Anyone Else Not Particularly Impressed With The Yip Man Movies?

[Bruce]

I thought the fight choreagraphy & camera angles & editing were better in the first one, but I didn't think either part 1 or 2 was anything great, definitely not movies I'd watch repeatedly (not even the fight scenes). Wing Chun's been better represented on film before (& without as much exaggeration & ridiculous wire-fu) by both Bruce Lee & Sammo Hung.

Speaking of Bruce Lee, Dragon The Bruce Lee Story seemed more fact based than these so called Yip (Ip) Man bio pics. I guess the producers figure audiences will respond better to fiction, but I think if someone actually took the time to do their research & treated either Bruce Lee or Yip Man as the interesting & inspirational human beings they were something that actually bore some resemblance to true events could make an excellent movie.

[BaronK]

As I've stated many times, I hate the action in IM1. IM2 had better action for me but not blow away. Don't care for the ring stuff, don't like the Lo Mang fight and the market fight was blah for me. Thankfully, Sammo didn't shoot this one like IM1.

They are broader based movies, as opposed to just being KF movies. As with Legend is Born, the IM character is so sirene, that it takes some of the umf out of the action. He's so polite and laid back, where even a bit of character intensity would have been very useful.

[dionbrother]

Haven't seen IM 2, but I didn't care for the historical revisionism. China defeated Japan in WWII...wow, that was revelatory.

[Guest Yi-Long]

I've only seen Ip Man 1. It was ok, but nothing mindblowing like Drunken Master 2 or Fist of Legend.

Fist of Legend, to me, is THE perfect m.a. movie, with just amazing action and a great pace throughout. It doesn't really get slow or boring anywhere.

Ip Man is a good kung fu flick, especially in these days where we're hungry for this kinda stuff yet get so little... but it could have been better ofcourse.

[Charuto]

I thought part 1 was pretty good flick, but overrated when it came out. I didn't really like part 2 at all. In both movies, I thought the action looked best in the intros where we (twice) are introduced to what Ip Man can do. There's no real back-and-forth in those though, so maybe it was easier to make these parts look good.

[Guest ekisha]

Both were watchable but not excellent. Story and acting was better than most old school kung fu movies but not the action. Too much wires spoilt my "appetite". The fight scene between Yip Man and 3 masters was ridiculous. I mean look at Lo Meng's entrance! He looked like puppet.

I even told myself: "no way, this must be done by Chin Siu Tong, not Sammo." I'd say Ip Man movies are the most overrated KF movies of all time.

[HAZ]

Both were watchable but not excellent. Story and acting was better than most old school kung fu movies but not the action. Too much wires spoilt my "appetite". The fight scene between Yip Man and 3 masters was ridiculous. I mean look at Lo Meng's entrance! He looked like puppet.

I even told myself: "no way, this must be done by Chin Siu Tong, not Sammo." I'd say Ip Man movies are the most overrated KF movies of all time.

Was it just wires or CGI? Lo Meng looked like a cartoon. That fight with the three masters looked to computer-ish. I wish wires were the only thing involved! Ip Man 2 was okay. I would have liked to see a villain that was more evil. The Japanese in Ip Man 1 were nasty dudes. The English in Ip Man 2 were jerks, but weren't as malevolent - it wasn't as satisfying watching them go down. There were also some plot elements repeated from 1 to 2 that made the second film feel a bit reheated. It was the best HK martial arts film I've seen since the first installment. Both films are a must-see.

[One Armed Boxer]

I just got through watching 'Ip Man 2'...so thought I'd post my thoughts here as it's the most recent topic concerning the subject.

Which is better? For me I have to choose 'Ip Man', the second was good, but had several detracting elements in it for me. Perhaps first and foremost was the increased use of wires from the first one, actually not so much for Donnie Yen himself, but as others have stated Sammo Hung & Lo Meng have truly bizarre entrances in the scene were they challenge Ip Man.

When Sammo first jumps 8 foot into the air to land on the table I bowed my head and shook it in bewilderment, then had to rewind the scene as I didn't realize they had started fighting immediately. Similarly, I think ekisha hits the nail on the head, Lo Meng does indeed look like a puppet on a string when bouncing from chair to chair...why!?

I also agree with Ip Man being too serene in the second installment...when he takes on the room full of karate experts in the original, you can feel the anger and the emotion behind the fight...it's a poweful scene and expertly choreographed. In 'Ip Man 2' he keeps his cool to the point where you wonder if he's a vulcan. Even in the final fight, which I honestly believe has been retread too many times now (Fearless, Tom Yum Goong, True Legend, etc.), I didn't have much feeling attached, although it was interesting to see Yen on the ropes, literally, for once.

Perhaps that's more of what the second one needed....a truly despicable set of villains like the first movie. The British didn't so much come across as nasty as they did a bunch of ignorant idiots, and so sometimes I found my attention drifting. All that being said, I would still say it's a good movie in these times of take what we can get, and I would say they are well worth purchasing as a set.

