Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Ip Man 2 Review

Since I reviewed the first Ip Man movie, I figured I would watch the second. I didn't really plan on writing anything about it but good lord...it's so bad I don't think I can sleep without complaining about it a little. There will probably be spoilers, but trust me, you couldn't spoil this crappy movie with a crying baby and a roomful of rock-eating robots.

The plot doesn't really matter so I won't go into the details. It's Yip Man in Hong Kong. Basically there are three plot points: Yip Man has to fight in order to open a school, Yip Man fights a boxer for the honor of Chinese people, and Yip Man gives a dude a chicken (ok, it's a duck but chicken is funnier than duck) and loves to watch him eat it.

The first thing I want to complain about is something I mentioned when talking about the last movie. I was a little uncomfortable with using a real person that isn't really a historical character and just making up whatever you like about their life and marketing your movie with their name. I let it go in the last movie because it was basically a fun movie but this second one is just a cynical cash grab. So what is next? Made up crap about the relationship between Yip Man and Bruce Lee? Yip Man goes to Hawaii? The whole thing is embarrassing.

 The fight scenes are pretty weak. Basically the fight scenes involve a bunch of blocking while punching, rapid chain punches, stupid wire tricks (check out super flipping Sammo Hung), and that silly thing where people are able to keep from falling off something by trying really hard not too or grabbing the ground with their toes or something. Also, Yip Man fights like 50 dudes with knives by spinning a wooden pallet around in second-rate Jackie Chan style.

Everything in this movie is a rehash of the last movie or another movie. There is nothing original in the least. The worst part is the second half that is exactly the Rocky IV movie except with kungfu and boxing instead of just boxing. Sammo Hung is Apollo creed who gets killed by the English man who is the Russian. Yip Man is Rocky obviously who gives a stupid speech and wins over the racist white people with his fists and words. Here are just a few stupid points and then I am done cause I shouldn't be wasting my time talking about this movie.
  • The main bad English guy is just called Twister. They don't even bother to give him a proper name. I thought he was going to have some kind of twisty boxing style, but when I heard the Chinese, they referred to him as tornado so I was like, "oh, that kind of twister....did they even use that word in 1950?...What a stupid name for a boxer, especially a boxer from England. Maybe they should have called him the Drizzle if they wanted to have a more appropriate weather theme." 
  • There is a boxing match at the end and there are fricken ring girls. Somebody check the history on that one.
  • I love how the boxer wears boxing gloves because, hey, he's a boxer, but Yip Man doesn't. Yip Man also kicks and elbows and grabs and does whatever he wants to do. Who set up the rules of this competition? 
  • At the end of the match I swear they play a second rate copy of the original Rocky theme. 
  • The white people in this movie are all reprehensible characters, the actors playing them can't act and for some reason, they don't seem to be able to speak English correctly and can only yell and growl. 
  • Old people can fly.
  • Here is what Twister says to set up the boxing challenge, "In order to protect my name [you know...Twister] and reputation, I have agreed to fight any Chinese person. Now from what I hear, the Chinese like to use these [he laughs and pulls out a giant joss stick] and I would like to stick to that tradition so I have agreed to fight any challenger for as long as this thing burns. And this is a pretty big joss stick so its going to give plenty of opportunity for any challenger to come forward. But be warned I will not hold back. By the time this thing has burned to the end, there will be no more Chinese boxers, because I will have killed them all. In fact, I don't think we are even going to need to use this thing because I doubt that there is any Chinese fella that has the guts to get in the ring with me." What the hell does any of that even mean? Basically Yip Man comes forward and challenges him and that is the whole end of the joss stick thing. Oh yeah, keep in mind that Twister is saying all this after he kills Hung (whatever his character name is) in the ring. 
  • Here is the speech that Yip Man gives that makes all the white people stand up and cheer. "Hello, I didn't come here to prove which is better, Chinese or Western boxing. Although people have different status in life, I don't believe that one person's integrity is worth more than another's. I hope that we can start to respect each other. That's all, thank you."  What the hell is that? He should of just yelled for his wife like Rocky did. 
Ok, that's it, I am done. I just wanted to get this review out there since there aren't many reviews that would warn people away from this great big waste of time. Hopefully someone will google the movie and find this review and save their time and money.

    46 comments:

    1. Hahahahahaha, nice review. I also thought it was a remake of Rocky IV, down to Ip Man's speech. I also came to the conclusion that Asian cinema and TV is awful at finding good White actors. It's just as disgraceful as the roles that Asians have been thrust into in Hollywood films for the better part of a century.

