Ip Man 2 [DVD]

'Ip Man 2' is a martial-arts sequel to the fantastic epic, 'Ip Man', which released in 2008. The sequel released to positive reviews and box-office success, making it one of the highest grossing Hong Kong features of 2010.

The movie continues to concentrate on the life of the martial artist, Ip Man (Grandmaster of Wing Chun) who was the real life Kung fu master of Bruce Lee. The makers originally intended to focus on the relationship between Ip Man and his student Bruce Lee in the sequel. However, due to a breakdown in agreeing the film rights with Lee's descendants, the idea was scrapped.

The second part shows Ip Man's (Donnie Yen) movements in Hong Kong, which is under British colonial rule. He attempts to promote Wing Chun (specializes in close-range combat) there by tutoring interested students. As he does this, he faces problems from rival students and masters of other forms of martial-arts. His main rival turns out to be Hung Chun-nam (Sammo Hung) who is the master of the martial-art, Hung Ga. This is a southern Chinese martial art associated with the Chinese folk hero Wong Fei Hung, who was a master of Hung Ga. The hallmarks of Hung Ga are deep low stances and strong hand techniques.

I'll start with the flaws first, which are evident if you compare the sequel with the first installment. The story is a bit one-dimensional, the drama is not gripping most of the time and the pace is really slow barring the final 30-40 minutes. As a result, the film struggles to keep the attention of the viewer. Also the performances of the British actors is quite poor. Saying that, this outing still packs a serious punch. The flaws only exist due to the high standard set by the prequel. If watched as a stand-alone feature, this movie is great viewing.

The movie is salvaged by the high-octane and moving/gripping final 30-40 minutes, the strong performances of the lead actors, the action scenes (although fewer than the prequel) and the heart-thumping finale.

Donnie Yen shines again as the hero, he is simply a brilliant actor. He nails the martial-arts scenes with pure energy. Sammo Hung is top-notch and matches Yen in the fight scenes. When both partake in the same scene its a treat to watch. It's clear that both actors have the utmost respect for each other. Watching the two fight is truly enjoyable. Simon Yam who had a very likeable role in the first part, is wasted on this occasion. Darren Shahlavi (Taylor "The Twister" Milos) who enacts the role of the main villain looks the part but doesn't have the acting skills.

The direction provided by Wilson Yip is acceptable. It seems like he played it safe, not trying to better the first installment. He did all the hard work in the prequel and had the ability to make this superior. This is Yip and Yen's fifth collaboration as director and actor, must say their team always produces.

The action choreography by Sammo Hung is not exciting as it was in the prequel. I still enjoyed it, mainly because of Yen's ability to make the martial-arts look fun and thrilling on the siver-screen. Hung does a good job executing the scenes where martial-arts is pitted against western boxing, it's fresh and entertaining. The final fight is worth the wait.

The background music score by Kenji Kawai in 'Ip Man' was superb and added excitement to the feature. On this occasion I thought the music was going to be a compensating factor but it wasn't to be, it was just average. The original soundtrack should've just been used again.

I'm a big fan of the first part, which has become one of my favourite movies of all time. The main question is, does the sequel match its predecessors all-round quality. Unfortunately, the answer is, "No". As a result, Yen and Yip who were planning 'Ip Man 3', have decided against making the third part. However, the sequel is still a competent and enjoyable feature.

In the end 'Ip Man 2' is not as action-packed/intense/emotional as 'Ip Man'. But, I was still a satisfied man once the end credits had started rolling. For me, I was happy just to see Yen back as Ip Man.

'Ip Man 2' is again a fine martial-arts epic that should be witnessed by movie lovers. It's a must-watch, especially for fans of Donnie Yen and the original.

Topping the first Ip Man was always going to be impossible- easily the best Kung Fu movie I've seen for years. Despite that, this one has a lot going for it. Fight scenes are again excellent, with a likeable lead and a nice turn in character development from Sammo Hung. I had a bit of a hard time believing that Ip Man couldn't just kick the guy at the end's ass immediately though. The final scenes are a little corny too.
The major, major downside, and the reason I don't think I could watch it again is the British characters 'acting'. I can honestly say I've never seen such diabolical acting in any film, large or low budget. It's not just one person either- it's all of them! Honestly, Steven Segal is an Oscar winner compared to these guys. They make Roger Moore's eyebrow look like Marlon Brando. Cartoonish doesn't even begin to cover it.
It's worth watching but unlike it's predecessor, not one to rush out and buy.

It saddens me that the recent films of Donnie Yen and Wilson Yip have attracted so much underserved negativity. In my humble opinion their work only gets better and better with each successive film.

Donnie Yen's physicality is nothing short of spectacular and he has not slowed one bit even now he is pushing 50 years in age. He and the film makers manage to create thrilling movies on budgets that are miniscule by Hollywood's standards.

For blu ray users the picture and sound quality are superb, which is a great relief since Ip Man one was not given the HD transfer which it deserved.

In short this film is the pinnacle of modern Hong Kong Kung Fu Cinema and it is entirely worthy of a place in your collection.

PS if you are a fan of Donnie Yen I highly recommend Flash Point, his most spectacular mixed martial arts fights ever! Flash Point [Blu-ray] [2007]