What is most interesting for me is that, in the 'Making of'....the director Wilson Yip expalins that the second one focuses more on Ip Man's family life! I actually thought the polar opposite...the original had more attention paid to his family and the relationship between his wife and son, in the second they just meander in and out of the movie inconsequentially, they definitely take a back seat to the rest of the story.

[Drunken Monk]

I, for one, enjoyed both "Ip Man" and "Ip Man 2." Ok, so neither were exactly groundbreaking and the second outing's final act certainly had a lack of originality but I'd happily watch both parts again.

In between the awkward wires and silly special effects moments I think there is some legitimately excellent choreography. The story's a little simple but it works for what it is. I still don't understand how people disliked these two films but loved the appalling "True Legend."

[Guest Markgway]

Only seen the first one which I thought was very good... so there.

[kaleyboy]

For me, the definitive wing chun movie remains The Prodigal Son. IM1 was okay, didn't like the cartoonish fight with Fan Siu Wong, though the movie was redeemed by Donnie's brilliant 1 vs 10 fight. The rest was only so-so for me. Haven't seen 2 yet, but from what I've heard, I probably won't like it too much. Kung fu movies need some innovation in terms of plot and narrative; they only seem to have 3 or maybe 4 stock plotlines. Kick out the ching, bring back the ming, kick out the japanese/english/russians, get revenge for master, recover the stolen manual/sword. It's time the genre moved beyond these conventions and pushed the envelope a bit.

[Space]

For me, the definitive wing chun movie remains The Prodigal Son. IM1 was okay, didn't like the cartoonish fight with Fan Siu Wong, though the movie was redeemed by Donnie's brilliant 1 vs 10 fight. The rest was only so-so for me. Haven't seen 2 yet, but from what I've heard, I probably won't like it too much. Kung fu movies need some innovation in terms of plot and narrative; they only seem to have 3 or maybe 4 stock plotlines. Kick out the ching, bring back the ming, kick out the japanese/english/russians, get revenge for master, recover the stolen manual/sword. It's time the genre moved beyond these conventions and pushed the envelope a bit.

Agreed, and I have Warriors Two right behind Prodigal Son for Wing Chun movies. The Ip Man movies, while I enjoy them, feature too much wire work and fancy editing at times during the fights.

I also agree that plots could diversify; I think we could easily go 10 years without having to see a movie with cartoonishly awful Japanese or Western bad guys (unless it's a comedy). Not only are movies kind of formulaic but most are also deadly serious. I wouldn't mind seeing more kung fu comedies. We had Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle and lately Kung Fu Chefs wasn't bad either, that's a start.

Good writing will help take the genre to the next level, whatever that is...maybe how to come to grips with the future of humanity and the proper place for martial arts in a more civilized age (with guns).

[sen_pai]

I love the 2 Ip Man movies. Part 1 was better. Part 2, didn't like boxing that much, but still great overall. I love all of the new Chinese martial arts movies since Hero. I love the new special effects, cutting, and camera angles. That's entertainment to me! I could understand that from a realistic point of view, it's not good, but hey, they're movies. Bruce Lee movie was really good, but it just lacked the cool action. I do not like older martial arts film in the 90s and earlier. I know that many have claimed to be some of the best movies, but the lack the special effects, cutting, and camera angles that movies today have.

I love Donnie Yen's newer movies since Hero. If his name is on it, then it's most likely to be gold. Yea, he's just everywhere and not giving opportunities to other actors/martial artist, but he's that great!

I do not like martial arts movies with too much story, like Donnie Yen's cop movies. I like em with a simple story with many major fight scenes.

I love this site too..

[dionbrother]

Completely agree that PRODIGAL SON and WARRIORS TWO are the standard for all wing chun movies. Neither has been surpassed.

[odioustrident]

I was disappointed by both films but the hands were definitely fast when they needed to be.

Then again, I think this fight scene might be more entertaining than anything I saw in Ip Man 1 or 2.

http://www.youtube.com/user/rrden1#p/a/u/1/cU0SlaD-3bs

[FrankBolte]

yip man 1 was nice!

yip man 2 was all Hung Kam Bo..he stole the show!

[SimonMW]

I liked both. But they aren't classics and I don't rewatch over and over. Speaking as a Wing Chun practitioner of 15 years I thought the handwork was much more fluid and "Wing Chun" in the second film. Much more fluid. I felt that in the first film Donnie was too rigid. Wing Chun should be fluid, not move by move karate like.

That said I don't watch the films over and over because they are flawed. Ip Man 1 was great until the whole Japanese thing started. Then the film just became a dull retread of every film that tried to cash in on Fist of Fury in the 70's.

Ip Man 2 was good in terms of being a film until the masters fight, which I agree with others here was silly with the overuse of wires. The end with the awkward landing on the two broken table halves was utterly silly in this particular film. Following that it became a bit rubbish.

However contrary to others I liked the boxing fights. Wing Chun may have been influenced by encounters with western boxing and there are a lot of parallels, especially with old style boxing, so they are a good match up, despite what some here say. What I didn't like about the end fight was that Ip Man kept getting knocked out over and over. While I realise they wanted to say that he had to overcome the odds and adapt to the opponent, it rather paints his character as being a bit rubbish at fighting. After all, what would the ending to this fight have been had they set it in an alleyway where "Twister" could have put the boot in after Ip Man was knocked down?!

