Ip Man
File:Ip man series.png
Series logo
Directed byWilson Yip
Screenplay byEdmond Wong
Produced byRaymond Wong
StarringDonnie Yen
Cinematography
  • O Sing-Pui (1)
  • Poon Hang-sang (2)
  • Kenny Tse (3)
Edited byCheung Ka-fai
Music byKenji Kawai
Distributed byMandarin Films
Pegasus Motion Pictures (3)
Release date
2008 – 2015
Running time
322 minutes
CountryHong Kong
LanguageCantonese
Budget$60.6 million
Box office$228 million

Ip Man is a series of Hong Kong biographical martial arts films starting with Ip Man in 2008 and followed by two sequels – Ip Man 2 (2010) and Ip Man 3 (2015). All three films are directed by Wilson Yip, written by Edmond Wong, produced by Raymond Wong and star Donnie Yen. Mandarin Films released the first two films in Hong Kong, which earned more than $37 million with a budget of around $24.6 million. The films are based on the life events of the Wing Chun master of the same name. Donnie Yen has mentioned each film has a unique theme, that the first Ip Man film was about "Survival", Ip Man 2 focuses on "Making a Living and Adaptation", while Ip Man 3 focuses on "Life" itself.[1]

Films

Ip Man (2008)

Ip Man was directed by Wilson Yip and written by Edmond Wong.[2] It was Raymond Wong's idea to develop a biographical film about Wing Chun master Yip Man. Principal photography began in Shanghai in March 2008 and ended in August. The film was released in Hong Kong on 18 December 2008 by Mandarin Films, and earned around US$21.8 million against the US$11.7 million budget.[3] Donnie Yen portrayed the role of Ip Man in the film, set in the 1930s, focuses on events in Ip's life in the city of Foshan during the Sino-Japanese War.[2]

Ip Man 2 (2010)

The sequel is set in the 1950s, when Ip Man moved to Hong Kong and attempts to promote Wing Chun in the region.[4] It was intended to focus on the relationship between Ip Man and his most famed disciple Bruce Lee.[5] The film was directed by Yip and written by Edmond Wong, while Raymond Wong produced the film and was released in Hong Kong on 29 April 2010 by Mandarin Films. The film grossed more than $50 million against the budget of $12.9 million.[6][7]

Ip Man 3 (2015)

Principal photography began in Shanghai on 25 March 2015, which Yip is again directing the film based on the script by Wong.[8] Donnie Yen is again portraying the role of Yip Man, along with him Mike Tyson is also playing a role of a street fighter.[8] Bruce Lee's character was initially supposed to be featured in CGI, because the producers could not find an actor who could portray Lee convincingly,[8] but Danny Chan was eventually cast in the role.[9]

Principal photography for Ip Man 3 began on 25 March 2015, and the film was released in Hong Kong on 24 December 2015.

Ip Man 4 (2018)

On 30 September 2016, Yen announced via Facebook that he and Wilson Yip would continue the franchise with Ip Man 4.[10] Filming is scheduled to begin in 2018,[11] and the film is being aimed for a release later that year.[12] The film will take place in the 1960s, and will see Ip Man travelling to the United States to work with Bruce Lee after the latter decides to open a Wing Chun school in Seattle.[13]

Recurring cast and characters

Character Film
I II III
Ip Man Donnie Yen
Cheung Wing-sing Lynn Hung
Ip Chun Li Chak
Chow Ching-chuen Simon Yam
Chow Kwong-yiu Calvin Cheng
Kam Shan-chau Louis Fan
Fatso Kent Cheng
Bruce Lee Jiang Dai-Yan Danny Chan

Critical reception

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic
Ip Man 84% (25 reviews)[14] 59% (9 reviews)[15]
Ip Man 2 92% (26 reviews)[16] 67% (13 reviews)[17]
Ip Man 3 78% (50 reviews)[18] 57% (14 reviews)[19]

Home media

Ip Man Trilogy, a Blu-ray compilation that features the first three films in the series, was released by Well Go USA in November 2016. The Blu-ray also includes special features such as deleted scenes, "behind-the-scenes" featurette and interviews with Donnie Yen and Mike Tyson.[20]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Donnie Yen and Mike Tyson exchange blows". The New Straits Times. 18 December 2015. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  2. ^ a b Elley, Derek (20 January 2009). "Review: 'Ip Man'". variety.com. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  3. ^ "Ip Man (2008)". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  4. ^ "News: IP MAN Sequel Gets The Green Light!". Twitchfilm.net. 26 November 2008. Retrieved 27 March 2015. ((cite web)): Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ "Ip Man 2 May Still Focus on... Ip Man - Wu-Jing.org". wu-jing.org. 6 March 2009. Archived from the original on 25 February 2010. Retrieved 27 March 2015. ((cite web)): Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ "Ip Man 2: Legend of the Grandmaster". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  7. ^ "Three Yip Man Biopics to Commence Filming Soon - Wu-Jing.org". wu-jing.org. 27 July 2009. Archived from the original on 14 April 2010. Retrieved 1 March 2010. ((cite web)): Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ a b c Karen Chu (25 March 2015). "Former Boxing Champ Mike Tyson Signs Up for Hong Kong Action Flick 'Ip Man 3'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  9. ^ Tsui, Clarence (17 December 2015). "'Ip Man 3': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  10. ^ Chew Hui Min (30 September 2016). "Donnie Yen will make Ip Man 4, despite hinting previously he was retiring from gongfu films". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  11. ^ "Teaser Poster Released for Ip Man 4". Cultured Vultures. 18 March 2017. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
  12. ^ "Paradox director Wilson Yip on the SPL series, Wu Jing and Ip Man 4". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  13. ^ "Movie Watch – AFM Edition: Double Shot of Donnie Yen and Ip Man". FilmJerk.com. 6 November 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  14. ^ "Ip Man". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  15. ^ "Ip Man". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
  16. ^ "Ip Man 2: Legend of the Grandmaster". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  17. ^ "Ip Man 2". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
  18. ^ "Ip Man 3". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  19. ^ "Ip Man 3". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  20. ^ "Review: New on DVD for November 8 (Includes first-hand account)". Digital Journal. Retrieved 15 November 2016.