Be Water

Be Water is an American documentary film directed by Bao Nguyen about Bruce Lee. It premiered on 25 January 2020 at the Sundance festival and was made as a film in the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary series. It runs 104 minutes and is spoken in English and Chinese. The film focuses on the two years Lee spent in Hong Kong, during which he made four feature films, and on the racism that had previously blocked his Hollywood career. According to Deadline, Nguyen did not focus on Lee's legacy but on his personal achievements and struggles in the sixties: the position of an Asian American artist, anti-Asian sentiment, and the refusal of demeaning roles despite financial pressure. The story is told by voices over archival footage. Family members Linda Lee Cadwell, Shannon Lee and Robert Lee are heard, as well as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dan Inosanto, Andre Morgan, film critic Sam Ho and cultural critic Jeff Chang. We have not been able to confirm from sources how the film depicts the martial art itself, that is Jeet Kune Do or Wing Chun. The film's focus is biographical and social. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Be Water is a respectful response to the demeaning portrayal of Bruce Lee in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Origin

According to an interview for Deadline, director Bao Nguyen consciously avoided classic talking-head interviews. The testimony of family and witnesses therefore sounds like a voice-over above archival footage. He named the documentary Amy by director Asif Kapadia as an inspiration and, in his own words, wanted the film to flow like water. The film was made in cooperation with Lee's family. According to Nguyen, Shannon Lee let the director work without interference and, after seeing the cut, told him: “This is your film, not my film”, without asking for changes. The production was handled by Dorothy Street Pictures, and the film is part of the ESPN 30 for 30 series, within which it premiered at the MARC Theater at the Sundance festival.

People and martial arts

• Bruce Leethe real person the work is about· Jeet Kune Do (real practitioner)
• Bao NguyenDirector