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:

Plainclothes (dir. Carmen Emmi)

An undercover police officer falls for his latest target…

Tron: Ares (dir. Joachim Rønning)

A super-intelligent program is sent from the digital world to ours for a bold mission…

Good Boy (dir. Ben Leonberg)

A loyal dog witnesses his owner succumb to supernatural forces…

I Swear (dir. Kirk Jones)

A young man with Tourette’s syndrome struggles to live with his condition…

BFI London Film Festival 2025 Reviews: The Secret Agent, Twinless and more!

Our first collection of reviews from this year’s BFI London Film Festival includes write-ups on some of the most anticipated titles from this year’s edition, including Sirât, Left-Handed Girl and others!

Him (dir. Justin Tipping)

An aspiring football player is put through a testing regime by a former quarterback…

The Smashing Machine (dir. Benny Safdie)

Former wrestler and MMA fighter Mark Kerr helps usher in a new era for the sport…

The Lost Bus (dir. Paul Greengrass)

A bus driver rescues a classroom from a destructive wildfire…

Urchin (dir. Harris Dickinson)

A homeless man attempts to turn his life around…

Steve (dir. Tim Mielants)

At a struggling reform school, a headteacher attempts to make it through the day…

Optimized by Optimole