THE GRANDMASTER (15)

WHO’S IN IT?

Tony Leung Chiu-Wai (Hero), Zhang Ziyi (Memoirs of a Geisha), Song Hye-kyo (My Girl and I), Chang Chen (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), Zhao Benshan (The Emperor and the Assassin), Qingxiang Wang (Chinese Zodiac), Zhang Jin (The Bounty), Yuen Woo-ping (Kill Bill), Xiaoshenyang (A Simple Noodle Story), Cung Le (Fighting), Tielong Shang (Perhaps Love)

WHO’S BEHIND THE CAMERA?

Wong Kar-wai (My Blueberry Nights), director, writer, producer; Jingzhi Zou (My Kingdom) and Haofeng Xu (Judge Archer), writers; Jacky Pang Yee Wah (Touch of the Light), producer; Nathaniel Méchaly (Taken) and Shigeru Umebayashi (House of Flying Daggers), composers; Philippe Le Sourd (Seven Pounds), cinematographer; William Chang (2046) and Hung Poon (Dragon Inn), editors

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

In 1930s China, legendary Wing Chun grandmaster Ip Man (Chiu-Wai) finds his peaceful life in Foshan interrupted by the arrival of Gong Yutian (Qingxiang), who seeks an heir for his family in the South, and the challenge of Yutian’s daughter Gong Er (Zhang) to regain her family honour. We also follow Ip Man’s travels to Hong Kong after the Second Sino-Japanese War, as well as Gong Er’s later travellings down the path of vengeance…

IN ONE SENTENCE, WHY SHOULD YOU BE EXCITED?

The life of Ip Man, the martial arts teacher who infamously had Bruce Lee as one of his later pupils, has been told on-screen before, but perhaps not as eloquently as Wong Kar-Wai’s direction or Philippe Le Sourd’s Oscar-nominated cinematography will allow.

WHEN’S IT OUT?

FRIDAY 5TH DECEMBER 2014

Search from over ten years of movies here:

Other recent reviews:

Is This Thing On? (dir. Bradley Cooper)

A middle-aged divorcee dips his toes into the stand-up comedy scene…

Return to Silent Hill (dir. Christophe Gans)

A young man is drawn to the mysterious town of Silent Hill…

The History of Sound (dir. Oliver Hermanus)

In the early 20th century, two young men develop a life-changing bond…

Mercy (dir. Timur Bekmambetov)

A cop has ninety minutes to prove his innocence to an AI judge…

H is for Hawk (dir. Philippa Lowthorpe)

A grieving academic finds solace in training a wild goshawk…

No Other Choice (dir. Park Chan-Wook)

A desperate unemployed man sets out to eliminate his competition for a new job…

The Rip (dir. Joe Carnahan)

A group of cops come across a tempting pile of cash during a raid…

The Voice of Hind Rajab (dir. Kaouther Ben Hania)

In January 2024, a group of Red Crescent volunteers receive an emergency call from Gaza…

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (dir. Nia DaCosta)

The continuing adventures of young Spike as he ventures through a zombie-infested Britain…

Rental Family (dir. Hikari)

A struggling actor is hired by an unusual firm in Japan…

Optimized by Optimole