Very rare trailer for THE BIG BOSS found on Danish VHS - the version that contains the REJECTED English Hong Kong dub mind you!!!

Today, my mate Hans-Jørn aka Diabolik found the original English dubbed trailer for THE BIG BOSS on a Danish trailer video tape from the mid 1980s!!!

This is highly interesting because this is the version that contains the original, REJECTED English dubbed version that was made in Hong Kong!!! This is not to be confused with the English dubbed version you can buy on VHS and DVD!

Back in the day when the American distribution company bought the film they thought the English dub (made in Hong Kong) was too crappy and decided to make their own dub. The "new" dub is the one that was used on ALL releases (apart from the versions dubbed into other languages, obviously). The original HK dub only played in certain territories in the Middle East (and reportedly Bruce Lee hated it when he heard it!) in the early days.

Until now fans have believed this original dubbed version was never released to home-cinema anywhere. Not on video, video-cd, laserdisc, DVD, or shown on TV. However, this Danish tape is interesting because needless to day you can't help wonder if there might be a Danish VHS release from the early 80s that uses this dub (all HK films were released in their English dub in Denmark).

Also, as I've mentioned on this blog before, the rejected dubbed version has now been *released* (on bootleg anyway) but it's from a CUT print. If this really does exist on Danish VHS it's most likely going to be fully uncut.

I'm fully aware there's another version of this trailer already on YouTube (which I've posted here before) but just the mere fact that Hans-Jørn found another release is awesome PLUS the picture quality of this one is better that the other one in my view. I have no idea why HJ chose to use the old US title but this is THE BIG BOSS.

The Big Boss - original, rejected dub has finally been made public!

In the past, I've written about the possibility of this ever happening and now it's indeed reality!! Someone in the UK owns a mega rare 35mm print of the original English dubbed version of Bruce Lee's THE BIG BOSS and they've put it up for purchase. Not as a hardcopy but only as download.

Like I've said before, I'm not particularly interested in English dubbed versions of Hong Kong films but with this one it's a different matter. The background makes it interesting! After the original Mandarin language print was made, an English dubbed print was made for export and distributed to certain Middle Eastern territories. When Bruce Lee watched this version he completely hated the dub, and when the film was bought for American distribution the Americans (I assume) thought the dub was too crappy and had a new one made.

This new dub is the one that was distributed to the rest of the world. The original English dubbed version quickly disappeared and was never released to any home-cinema format. A few years ago VideoAsia in the US (yes, the bootleg company VideoAsia!!) announced they were going to release this rare version on DVD but it never happened! It's widely believed by fans that "someone" "asked" the company not to release it. Well, anyway, it seems it's finally here!

I've got confirmation from a fan that the uploaded version is real and not bogus (he's got a copy!) and it's finally out now. Unfortunately, con-artists who claim to have lost/rare prints in the Kung Fu community isn't an unknown phenomenon! I must admit I had my doubts as to this ever being released (altho, of course, it's not a real release but you know what I mean).

Now we just need someone to dig out THE BIG BOSS, PART 2 (the Lo Lieh film) from the realm of lost Hong Kong films, and not to mention the fully uncut Mandarin print of THE BIG BOSS (including the mystical saw-in-head scene!). How awesome would that be!!!

The original trailer with the rejected dub:

The Big Boss - original, rejected dub - part 2

The Big Boss - original, rejected dub

Usually I really have no interest in English dubs of old kung fu movies but all this talk about a rejected and basically lost dub of Bruce Lee's BIG BOSS is intriguing I must admit!


"Thoughout Ameria and Asia"???