Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Disappointed with Tarantino’s portrayal of Bruce Lee by calling it “Sloppy” + “Racist.”
Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood has been a huge box office hit since its release, but the film comes with backlash for Tarantino’s portrayal of Bruce Lee.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar joins Bruce Lee’s daughter, Shannon Lee sounding off about Quentin Tarantino’s portrayal of Bruce Lee in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Read on since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar calls Tarantino’s Portrayal of Bruce Lee “Sloppy” + “Racist”
CelebNMovies247.com reports Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who is a fan of Quentin Tarantino’s work and knows Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is the director’s take on these historic events from 1969.
When a movie involves real-life people, things can easily end up going bad, which seems to be the case here, according to Shannon Lee and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Earlier this week, Bruce Lee’s daughter, Shannon Lee doesn’t wants NOTHING to do with the situation and wishes Tarantino would just “shut up” about it now.
Now, Bruce Lee’s good friend and NBA legend, Kareem Abdul-Jabbaris now weighing in on the subject.
I thought you would like to read the article that I wrote for @THR about Quentin Tarantino’s film: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood regarding the films portrayal of Bruce Leehttps://t.co/DDMnR7wdIL
— Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (@kaj33) August 16, 2019
Abdul-Jabbar argues that these portrayals creep into our “shared cultural conscience as impressions of those real people.”
Kareem says:
Tarantino has the artistic right to portray Bruce any way he wants. But to do so in such a sloppy and somewhat racist way is a failure both as an artist and as a human being. This controversy has left me torn. Tarantino is one of my favorite filmmakers because he is so bold, uncompromising, and unpredictable. There’s a giddy energy in his movies of someone who loves movies and wants you to love them, too. I attend each Tarantino film as if it were an event, knowing that his distillation of the ’60s and ’70s action movies will be much more entertaining than a simple homage. That’s what makes the Bruce Lee scenes so disappointing, not so much on a factual basis, but as a lapse of cultural awareness.”
Why Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Feels Tarantino was “Sloppy” with his Responsibility as a Director:
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar believes filmmakers have a responsibility when portraying historic figures on the big screen to “maintain basic truth.”
He feels that Tarantino’s portrayal of Bruce Lee in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood “does not live up to this standard.”
Jabbar knew Bruce Lee in real-life and starred in the actor’s last film, Game of Death. He does not feel Tarantino’s version of the character does him justice.
Abdul-Jabbar adds:
I was in public with Bruce several times when some random jerk would loudly challenge Bruce to a fight. He always politely declined and moved on. First rule of Bruce’s fight club was don’t fight – unless there is no other option. He felt no need to prove himself. He knew who he was and that the real fight wasn’t on the mat, it was on the screen in creating opportunities for Asians to be seen as more than grinning stereotypes. Unfortunately, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood prefers the good old ways.
He concludes:
Bruce Lee was my friend and teacher. That doesn’t give him a free pass for how he’s portrayed in movies. But it does give me some insight into the man.
What did you think of Tarantino’s portrayal of Bruce Lee in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood?
