They’re even less interested in biography than the original mostly, they are plots constructed to give Ip Man another reason to fight. The three sequels that follow are a testament to Donnie Yen’s performance. But once he does? Watching the man move is incredible - due in no small part to the work of acclaimed choreographer Sammo Hung, who worked on the first two films. Rogers and part Captain America, a friendly neighbor who can wreck your shit but is only really moved to if there’s a bully who needs to be checked. Yen’s performance portrays Ip Man as part Mr. But the reason it works so well all comes back to Donnie Yen. Ip Man is popcorn cinema at its finest, full of rousing well-choreographed fights and historical drama. Eventually, he challenges Miura himself, inspiring a revolt that allows Ip Man to escape with his family and start over in Hong Kong. Beset on all sides, Ip Man eventually inspires his fellow people by both training them in Wing Chun to fight off bandits and also by participating in bouts hosted by General Miura (Hiroyuki Ikeuchi). The Second Sino-Japanese War begins and the Japanese army invades Foshan in 1937 Ip Man loses everything and is forced into hard labor the oppression of the occupiers causes lawlessness to abound. He’s quiet about his skill, but to those who are persistent, he will oblige the occasional duel.Īcross an hour and 45 minutes, Ip Man then swiftly spans a decade of history. Instead, he prefers privately perfecting his then-obscure and ridiculed Wing Chun style of fighting and passing time with his family. He’s cultured and wealthy, and having no need for income, doesn’t feel he has to open a school. It sets up the flourishing martial arts schools in the Chinese city of Foshan in the 1930s, where Ip Man mostly hides in plain sight.

The first Ip Man film is a sweeping-yet-succinct epic that achieves everything it sets out to do. They rock, probably because they’re extremely fast and loose with history.Īt first, it doesn’t seem like something that would make for a franchise. They are, essentially, historical fiction: superhero movies about a real, extraordinary person doing a bunch of things he never did (and a few things that he did do). The Ip Man movies are a quadrilogy of martial arts movies from Hong Kong director Wilson Yip starring Donnie Yen as the eponymous Ip Man. Better yet? You can stream them all on Netflix right now. There are few pleasures quite like killing an entire day watching dudes get wrecked with expert choreography and just enough emotional motivation, things the Ip Man movies are excellent at. You know what’s better than streaming a good martial arts movie over the weekend? Streaming six good martial arts movies over the weekend.

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