      Where I don't agree with you is this:
      1. the first movie was at least based on some real incidents, even if they were dramatized.

      2. I did like the fight scenes in the Ip Man 2. The movie as a whole might have been crap, but the fight choreography wasn't that bad.

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    2. ok, 1. Ok, maybe, I can give you that point.
      2. Fair enough, I just didn't particularly like them. Maybe it is more or a personal preference thing. You gotta at least concede that the final fight was stupid, he flung that wooden pallet around too long, and their was way too much tippy toe, ballet old flying guys in the table duel. Not to mention, why the hell would people fight on an unsecured table?

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      Replies
      1. I think your review is childish and biased Its not Yip Man its Ip Man and he was the Master that brought Wing Chun to the western world and he was very real and also he really did teach Bruce Lee.

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    3. more negative reviews

      http://www.beyondhollywood.com/ip-man-2-2010-movie-review/
      http://twitchfilm.net/reviews/2010/04/ip-man-2-review.php

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    4. stupid review by stupid people.

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    5. Actually, funny enough it only took one person to write this review. But you are right, I have never been particularly bright.

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    6. this dumbass need to watch the movie carefully to understand its content. Ththe scene where ip give roast duck or whatever to his former bestfriend who cant remember ip after taking a bullet in the head.So it shows ips kindness, compassion and empathy etc. And the action in this film was great and you have to enjoy the positive things shown in the movie.

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    7. Can't argue with you about being a "dumbass". I just reread my review and I did notice that I wrote "too" where I should have written "to". Yeah, I understood the whole duck thing, just thought it was silly. Overall, I must admit that the movie wasn't quite as bad as I made it out to be. In the end, its a kungfu movie and stuck to a lot of kungfu movie conventions. Maybe I am just dissatisfied with the genre in general. Is that what happens as you get older?

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    8. i like it very much lol :P

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    9. "will" must be british and is pissed off because his buddy "twister" gets canned by some chinese guy...

      oh man i forgot to be sarcastic on this one - i forgot to be "british" in my response ^_^

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    10. The fighting in this movie was frankly awefull.
      What self respecting wing-chung dude would take 30 minutes to defeat a boxer (-and- the boxer has to wear gloves, the wing-chung guy can kick, etc as well)? Oh, and when he's winning he just keep bashing straight punches straight into the other dudes gloves..???

      Nuts - what about all of that trapping he's practiced..? Where are his killer punches, palms and bill-jee...???

      I mean - this western boxer took apart 5 kung-fu dudes single-handed, then killed Samo Hung (got to give him credit for that, Samu should stay behind the lens these days dude..!) and after all that -almost- defeats Ip Man...?? (whos best shots seem to almost bounce off this superman..!)

      She's let me see - 2 years to learn this guys boxing or 10 to learn kung-fu...?

      crap!!!

      The scene where he takes on 50 guys armed with fish-cleavers with a crate was just stupid! I mean - 3 or 4 guys with some really slick slow-motion technique _maybe_...but this was truly awful crap!

      Id rather watch MMA than this crap - at least there you can see an experienced fighter take down a weaker opponent in minutes, and actual -feel- it took real effort and skill...!

      And who on earth told Samo Hung he should give up his day job (at the all you can eat buffet apparently!) and go back into action roles..????
      Apparently he actually filmed the day after heart surgery (for overeating, no doubt)...??

      This was one of the worst Chinese films I have ever seen...

      Oh - and I actually studied a bit of wing-chung (quite badly I should add!), and I recon any of the top instructors I'd seen could have taken on both this Ip Man and the boxer...urgggh!

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    11. Will, is it your name?
      Since you are so smart, have you written any movie script or shoot any movie that earns you an Oscar or millions of dollars?
      I am trilled when Ip Man knocked down the cocky English Boxer Twister!!!
      In fact, you missed out or you tried to avoid mentioning about the the BADest man in this movie, the CORRUPTED English Police Officer!!!

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    12. Yes, my name is Will. Why do you think I am "so smart"? I just didn't like the movie. Hope I didn't ruin your day.

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    13. As someone who is interested in plot and character development as much as seeing wing chun gong fu in film, I'm glad you gave your honest review. I agree that the story of the first was questionable but it was still enjoyable, and was afraid to get burned by the sequel.

      Having watched Ip Man for the first time last night, leaving me wondering about watching the 2nd, you definitely stopped me from having wasted my money and time. And more importantly, you've saved me from having them tarnish the picture of Yip Man that I have in my mind, through the portrayal of Donnie Yen (the supporting cast of course deserves mention).

