Film: Sparrow Year of production: 2008 UK Release date: 9th May 2011 Distributor: Terracotta Certificate: 15 Running time: 87 mins Director: Johnnie To Starring: Simon Yam, Kelly Lin, Lam Ka-tung, Lo Hoi-pang, Law Wing-cheong Genre: Comedy/Crime/Drama/Romance Format: DVD Country of Production: Hong Kong Language: Cantonese/Mandarin
Review by: Daryl Wing
The 'Jerry Bruckheimer of Hong Kong', Johnnie To has enjoyed a startling career to date, ending the 1990s on a high before suffocating in the creative and financial lull endured by a struggling Hong Kong film industry in 2001. Hitting form again with the release of award winner Running On Karma (2003), Breaking News (2004) and Throw Down (2004), the prolific auteur then delivered the mighty Election (2005) and its follow up. Not afraid to venture into the world of comedy, crime-caper Sparrow attempts to merge the criminal world with humour and romance, but will a tale about pickpockets falling for the same mysterious woman leave an audience feeling short changed?
A band of pick-pockets (‘sparrow’ in Hong Kong slang) are enjoying a profitable year when their corrupt world is disrupted by the sudden appearance of a beautiful and mysterious lady, who has the nerve to turn the tables on them.
Following her trail, the pick-pockets are led to a face-off on the streets of Hong Kong with a rival pick-pocket gang, with both gangs vying for the possession of this enigmatic lady.
As both sides struggle to decide who she plans to side with, revelations about her past reveal a sweeter side to her personality, and a hidden yearning for freedom…
An avian attack in waiting then, with hundreds of starved cynics perched on the edge of their seats, claws freshly sharpened, all waiting silently for any false move so they could take to the sky and begin their savage assault on one of Honk Kong’s most consistent directors – and Sparrow disappointingly allows them all to scratch his eyes out, despite bearing a vivid hallmark of good intent.
It houses all the trappings of a decent gambol across the innocent pastures cultivated by some of Hollywood’s greats from the 1950s and ‘60s. So much so, in fact, if Sparrow starred Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck, you would probably appreciate its little oddities far more. The problem is that Johnnie To appears to have lost himself in such a sugar-coated world that he failed to construct a plot that can’t be written down on the back of a postage stamp.
Overpopulated with thinly-drawn characters (and over familiar casting), it’s hindered by a cheap impersonation of Hitchcock’s worst material, and suffers from a director keen to stamp his authority all over key scenes whilst forgetting the rest. The introduction neatly pulls the viewer into this world of over indulgence – and it also sets the stage of expectation at a level the ensuing 80-minutes fail to meet.
It’s difficult to work out whether or not the pacing is deliberately sluggish, because just as scenes start to sag, To does something quite magical, upping the ante, not to mention the interest levels. With a Breakfast At Tiffany’s vibe running throughout, impressive moments include our main protagonist being outsmarted by a girl who can clearly drink until the cows come home, an amusing escape in a crowded lift, To’s obsession with dressing his male leads in ladies rags continuing with a tense massage scene, and the visually poetic finale in the rain with a handful of umbrellas. They may not be searching for a ginger cat, there’s no kiss in the downpour, and it may not make a great deal of sense to western viewers, if to anyone at all, but it’s certainly captivating, and easily the highlight of the film – if indeed you make it that far.
In its favour, Sparrow is able to walk a careful line between nostalgic crime-caper trappings (the damsel in distress, the sophisticated charmer, quirky side-kicks and goofy innocence) and modern, crime-riddled realism, even if it does frustrate with a fanciful feathered friend who is only too happy to be a flying metaphor. Where is that ginger cat when you need it? How it all ties together is anyone’s guess, and how the journey wasn’t as painful as this review sounds is a bigger crime than those witnessed throughout; in any case, it’s visually satisfying and bizarrely intriguing, with performances impossible to assess and a dreamlike experience suited to Sunday afternoon viewing.
Nestling snugly between his successes and failures, Johnnie To’s Sparrow almost falls fowl of the audience with a film that never really takes flight, and yet has enough magic to carry you through to its fascinating and equally perplexing finale. DW
Daily proceedings of a band of pick-pockets (‘sparrow’ in Hong Kong slang) are disrupted by the sudden appearance of a beautiful and mysterious lady, who turns the tables on them.
Following her trail, the pick-pockets are led to a face-off on the streets of Hong Kong with a rival pick-pocket gang, with both gangs vying for the possession of this enigmatic lady.
