The Grandmaster

In this martial-arts epic, famed director Wong Kar-Wai adds a touch of poetic, romantic yearning to the real-life story of Ip Man (Tony Leung Chiu-wai), the wing chun legend who trained Bruce Lee. As an innovative fighter from a wealthy Foshan family in the South, Ip Man is chosen in 1936 to demonstrate his fluid skill for Gong Baosen (Wang Qingxiang), the retiring master from the snowy North. But Gong Baosen's daughter, Gong Er (Zhang Ziyi), is worried that her father might lose for the first time. As various warriors maneuver for superiority, the competition seems to foreshadow China's upcoming civil war. The rest of the film follows Ip Man's relocation to Hong Kong after the Japanese invasion and Gong Er's eventual showdown with her father's defiant former protégé, Ma San (Zhang Jin). Although Philippe Le Sourd's Oscar-nominated cinematography is spectacular, and stunt coordinator Yuen Woo Ping's fight scenes are mesmerizingly choreographed, the transitions here sometimes seem sluggish and the editing can be choppy (most likely because Wong's original cut was longer). Since the narrative stops in the 1950s, this sweeping action epic never gets to Ip Man's most famous pupil, Lee. Still, this is a somber, stylized, and visually stunning film that will appeal to more than just chop socky fans. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a behind-the-scenes section with production featurettes (52 min. total), a “From Ip Man to Bruce Lee” featurette (23 min.), a conversation with Bruce Lee's daughter, Shannon Lee (7 min.), and “The Grandmaster According to RZA” with the musician (6 min.). Bottom line: a solid extras package for a beautifully-lensed bio-pic.] (S. Granger)