Lastly, as per everyone else I'd like to point out how utterly painful the acting and lines were by the western actors. In this day and age there is no excuse for performances that terrible.

[Delirious]

Lastly, as per everyone else I'd like to point out how utterly painful the acting and lines were by the western actors. In this day and age there is no excuse for performances that terrible.

seeing how the plot unfolds, i didn't think it was their choice to act the way they did. Wilson Yip makes commercial and enjoyable films, he is not Wong Kar Wai or Ringo Lam. With the current state of Hong Kong cinema, Wilson Yip still manages to get sizable dough to make his stuff, it is not surprising his film is overrated. I think Wilson Yip as a sack of good luck, just like Justin Beiber or the whole cast of Twilight. If he started his career 15 years earlier, I would put him right next to Wong Jing.

[Ramji]

seeing how the plot unfolds, i didn't think it was their choice to act the way they did. Wilson Yip makes commercial and enjoyable films, he is not Wong Kar Wai or Ringo Lam.

Of course we do have Wong Kar Wai's version of Ip Man coming in the near future which I'm sure many people here are very interested in seeing how it turns out. I am a big fan of WKW's work and imagine that he will not go for the more OTT elements of Wilson Yips films. Maybe we'll see a movie with no fights in at all, possibly limiting the Kung Fu to a teaching setting or some wooden dummy work?

Regarding the two Ip Man movies, I really enjoyed both. I thought Donnie was great and that Kenji Kawai score gets my chi pumping!

[Phoenix]

These days good kung fu films come along rarely, it seems we were spoiled for choice in the past. Coming from that viewpoint, Ip Man 1 on first viewing, I enjoyed a lot. The sequel disappointed me in many ways and I feel, overall, it is a weaker film than the first-choregraphy wise and storywise. The only plus point for the sequel is that it didn't have the grim wartime occupation setting.

I do like the first film but it's not something I will go back to. It's a crime that Fan Siu Wong didn't get to fight in the sequel.

These films are overrated but that's due to the lack of quality kung fu films in this day and age.

[TibetanWhiteCrane]

I love the 2 Ip Man movies. Part 1 was better. Part 2, didn't like boxing that much, but still great overall. I love all of the new Chinese martial arts movies since Hero. I love the new special effects, cutting, and camera angles. That's entertainment to me! I could understand that from a realistic point of view, it's not good, but hey, they're movies. Bruce Lee movie was really good, but it just lacked the cool action. I do not like older martial arts film in the 90s and earlier. I know that many have claimed to be some of the best movies, but the lack the special effects, cutting, and camera angles that movies today have.

I love Donnie Yen's newer movies since Hero. If his name is on it, then it's most likely to be gold. Yea, he's just everywhere and not giving opportunities to other actors/martial artist, but he's that great!

I do not like martial arts movies with too much story, like Donnie Yen's cop movies. I like em with a simple story with many major fight scenes.

..........

[Guest Yi-Long]

I love the 2 Ip Man movies. Part 1 was better. Part 2, didn't like boxing that much, but still great overall. I love all of the new Chinese martial arts movies since Hero. I love the new special effects, cutting, and camera angles. That's entertainment to me! I could understand that from a realistic point of view, it's not good, but hey, they're movies. Bruce Lee movie was really good, but it just lacked the cool action. I do not like older martial arts film in the 90s and earlier. I know that many have claimed to be some of the best movies, but the lack the special effects, cutting, and camera angles that movies today have.

I love Donnie Yen's newer movies since Hero. If his name is on it, then it's most likely to be gold. Yea, he's just everywhere and not giving opportunities to other actors/martial artist, but he's that great!

I do not like martial arts movies with too much story, like Donnie Yen's cop movies. I like em with a simple story with many major fight scenes.

I love this site too..

Firefox needs a new plug-in that allows you to smack other people in the face...

[One Armed Boxer]

I love the new special effects, cutting, and camera angles. That's entertainment to me! I could understand that from a realistic point of view, it's not good, but hey, they're movies. Bruce Lee movie was really good, but it just lacked the cool action. I do not like older martial arts film in the 90s and earlier. I know that many have claimed to be some of the best movies, but the lack the special effects, cutting, and camera angles that movies today have.

Wow...sen_pai, you should check out this list of movies from the main site, I think you may be the first person to actually agree with it -

http://www.kungfucinema.com/14-great-martial-arts-films-of-the-last-decade-13037

[kaleyboy]

Everyone's entitled to their own opinion. We may not agree, but if he prefers modern movies, he shouldn't be frowned upon for it.

[Tosh]

They're soap operas, HK film use to cater to a wider market, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, now they're making movies for the mainland and the movies are looking more like Chinese TV, they're also taking on more of a Hollywood formula, I have little hope for the future of Chinese cinema, luckly Country's like Korea and Thailand are stepping up.