A comedy caper with comparisons to French New Wave work such as Umbrellas Of Cherbourg, Sparrow has the stylish trademarks of a Johnnie To film, with a wonderful jazz-tinged soundtrack and a photographic blend of the nostalgic old Hong Kong and the modern sky-scraper city.
Starring To regulars Simon Yam (Tomb Raider 3. Election), Lam Kar Tung (Election, Triangle, Vengeance) and Kelly Lin (Reign of Assassins).
Film: Sparrow Release date: 15th April 2011 Certificate: 15 Running time: 87 mins Director: Johnnie To Starring: Simon Yam, Kelly Lin, Lam Ka-tung, Lo Hoi-pang, Law Wing-cheong Genre: Comedy/Crime/Drama/Romance Studio: Terracotta Format: Cinema Country: Hong Kong
Film: Fulltime Killer Release date: 29th March 2004 Certificate: 18 Running time: 100 mins Director: Johnny To, Wai Ka-Fai Starring: Andy Lau, Takashi Sorimachi, Simon Yam, Kelly Lin, Cherrie Ying Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller Studio: Tartan Format: DVD Country: Hong Kong
Before receiving awards and plaudits around the globe with movies such as Exiled and the Election series, Johnnie To already had a wide array of films to his name. Looking back on some of his lesser known works, such as this adaption of the Pang Ho-Cheung novel ‘Fulltime Killer’, gives a revealing insight into a director who has been developing and honing his skills for years. The story starts showing O undertaking a hit. He is calm and methodical. When confronted by an old friend, he doesn't hesitate in killing him in order to protect himself. Then we meet another professional hit-man, Tok. When his first assassination involves a bagful of grenades, we see he is a man who is more interested in the impressive style in which he takes people out in rather than any sense of dignity or composure.
O is the better, renowned for his efficiency and ability to stay below the radar, whereas Tok is new to the game, and wants to make a name for himself in any way possible. Tok knows the only way to do this is to be the man to take down the infamous O, and will do anything in his power to draw him out.
This bait comes in the form of Chin, O's house cleaner and the only person O seems to care for, although their relationship is one of voyeurism and hidden feelings as his paranoia and insecurity stops him from being able to relate to her in any meaningful way. Tok enters her life and initiates her into the world these two men live in through his charm, and a charisma that O lacks.
As a deadly game of cat and mouse plays out between O and Tok, Agent Lee, an Interpol agent tasked with the unenviable task of finding and stopping the two, starts to close in as their battle of wits draws him ever closer to his goal. With a desire that borders on obsession to bring both men to justice, he will go to any lengths to get to the pair before they escape him again.
As events escalate, it is only a matter of time before they must finally confront each other to see just who the better is, and who will get caught in the crossfire…
With a brooding and calm demeanour, Takashi Sorimachi shows us O as a man who excels at a job where emotions are distractions he can't handle, yet who longs for something tangible and real as his self-enforced detachment and solitude have left him so secretive that he doesn't so much live his own life, as watch it from afar.
Meanwhile, Andy Lau brings his usual charisma to the role of Tok, a character who revels in his own notoriety. He is brash, easily excitable and never shy about expressing his emotions, whether through words or, often times, acts of extreme violence.
The contrasts between the two are shown often. Each has his own distinct colour, suited to their personality, which bathes them throughout the movie - ice cold blue for O and a fiery red for Tok. The way in which they undertake their assignments also reveals an insight into how their minds work differently to achieve a common goal. However, it is scenes where they react to being double crossed that the parallel between the two is best shown. O calmly exacts a clinical yet devastating retribution on the man who betrayed him, while Tok charges headlong into the trap, taking glee in springing it, trusting on nothing more than his own ability to get him through, before gleefully turning the tables on those who wronged him.
As the object of both of the protagonists’ affection, it is nice to see Kelly Lin play such a strong character in what could easily have been a one-dimensional ‘damsel in distress’ role. Instead, she quietly keeps the story flowing. At first, she is seemingly caught up in the madness caused around her by her contact with the two killers, but then it slowly becomes apparent that she has masterfully orchestrated her way into their world as a solution to her “quiet” and “boring” life. Her scenes with O and Tok help to establish the differences between them outside of their profession. The former watching her from a distance but unable to make the contact he desires, while the latter literally bursts into her life with his cocky and assured approach.
