Ip Man 2 (2011)

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Overview

The sequel to the surprising worldwide success of Ip Man, Ip Man 2 follows Master Ip having just moved from Foshan to British controlled Hong Kong. He is struggling to make ends meet while teaching Wing Chun when his past, future, and political surroundings all clash together. This Hong Kong made movie features Donnie Yen reprising his role as Ip Man and features a combination of traditional martial arts moves with slight wire work to provide a greater sense of reality to the fighting.

Creation

Before the original movie was out in theaters the producer, Raymond Wong, intended to continue the story of Ip Man, taking a look at his years teaching Bruce Lee. Despite this desire the producers had some trouble attempting to get Lee's likeness rights for the movie and were forced to change the focus of the movie to just prior to Ip Man taking Lee on as a student.

Plot Summary:

Ip Man at his school

Ip Man, a master of the martial art of Wing Chun, has moved his family to British controlled Hong Kong is hopes of escaping the tragedies he faced there. Deciding to open a school for Wing Chun, Ip Man begins advertising his school about town but without any reputation fails to garner any business. Soon a young man, Leung Sheung, shows up asking if Ip Man was teaching and challenges him to a fight. Leung cannot overcome the master and brings back a group of his friends to even the score. Ip easily beats all three of the young men and all are so impressed by Ip's skills profess him their master starting Ip's school down a path of success.

Ip Man and Leung

Quickly Leung becomes one of Ip Man's best students and is eager to promote his master's school by hanging posters all around town. Soon another school's pupils spot Leung hanging up his posters and challenge him to a fight. Leung wins but against the wrong type of hooligans and soon finds himself kidnapped and Ip Man is demanded to pay a ransom for his return. Ip Man finds the men who kidnapped Leung, who are from Master Hung Gar's school, in a nearby fish market. There Ip Man demands his pupil back and refuses to pay any ransom suggesting they talk out their differences.

Soon Ip and Leung find themselves fighting off wave after wave of rival students before a former bandit whom Ip beat up years before, named Jin, shows up with his gang to break the fight up. Hung Cum-nam, the rival student's master, also breaks up the fight and informs Ip that before he can establish any martial arts school in Hong Kong he has to prove his abilities before the local martial arts masters. Ip agrees but is arrested along with Leung and Jin by the Hong Kong police and Officer Fatso. Fatso and Hung have been tricked into paying protection money to a dirty English cop named Wallace.

Ip Man vs. Hung

After collecting the bail money Ip and his friends are released from jail and Ip makes his way to the Master's ceremony. There he must balance himself on a table surrounded by upward chairs that should he fall on would both disqualify him and possible hurt him. The martial arts masters take their turns attempting to knock Ip Man off the table and beat his Wing Chun. After two masters failed to knock Ip down Hung himself, being a Grandmaster, goes against Ip. The two each knock hard blows against one another but their fighting fails to have a true victor and ends in a draw. Hung informs Ip that he can have his school but he needs to pay monthly fees for protection, really protection from the corrupt Wallace. Ip refuses and Hung's students begin to hang around and harass all those that try to enter.

Ip's student are drawn into a fight by the rival students and begin a large street fight that forces the lease holder of Ip's school to close it down. Ip visits Hung and the two almost begin to fight when Hung's family shows up and Ip saves Hung's son from an errant punch. Hung and Ip don't fight but Ip has earned Hung's respect and offers Ip a few tickets to a western boxing match that is being held. This match is to feature Taylor "Twister" Milos as well as a demonstration by the local schools of Chinese martial arts. Twister thinks the martial arts look more like dances and openly challenges the students displaying their skills and begins to beat them down. Even Leung tries to take Twister on and ends up taking too many strong punches.

Eventually Ip and Hung jump into the ring in hopes of breaking the ensuing brawl up to avoid any other injuries. With the students and Twister separated Hung demands an apology from Twister for disrespecting Chinese martial arts which is flatly refused. Hung then challenges Twister to a fight, western boxing versus eastern martial arts. Twister agrees and Hung takes his corner. Initially Hung is able to weaken Twister but after the fight continues to go on Hung becomes winded. Ip man tries to suggest hitting Twister in the ribs and even tries to throw in the towel for Hung, but Hung claims its not that easy. Hung knows he must keep fighting in hopes of winning honor for their martial arts.

Hung however cannot win and soon finds himself being pummeled on the ropes unable to fall down and Twister punches Hung to death. The incident doesn't settle well among the Chinese people and local newspapers begun to publish the report accurately as a beating by the bully Twister. When Wallace is reprimanded by his superiors for the incident, Wallace arrests the local newspaper's editor and breaks his hand. Officer Fatso stops Wallace from any more harm to the editor and secretly begins to encourage the paper to publish more inflammatory remarks.

Ip Man training

Wallace and Twister hold a press conference trying to change the viewpoint that Hung died due to his own overestimation of his strength rather than Twister's brutality. At the press conference Twister opens the ring back up to any challengers and Ip Man is there to take it. Ip Man trains in his home, with his wife and son living with the landlady to give him space.

Ip Man in a boxing ring

As Ip Man steps into the ring his wife begins labor and the match with Twister is broadcasted all over Hong Kong. The two go toe to toe and Ip Man clearly has an advantage but can't take too many of Twister's strong punches. After the second round bell Twister lands a sucker punch on Ip Man which the judges react to by banning Ip from the use of any kicks. As Ip Man realizes he is losing the fight he recalls the advice he gave Hung, go for the ribs, and Hung's response, its not that easy. Ip realizes he must go after Twister arms. His new strategy works and Ip Man is able to out punch and our maneuver Twister and win the fight.

The audience cheers and as Wallace leaves the arena Fatso stops him while more Hong Kong police show up. Fatso reported Wallace to his superiors for his crooked ways and has him arrested. Ip Man speaks to the English audience stating that he didn't prove Chinese martial arts was better than Western boxing but rather a person's dignity is the same no matter where they come from. Ip Man returns home to his wife and his new born son. A final scene shows a young boy by the name of Bruce Lee wishing to learn from Ip Man, Ip only responds to come back when he is older.

Critical Reception:

Originally released in Asia, specifically China, before it was released internationally. Though the film faced against Iron Man 2 the same weekend, Ip Man 2 beat both Iron Man and the original Ip Man film with its weekend gross. Generally the film was also received very well by critics with a consensus that it wasn't better than the first but came close to the same feeling and tone of the original. Ip Man 2 also faces concerned, just like the first one, due to exaggerations over Ip Man's true life challenges and how they were presented, or ignored, in the film.