Way of the Dragon - Colosseum, Rome

And here we are, last but not least, at the most famous filming location from Way of the Dragon. I have to honestly say that due to the many visitors and the partially cordoned off areas within the Colosseum, I didn't really get into the mood for picture-hunting. I took a handful of photos and apart from that we just walked around in classic tourist mode. Since the actual fight scene was shot at the Golden Harvest Studio, as is well known, the film scenes shot here are basically just a tourist tour. However, the two tourists are Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris, and of course that makes things a bit special.

For the next photo I had to enter one of the blocked off areas without permission. I was under a bit of time pressure and unfortunately didn't get the exact same angle of view. Exciting insights into the adventurous life of a blogger.

Way of the Dragon - Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi, Rome

Another location where the rush of visitors makes it impossible to take a good photo without countless tourists in the frame. On the other hand, I was just another tourist myself. The Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi ("Fountain of the Four Rivers") features four water-spouting river gods representing four major rivers of the four continents through which papal authority has spread. The Nile representing Africa, the Danube representing Europe, the Ganges representing Asia, and the Rio de la Plata representing the Americas. The open hearted lady who courts Bruce Lee in this scene is introduced as "Italian Beauty" Malisa Longo in the film's opening credits. If you want to see a few tidbits of her illustrious filmography, you can look forward to promising titles like "Naughty Nun", "The Bare Breasted Warriors" and the Nazisploitation classic "Elsa Fräulein SS".

Way of the Dragon - Via Campania, Rome

Bruce and Nora arrive. The entrance area of Bruce's former movie-accommodation now looks pretty run down. As soon as Tang Lung is gone, everything gets out of hand. I had some problems with the backlight in the first photo, but since I only had my cell phone with me to take the picture my technical possibilities were quite limited. Via Campania runs parallel to Corso d'Italia where one of the driving scenes was filmed (see one of my last posts). Both streets are separated by the old city walls. 

Way of the Dragon - Piazza del Colosseo, Rome

The entire drive at the beginning of the film is like a sightseeing tour of Rome. And no real tourist would skip the Colosseum. The camera follows Nora and Bruce as they drive along Piazza del Colosseo and then pass Arco di Costantino (Arch of Constantine). As you can see, the street layout has changed significantly over the past 50 years. Wait a second. Released in 1972, Way of the Dragon is now half a century old. Bruce Lee's charisma and his influence on today's sports enthusiasts and their philosophies easily stand the test of time.

Way of the Dragon - Corso d'Italia, Rome

Nora and Bruce are driving down Corso d'Italia. You can catch a glimpse of the Aurelian Walls. These are the old city walls, built during the reign of the Roman Emperors Aurelian and Probus. The camera then pans to the right onto a rather contemporary-looking hotel building. 

Way of the Dragon - Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II, Rome

One of Rome's most gigantic monuments is treated in the film with a very short and also quite shaky shot. When we arrived at this bulwark, we were downright overwhelmed by the building's sheer dimensions. Photos don't do it justice. Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II aka Vittoriano aka Victor Emanuel II Monument is fairly new, compared to many other important buildings in the Italian capital. The construction began in 1885 and ended in 1935. When Way of the Dragon was filmed, the monument had only been completed 37 years ago.

Way of the Dragon - Fontana di Trevi, Rome

Bruce and Nora roll past another attraction. This time, it's the beautiful Trevi Fountain. If you rent a cabriolet to recreate that scene, you will have problems with the Polizia, since the area is now a pedestrian zone. By the way, an estimated 3000 Euros are thrown into the fountain each day. The money is used to subsidize a supermarket for the needy. Good thing! As you can imagine, Way of the Dragon is not the first movie in which Rome's largest Baroque fountain can be admired. For example, it was already used as a film set in Federico Fellini's classic La Dolce Vita (1960).

Way of the Dragon - Via del Campidoglio, Rome

For a change, we now have a filming location that doesn't come from the car driving sequence at the beginning of the film. Bruce and Nora walk along Via del Campidoglio, which takes you from Piazza del Campidoglio (see my last post) to a nice vantage point. From there you have a very good view of the Foro Romano, a large area full of ruins of ancient government buildings at the center of Rome. The oldest and most important structures were built 800 years BC. 

Way of the Dragon - Piazza del Campidoglio, Rome

Bruce and Nora turn onto Piazza del Campidoglio ("Capitol Square"). Of course, I also have some exciting historical informations about this place: In 1926, an Anglo-Irish lady named Violet Gibson tried to shoot dictator Benito Mussolini here. She was able to fire a shot at the fascist leader at close range, which unfortunately only grazed his nose. 

Way of the Dragon - Piazza del Popolo, Rome

Last september, my girlfriend and I spent a few days in Rome and of course I wanted to take the opportunity to photograph some filming locations. So as not to annoy my girlfriend too much with my hobby, I limited myself to Way of the Dragon locations. Luckily, these were mostly tourist hotspots (above all the Colosseum), which we would have visited one way or another, and so I was able to combine passion with pleasure relatively smoothly. In the next few weeks, I'll try to finally post the resulting pictures. 

Here we have Bruce Lee and Nora Miao cruising across Piazza del Popolo ("People's Square") in a cabriolet. The sharp something in the middle of the square is an Egyptian obelisk of Ramesses II from Heliopolis.