The standout, however, is Simon Yam, a man obsessed with O. He has seen the damage that O has caused and wants it to end. His chance comes when Tok enters the scene and O is forced to take a reactive role which finally brings him into Yam’s cross-hairs. Upon finally meeting O, his grin is wolfish and predatory, perfectly conveying his joy of the hunt yet also his excitement at the chance to end it. It is only after a botched arrest attempt when he is physically unable to pursue O any longer that he is forced to take in the scope of the damage his obsession has caused to those around him, beautifully conveyed as he surveys a street that is littered with his dead and wounded team.
This leads to an unconventional final act as the film starts to follow him and his descent into despair. This is unexpected and slightly disappointing as the focus is taken off the two killers. However, it is thanks to Yam's performance that this works as we see how his encounters with these two killers have left him a broken man. There is no gung-ho desire for revenge as might have been expected, but instead we see a man who has lost everything to his obsession. Yet he is still so close to the case that even though his role in the story between the two is over, he must find out how the story ends in order to have any kind of catharsis.
As you would expect with a Johnny To film, the action scenes are shot and staged beautifully - a gun fight where the three finally meet at an apartment building is a highpoint that any action fan will want to see for themselves. The only problem is the final face off between the two. After so many excellent yet varied action sequences showcasing the differences between how O and Tok operate, the pay-off to the entire movie is quite short and plagued by an over reliance on a pop culture reference that takes away some of the tension in favour of ridiculousness. Whilst it doesn't ruin the movie, the fact that it can't live up to the standards that have been previously set is slightly unsatisfying.
Star turns, a decent script and some dazzling fight choreography stop this time old tale of a newcomer trying to prove himself to the old hand from being anything but predictable. It conveys the differences between the two killers without judgement. There is no good or bad guy, and this means there is a layer of investment in these characters that make the final outcome all the more potent. DM
Film: Ip Man 2 Release date: 7th March 2011 Certificate: 15 Running time: 104 mins Director: Wilson Yip Starring: Donnie Yen, Simon Yam, Sammo Hung, Huang Xiaoming, Darren Shahlavi Genre: Action/Biography/History/Martial Arts Studio: Cine Asia Format: DVD & Blu-ray Country: Hong Kong
The fifth collaboration between director Wilson Yip and leading man Donnie Yen is a sequel to their mega-hit Ip Man - an epic martial arts period actioner that not only established a brand new Hong Kong cinematic folk hero, but also showed a new side of Yen’s acting ability, as well as featuring some of the best Wing Chun kung fu choreography ever committed to film. With Ip Man 2, can they clear their own high bar? Hong Kong, 1950. Having escaped occupied China, Wing Chun Master Ip Man (Yen) is now living in Hong Kong with his pregnant wife Wing Sing (Lynn Hung) and trying to scrape a living by teaching his art. But in a colonial Hong Kong still suffering the after-effects of war, where water is rationed and the local martial arts masters are charged a protection fee by the British authorities, times are hard, and day after day goes by without a single potential student joining Master Ip’s inconveniently located rooftop school.
This all changes when Wong Leung (Huang), a cocky street-tough, wanders in to see what Wing Chun is all about. After he and his friends are humbled by Ip’s superior skills, they accept him as their Master, and he soon has a flourishing business. However, as a recent arrival to Hong Kong, Ip is not aware that the local martial arts community is a tight-knit, pseudo-Triad overseen by Master Hung Chan-nam (Sammo Hung), who demands that the new Master prove himself a worthy teacher in a series of challenges.
After forming an initially grudging, mutual respect for Master Hung, Ip is disappointed to learn that he demands a monthly protection fee from all martial arts teachers. But Hung, in turn, is under the control of a corrupt British police officer, paying him a protection fee to ensure the kung-fu schools can operate in peace. And when the arrogant boxer ‘Twister’ (Shahlavi) comes to Hong Kong for a tournament, tensions between the oppressed Chinese and the colonial bullies threaten to explode - with Masters Hung and Ip destined to find themselves right in the middle of the fray…
As has been discussed in other reviews of Hong Kong movies on this very site, the fact that there was a quick sequel to Ip Man is hardly a surprise. The first film did great box-office in Hong Kong and China, and picked up a slew of Asian film awards; it was also well-received in international territories, thanks largely to its lavish production values, terrific action sequences, and a charismatic central performance from star Donnie Yen. It precipitated the creation of a small subgenre in Hong Kong films, centred on a real-life martial arts master who had, until then, existed only as a footnote in biographies of the late, great Bruce Lee (his most illustrious disciple) - in between Ip Man 1 and 2 came The Legend Is Born - Ip Man, starring Dennis To (who, somewhat bizarrely, has a cameo in this movie as a troublesome disciple of Sammo Hung’s character) as a younger version of Master Ip; and Tony Leung Chiu-wai has taken the role in Wong Kar-wai’s still-in-production The Grandmaster. But as the first entry in the Ip Man cinematic canon, featuring a career-defining performance from Donnie Yen and endorsement from the master’s son Ip Chun (credited as a technical advisor), Wilson’s Yip’s movie has the distinction of being the closest thing to the ‘official’ and ‘definitive’ Ip Man movie. Hence, the sequel.
