Yip Man - Best Martial Art Film In Years

Rating: 9/10 (29 May 2010)

I've been a martial arts movie fan for years. Every since I was in High School and my friend invited me to check out his Tai-Kwon-Do class, I was fascinated with Asia style martial arts. I eventually joined my friend's class and went as far as Blue Belt before heading off to college and leaving the class. I've seen just about all the best martial arts movies; from Drunken Master 2 to Once Upon a Time In China. Even the classics like 7 Blows of the Dragon and 5 Deadly Venoms. I've seen them all. I have my favorites like Fist of Legend, Wing Chun, The Prodigal Son and Tai Chi Master 1 & 2. What I loved about Yip Man was the well written story the accompanied the great action. Yip Man tells the story of Ip Man who was the first Wing-Chun Master to teach Westerners this style. He was Bruce Lee's first Master. His teachings popularized martial arts in American and started a chain reaction on various martial arts schools throughout America.
The movie is a biopic of Ip Man's life in Fo Shan China where he lived and taught his style. Fo Shan in 1930 was know for it's martial arts schools and one could be found on just about every corner. Yip Man did not have students, but would occasional be challenged by other masters interested in learning from him. Yip Man would fight them behind closed door, so if they lose, they would not be disrespected or humiliated by their peers or students. This was Yip Man way and he was well respected throughout Fo Shan.
What turn things around in Fo Shan was the Sino Japanese war that appeared in Fo Shan. The Japanese Imperial army took over Fo Shan and even took Yip Man's home away from him. They treated the Chinese people with no respect and had them working for less then minimal wages. At this time Yip Man is barely able to feed his family and takes up work shoveling coal. All of Fo Shan people were at the mercy of the Japanese army. The armies' Generatl Miura (Hiroyuki Ikeuchi) would have Li Zhao (Lam Ka Tung), who was the translator and liaison between the Japanese and Chinese, find fighters to battle Japanese soldiers for rice. If the Chinese fighter won, he would get a bag of rice for every man he defeated. It's safe to say that Yip Man himself eventually gets his turn, but not very willingly.
The fights in this film are sensational. With Sammo Hung and Tony Leung Siu Hung overseeing all the action, you know it has to be great. Some of the best action is when Jin Shan Zhao (Siu-Wong Fan) comes to Fo Shan to open his own martial arts school. He challenges all the masters to make sure he's the best in Fo Shan. The action, technique and martial arts skill are intense. Nothing is held back. Donnie Yen's Yip Man is awesome. A humbled man who enjoys the quiet life, yet loves to train and practice the Wing Chun style. His Wing Chun style is fast, soft and mainly a defensive style. The Wing Chun style was created by a woman. Even Yip Man's stance and how he holds his hands represents a woman's posture. It's not hard or stiff like Karate or Tae-Kwon-Do. When Yip Man fights some of his opponents he spends the 1st few minutes simply defending, blocking and diverting the oncoming blows. When he strikes however, it's lightning fast and direct. It's wonderful to watch.
This is a must have film. I just finished watching Yip Man 2 on DVD, which is almost as good as this film. The story isn't as well written and character development isn't as strong, but Sammo Hung is in it this time. He's great as usual. Still worth seeing though. In any case Yip Man should be seen by every martial arts fan. It's definitely in my Top 10 along with Drunken Master 2, Fist of Legend, Once Upon A Time In China & Tai Chi Master. Do not hesitate to get this film. Overall I rate this movie 9/10.