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    14. Yeah, I really don't see any reason to watch the second movie unless you are kind of drunk or something.

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    15. u all are a bunch of dumb ass rednecks that have no f ing lives and dont know culture for shit,hope u have a wonderfull gay life fags:)

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    16. Dude your stupid. Yip man and Bruce Lee met in real life you dumb white shit. The boxer doesn't kick because he doesn't practice kicking. He's a 'boxer' he's trained for punching not kicking. Do you see boxers these days who kick? No...

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    17. idiot will..just fuck off...

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    18. I just read this string of comments, and I couldn't help but laugh. Anonymous really has a bee in his bonnet. lol.

      Will I am a great fan of Ip Man 1, and also felt let down by Ip Man 2. The first movie promised so much and the second was a real let down.

      Even Donnie looked sad and lacked any kind of enthusiasm for this movie on the special features, which yes I was sad enough to watch.

      Fight scenes are good fun, but the first film kept them "real" (I know there was still wire work and stuff, but at least they didn't keep flipping tables floating in the air with their toes)

      Anyway I'd say grumpy Anonymous needs to chill out.

      Good review!

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    19. Personally I hate all the negativity on these comments. What is the point in insulting and name calling a person for their opinion? I don't completely agree with the review, but that's because I am a hard core kung fu movie watcher. Will, thank you for sharing your thoughts!

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    20. Ha ha ha...thanks Nformant. Don't worry, I am a big boy. I am fine with any comments people make.

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    21. Telling a Martial arts guy not to use all his talent is the same as telling a boxer that he may not lift his heel when punching. Both hinder there effectiveness.

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    22. Wow!! Reading this was funny!! Some people need to chill. I'm not here to start cursing or insulting people just to prove a point. In my opinion this was a good movie but they didn't take it there like they should have. I do have to agree with rocky concept though lol. But the movie touched on something every fighter wants an answer on. Kung Fu Vs boxing...? Which will win? That is the question. The comments about why does he get to kick is absurd. Without kicks, arm grabs, throws and all the tricks it would not be Kung Fu. Fighting is all about winning by ANY means. There is NO such thing as a fair fight. If you trained to box you are a cheater because you have learned to take punches and trained to maximize punching power. How is that FAIR to a common man? If you know Kung Fu you have trained in various areas. The question is if a Kung Fu guy and a boxer were to fight in a life/death situation in a back alley who would prevail? That's the question everyone wants answered. And I think this movie hinted on it but didn't go all the way. Kung Fu would in my opinion. Eye jabs, arm breaks, pressure points, throws, leg breaks, throat jabs, and many other techniques are ALL apart of the training. If it's you or him why wouldn't you use everything you have? Ip man one touched on this as well... The Japanese said "ef" all that Kung Fu stuff... Here's my GUN.

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    23. Just saw Ip Man 2 after watching the first days ago. After seeing the first one, I couldn't have imagined I'd be let down as badly as I was, but hey, it happens. I think the review was fairly accurate although I did enjoy the fighting scenes once I realized the movie from the start was going to be entirely fictional. I felt it was well made, just poorly written with borrowed plots. I assume most people who find your review terrible feel as though a great tragedy has once again been brought on the Chinese. Sadly, with sensitive egos like that, you won't get much from reading the comments. Great made move, fun but unbelievably fake fight scenes, average acting at best, poor story. That's the best review I can give it.

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    24. i loved this movie,i have a very deep respect for chinese culture in fact watching these 2 movies has inspired me to want to learn wing chun

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    25. I think the movie is pretty good and i hate kung fu movies. Everybody is entitled to their own opinions but until you can write a better script CHILL OUT !

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    26. all stupid review

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    27. it has inspired me to learn wing chun as well, and im sorry but this movie's final fight was probably the best fight in a movie ever, period

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    28. This review is full of crap...I think its better for u people to learn and get a msg than criticizing about the fight.... In my opinion i have learn and inspired with the last speech Ip man said to the crowd.