Pleasingly, after an initial recap of the first film, Ip Man 2 establishes a measured and deliberate pace, avoiding any temptation to launch into a simple re-tread of its predecessor, or move straight into the action. Like in Tsui Hark’s Once Upon A Time In China series a generation earlier (to which Yip’s movies now deserve comparison), the sequel attempts to mine some new storytelling territory from the off. Master Ip is in a new location and a new predicament in the early goings of part two, with new tests of his characteristic dignity and righteous nature. His developing relationship with first student Wong Leung is unlike any dynamic shared with any character in the previous movie, and allows the audience a deeper insight into Master Ip, the man and martial arts philosopher.
Ip Man 2 is at its strongest in its first hour, as it chronicles the establishment and flourishing of Master Ip’s martial arts school, with meditations on the principles of Wing Chun (indeed, both movies serve as a fabulous commercial for this practical and economical self-defence style). And Ip’s rapport with Wong Leung is a more interesting one than any featured in the first movie, as the brash and obnoxious street kid is set on the road to maturity through his martial instruction (in real life, Wong would be the disciple placed in charge of the teenage Bruce Lee’s day-to-day teaching). Yip’s directorial command is much more evident here than in the first film, as he lets the characters build and play off each other, the narrative and emotional arcs developing at a rather gentle pace that nevertheless regularly bursts into scenes of combat that never feel forced or not germane to the story.
1950s Hong Kong is sumptuously created, even if astute and knowledgeable viewers will spot the odd anachronistic detail (a poster advertising the Sonny Liston-Cassius Clay fight being perhaps the most egregious). This is an even bigger production than the first movie, and it is to the filmmakers’ credit that a good portion of the running time is given over to quieter, human drama, rather than wall-to-wall bombastic action. The early sequences of Master Ip, the family man, trying to support his heavily pregnant wife and their son, too embarrassed to chase his young students for the school fees that his life literally depends on, are engaging thanks to the combination of understated acting and Yip’s resistance of showing the poverty of the era with a heavy hand. In its first two acts, Ip Man 2 is that rare beast - a Hong Kong martial arts movie with a dramatic foundation that is genuinely character-based.
Act two sees Yip and screenwriter Edmond Wong move up a gear with the introduction of rival students to Master Ip’s, led by Master Hung, a Hung Kuen (occasionally referred to as Hung Gar) stylist who owns and operates a fish market, and carries himself as much like a Triad kingpin as a martial arts teacher. This again, brings a new character dynamic to proceedings, as he and Master Ip develop a mutual respect for each other’s abilities, while butting heads over their respective approaches to navigating the sometimes difficult and oppressive nature of living under colonial British rule. Master Hung’s deeply conflicted approach, which perhaps involves a soul-destroying modification of his own beliefs and patriotism in an effort to protect his compatriots as best he can, is in direct contrast with Master Ip’s more immovable stance that a martial artist should not accept extortion under any circumstances. It’s a clash born as much out of personality as standard kung fu macho posturing, and is all the more compelling for it.
However, in the middle of act two, the filmmakers attempt another gear-shift - one that is not as smooth as its first. Meandering away from Ip Man to Master Hung, and exploring his dealings with the racist, extortionate British authorities (in the person of Charlie Mayer’s corrupt police officer), the narrative loses focus and leaves its protagonist stranded on the periphery of the main plot, without a real objective of his own, other than to preserve his integrity. Thus, when Master Hung’s bullying students pick a gang fight with Ip’s disciples, the resulting ruckus lacks the weight of earlier action scenes.
The script sacrifices its more interesting story to become a rather more familiar Chinese vs. Evil Oppressor narrative, which is perhaps disappointing coming off the back of a first hour pleasantly devoid of the broadly caricatured foreign figures that have been turning up all-too regularly in recent Chinese-language action movies. Personified by Darren Shahlavi’s ