee, Lee worked on the screenplay with James Coburn and Stirling Silliphant (both students of Lee's), and Lee was supposed to have starred in the film, but then he made Enter the Dragon (1973), got famous, and died. The script was then reworked, but it retained all of the Zen philosophy that Lee wanted to include.Set in a timeless, mystical land, Jeff Cooper plays Cord, a martial artist who becomes a Seeker, a man on a quest to find The Book of Knowledge, and the man who wields it, Zetan. On his quest, he must go through many trials and tribulations, and he meets many people along the way, most of them played by David Carradine. My favorite of Carradine's four roles in the film is The Blind Man, who is a Zen master who fights with his flute, and has a lot of great quotes ("A sword cannot cut itself", "You cannot step on the same piece of water twice", etc.).Cord's relationship with him is stormy because Cord doesn't always understand The Blind Man's mysterious ways. The other three roles interpreted by Carradine are Death, who has a minimal part in the film, The Monkey Man, whom Cord must fight as one of his trials, and Chang Sha, the leader of some kind of traveling show, and a relationship with one of his wives, Tara, provides some more food for the interplay between Cord and The Blind Man, as Cord becomes less of a musclebound meathead and more of an enlightened human being.Perhaps feeling that Jeff Cooper as Cord wasn't quite enough as the main hero (Imagine a cross between John Saxon and Sam Neill with long blonde hair, who is shirtless the entire film), Circle of Iron is littered with welcome, famous faces, including Roddy McDowall, Christopher Lee, and in an especially memorable role, Eli Wallach. His "Man in Oil" is reminiscent of Bunuel's Simon of the Desert (1965), and, in fact, the whole film has a vaguely Bunuel-esquire quality.If you were to put Conan the Barbarian (1982), Deathsport (1978), The Holy Mountain (1973), Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, a book of Zen quotes, and the few Bruce Lee movies made, and put them in a blender, and poured the result into your DVD player, the result would undoubtedly be Circle of Iron. NOT to imply the film is a hodgepodge; it's definitely not. The movie flows beautifully, and has some great matte work, cinematography, and amazing Israel locations.Circle of Iron is action, but different. You will be involved in the film and it will make you think. Far from your average beat-em-up or chop socky outing, I would strongly recommend Circle of Iron for the discerning action movie fan, or anyone who wants a different, intelligent, engaging movie.For more insanity, please visit: comeuppancereviews.com
mallentaylor
Perhaps I allowed my elevated expectations for this movie, written by James Coburn and Bruce Lee, who catered to the talents of David (Kung Fu") Carradine, to influence my "3" rating of this poorly acted, badly written and barely directed movie. It probably deserved less. This is the sort of effort that you hope was the result of too much recreational drug use, and not a total lack of talent by the participants.Jeff Cooper, an unconvincing wild man, seems totally miscast and clueless as the outsider who attempts to be the next seeker chosen to attempt to win the "Book", presumably a font of wisdom and knowledge, that is held on a distant island. Carradine has several roles with cryptic comments and, by today's standards, weak martial arts displays. Many of the fight scenes are filmed with close-up, double head shots and quick cuts to hide the lack of realism or believability. Christopher Lee, at least, was in the same movie as Carradine in tone and pace. Cooper's every expression and gesture just didn't belong. The naive and simpleminded "surprise" ending drags this movie down from the possible heights of mediocrity to a disappointing end.
