
Ultimately, the film’s energy and humour overcome cartoonishly bad performances from the British actors and an utter lack of surprises in the final two reels. Ip Man 2 is a 2010 Hong Kong biographical martial arts film loosely based on the life of Ip Man. The second half of Ip Man 2 is basically a blow-by-blow retread of Rocky IV, which does absolutely nothing for the film's artistic cred. The final showdown places the action within the rules and format of a Western boxing match, making for inevitable comparisons with films like Rocky IV. But for the sequel, Yip and producer Raymond Wong go beyond Ip Man's sensationalized biography into something far more fictional, and the results are unbelievable if not inadvertently humorous. The film’s second half treads more predictable ground with its depiction of a slow-building standoff between Ip Man and a flagrantly racist British boxer nicknamed Twister. In one of the film’s most breathtaking sequences, they issue him a challenge, offering to allow him to continue teaching if he can remain standing on a rickety tabletop after withstanding their attacks. Initially struggling to attract students, he eventually crosses paths with the city’s other martial arts masters. Year 2008: Yip Man () Year 2010: Yip Man 2 (2) Year 2015: Yip Man 3 (3) Year 2019: Yip Man 4 (4) If you enjoy and wish to support, please stay in seeding Technical Details. While the original Ip Man (2008) focused on the wartime occupation of China by the Japanese, Ip Man 2 opens in 1949 with its protagonist moving to Hong Kong to open a school in Wing Chun martial arts. Director Wilson Yip and producer Raymond Wong also return, as do cast members Lynn Xiong, Fan Siu Wong, and even Simon.

Yip Man clearly said that the opponent feels like he is pushing a bamboo stick when he tries to attack the WC practitioner, because the WC practitioner does not resist, brace, or push the opponent in. Old-school kung fu and an uncomplicated plot make for largely effective entertainment in Ip Man 2, the latest box office success for martial arts star Donnie Yen.Įngaging performances and some exhilarating fight scenes from Donnie Yen and veteran star Sammo Hung should ensure decent theatrical runs.Īn almost completely fictionalised account of the life of Wing Chun master Ip Man (also known as Yip Man) in the years before he taught Bruce Lee, the film has edged out Iron Man 2 in Hong Kong and earned $15 million in its first week in China.Įngaging performances and some exhilarating fight scenes from Donnie Yen and veteran star Sammo Hung should ensure decent theatrical runs across Asia and good returns in western ancillary markets, despite the film’s obvious faults. Ip Man 2 sees Donnie Yen reprising his role as the Wing Chun master and all round defender of the Chinese nation, continuing the story of the great mans life as he heads to Hong Kong following the end of the Sino-Japanese War. Again, Yip Man didnt say the WC practitioner is like a bamboo stick rooted into the ground, which is what you and another person have claimed.
