“No Legacy is so rich as honesty” – William Shakespeare.
Brandon Lee’s death at the age of 28 in 1993 after a handful of films under his belt, was tragic for a number of reasons.
A legacy when someone dies can be attributed to an opulent amount of things; possessions, kinship, equity, work history. The term legacy when Brandon is mentioned is often imputed as “The Crow”, namely because it was not only his last film, but the film he was working on when he was killed. However, lets ponder this question without bias:
What is Brandon Lee’s true legacy?
Certainly his last film ‘The Crow’ is noteworthy as part of his enduring legacy, as well as his other films such as ‘Rapid Fire’. Nevertheless, the quality of Brandon Lee’s life and the passion in which he lived his life, is far more significant in regards to his worth as a human being than some of his cinematic contribution. As Billy Graham once said:
“ The legacy we leave is not just in our possessions, but in the quality if our lives”
When considering the question about what Brandon’s true legacy might be there also is the idea that we must explore the complete picture; including his family legacy, his cinematic achievements, the quality of his life, and his own contribution of humanity.
Brandon Lee’s father Bruce died in 1973 at the height of his career, yet many fans of Bruce Lee often say that his legacy is not in his films, but in the teachings of his founded martial art Jeet Kune Do, and the philosophy he left behind (although that was only published after his death). In recent times athletes in sports, from boxing to Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) have referenced Bruce Lee as a reputable inspiration on them. All these elements of Bruce Lee’s legacy, Brandon had to learn to come to terms with while rising his own achievements. Brandon started his career in stage, then in film, and was immediately compared to his famous father. At the early part of his career Brandon went to great lengths to separate himself from his famous father’s fame, many misinterpreted this to claim that Brandon was not proud of whom his father was, especially in the eastern culture where there is great pride following in the parental figure’s footsteps. However, Brandon was always proud that he was Bruce Lee’s son, but wanted to achieve his own dream on his own terms, without using the family name. There were many years where on the outside, Brandon, seemed (to the public observer) rebellious, even arrogant about the name and “legacy” he inherited from his father. After a number of years trying to separate the legacy of his father, from the pride he felt as his father’s son he finally came to realize that he could achieve all he wanted to while take full advantage of the heritage of his family. He embraced the study of his father’s art and felt more comfortable marrying together the martial arts with his unique passion for acting (which his father did not have). Brandon in doing this, created his own legacy and his own mark on the world . Brandon never used or exploited his father’s name, a character trait that became part of his OWN legacy he left behind.
Brandon Lee’s last films ‘Rapid Fire’ and ‘The Crow’ are important when examining his enduing legacy. Both films exhibited parts of Brandon’s own creative ideas and talents beyond what the public saw on the silver screen. Had Brandon’s accident not have occurred would these films 18 years on be counted as part of his legacy? It is debatable, but these films did in fact help Brandon achieve something for himself as an actor and as a creative force that audiences probably never can understood and even his fans may need to read about. For Brandon, the quality of his work was important to him. He wanted to do the best with what he had – a perfectionist you might say. Brandon Lee’s films aren’t his legacy, there are simply apart of it. Brandon Lee was not his characters, while he certainly made the parts his own, and worked with the creative teams of his last two films to ensure that the finish script was something he could live with, at the end of the day, Brandon Lee was different from his characters but he was willing to do what he could to make sure that the project the audience saw was of quality. His cinematic legacy may lay also in the ideas and drive that pushed his art, not just the end product.
There were several milestones of Brandon Lee’s life that as an objective observer are fairly obvious. One of those is clearly the period in his life where he decided to stop carrying the impossible burden of being Brandon Lee, son of Bruce and to start living his life in the most authentic way possible. Brandon admitted in his later years that the lived with a huge “chip” on his shoulders and was not living his own life, in fact, he was living in fear and not achieving his dreams. The other important milestone was finding the balance in his life where he could be who he wanted and feel the kind of acceptance that had eluded him all his life. Brandon’s whole disposition evolved from confused and rebellious, angry young actor to a more confident, happy and serenely calm actor who would accomplish his dream no matter what – but on his terms. It was throughout these changes in his life that his unique characteristics help to define part of his legacy. Brandon Lee was very conscious of the legacy he wanted to contribute to and eventually leave behind, of course he had no idea that it would be so soon, but against the odds he achieved a success that was unique his own – away from his father and away from what others expected of him. He belonged to himself and only he knew what was best for him.
Humanity became very meaningful for Brandon Lee. He wanted to be seen as an individual not because he was related to someone else, or even for what he could do. What he sought is what all human beings do – a sense of belonging and acceptance. The journey Brandon Lee went on was often long and painful, yet at the tender age of 28, he somehow was able to achieve what he once thought was impossible. When he died there was a huge amount of grief expressed, from people you wouldn’t normally expect – Hollywood insiders and executives. Brandon was well regarded as someone who treated everyone he came into contact with respect and compassion (and as long as they treated him the same it stayed that way). He is remembered certainly as someone who loved acting and had great talent, but more importantly as someone who was a wonderful human being, who was decent, generous and kind. Brandon wasn’t perfect (no one is), but he tried to be the best person he could be and in one of his last interviews discussed the importance of loyalty, and good will in human relationships. As an actor he wanted to explore the many facets of human nature that can both empower and destroy – the psychology of the individual in other words. There are aspects of Brandon Lee’s lives that fans don’t know about, and hopefully will at some point, but if his legacy has to one element, shouldn’t it be his humanity and the kind of inspiration he ultimately gave to others? No one knows what a legacy will look like after death, Brandon Lee’s legacy is rich (not in asset), but in heart.
Next time you hear someone talk about THE LEGACY OF BRANDON LEE remember that this at the very core is about a young man, who was just a man with a dream, who achieved what he did because of his own talents and not because of biology. The true worth of a man is not always in what they produce, but in many of the “little things”, in other words the trivial matters that eventually count as the most significant in life. Like Shakespeare did once write, it is the honesty that a individual brings to their life that a true net worth will be judged on.