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    29. Tous ceux qui critique ce film sont des sacs à merde! je vous défit sur le TATAMI

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    30. Yes, this movie sucked! The first film was great but I have to agree Will, you can't just go round making shit up about real people. I mean "Twister"? this guy didn't even exist in real life and I doubt Yip Man ever entered a Chinese/Western Boxing competition. You want a really good Kung Fu movie? Go and watch "Fearless" (directors cut only), "Prodigal Son" (excellent Wing Chun movie), "T'ai Chi Boxer (Jackie Wu) "Fist of Legend" or "Legend of Fong Sai Yuk"

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    31. I actually really liked the movie. Thing is it all depends how you look at it. If you go into detail any movie is stupid (sure some more than others and I think you made your points here). But you gotta let that go, get in the movie and enjoy it. It does kinda suck that they didn't keep the story real to the character portrayed, which is probably the reason why you didn't enjoy it as much as I did (of course i suspected it was exaggerated but I didnt know to what extent, I'll have to keep looking into Yip Man's bio). Nonetheless c'mon sure it wasnt great but, considering today's declining movie market, hey it wasnt that bad either! If not take a look at Real Steal, its the real deal! Everyone's like Tony saying its grrrrreat!... uh... yep... i think i made my point here :)

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    32. FYI anyone who doesn't sign in with a google ID shows up as "anonymous". What's the plural of anonymous, anonymii?

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    33. Nice review. Makes me feel all the more justified that I quite the moment Ip decided to swing around a wood pallet like a spartan shield to magically beat the living wire-stunts out of half of block worth of extras with butcher knives.
      First movie was epic. This movie? Just like every other money-grubbing sequel piece of garbage out there: brain cell poison.

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    34. the movie was epic, and it s all true. SO YOU KNOW WHAT? DON'T SLEEP TEHN

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    35. Yip Man did fight in a lot of western boxing matches. They just decided to combine them all together into one person/fight for Ip Man 2. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, but I definitely preferred the first one. Anyway, everyone is entitled to their own opinions. People need to relax and not get so worked up. Getting angry and calling a person names because they don't agree with you is very childish. It also makes the person who is being so hostile look like they are an idiot.

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    36. If you don't like it.. don't watch it and shut up a bit.

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    37. I loved it. I don't look at movies to see the fighting as much as the lesson to be learned. I love many types of movies and some interest me and some don't. It is a personal preference and that is what counts. What I took from IP man is that just because you have power or can be cruel, there are better ways.

      I don't see that in this thread. Who cares who likes what. Siskel and Ebert worked well for years and still had a difference of opinion. To each his own. It does not make you smart or stupid It certainly does not require name calling and poking at intelligence.

      What I like is up to me and with understanding comes integrity and respect. Either watch the movie or don't. I am sure some time in your life you have went to a movie you didn't like. Everyone doesn't have the same taste.

      A review is an opinion not a fact. There are more important things in live than, how good or bad IP man was. That is what I took from IP man and even if the martial arts was not up to par. I love to watch martial arts movies not pick them apart. If I wanted to do that then I would find a dojo and join for the reality of the sport.

      TV sensationalizes a lot and so what. It was a movie and even if someone's life. It was a movie. If I spent all my time worrying about Tyler Perry being a man, then I would never actually enjoy Madea. Once again, just a movie.

      P.S. This anonymous, is a woman that simply was looking for information about IP man, when I came across this thread. To me martial arts is about finding peaceful ways to solve conflicts; instead of being a part of one.

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    38. 1.It is called as a movie,of course it'll be dramatic...
      2.if you are good in the movie thing,make one and stop complaining

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    39. 1.It is called as a movie,of course it'll be dramatic...
      2.if you are good in the movie thing,make one and stop complaining

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    40. People who love this movie can be put in 2 sub-groups:
      *Chinese people with nationalistic urges
      *Some Kung-fu, Bruce Lee or Ip Man enthusiasts who closed their eyes while watching and fell in love with the movie. They focus on some part of the movie or some part of a comment and then attack. As any 8 year old would do :)
      And most of these people consider at least one of the following statements to be true:
      -You have to be a producer making better films to criticize any movie.
      -A boxer fights better with gloves.
      -Being able to kick is not an advantage for a boxer.
      -Anybody who doesn't like the movie have to be a chauvinist British.
      If you are one of the people that fits in one of the descriptions above, please stop reading.
      I didn't like the movie. I consider the first movie was watchable and entertaining even a little chauvinist with the portrayal of Japanese. I completely agree with Will. The movie isn't connected with reality in any way and can be considered a cheesy Chinese movie with some unrealistic martial arts in it. And I still don't know why Twister wears gloves while his opponents doesn't or why do people choose wait in line to fight with the hero while they could overcrowd him? :) Just these 2 questions can show what kind of a movie this is.
      And if you have continued to read after the warning and still calling me or someone who thinks like me an "idiot", or thinking I should be making movies because I said the movie sucks I don't blame you. The responsibility is on your family, teachers and iq level.. :)

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