Martial arts movies in general have the tendency to go over-the-top which audiences find either really fun and enjoyable or really disappointing. However, there are many films out there that have captured these films in a non-exaggerated yet extremely intense way. Ip man is an example of this.
Ip man is a 2008 semi-biographical martial arts film on the legendary Chinese martial artist Yip man. Yip man is known for teaching the kung fu style wing chun but, is best known for being the kung fu teacher that taught famous star Bruce lee. The film is based in Foshan, a city in the Guangdong province and is set before & during the the second sino-Japanese war.
Donnie yen, a famous Hong Kong action star plays the role as Yip man and throughout the film plays his part extremely well. Donnie is able to show the raw emotions and feelings during the saddest parts in the film. While the film shows action throughout and a little comedy during the first 20 minutes or so it also shows great tragedy and Donnie's acting is so realistic and heartfelt the audience are affected by it. I think a reason for the film being as good as it is, is because Donnie Yen is outstanding in this eponymous role, i'd say he's the best out of all actors who've played this character before.
Although the film isn't an exact representation of what happened throughout the grandmasters life, the artistic license taken for dramatic effect never strays away from what it's about. Overall, Ip man is not only one of the most entertaining and exciting Hong Kong films; Ip man is a bona fide martial arts classic that i would recommend to all martial arts film loving people.
I am going to have to admit complete ignorance here, of both this movie and Yip Man himself [hangs head in shame]. I have never really been into or studied Chinese cinema (and in recent years have been able to defer any questions on the matter to my esteemed colleague Matt O'Regan!) - although I would say that my interest has grown over the past few years and I am, of course, aware of Donnie Yen - if only because of his appearance in a Star Wars film (I can hear people rolling their eyes as I type this!)
Without doubt there is a justified fascination with martial arts in film and it is far too simplistic and probably even…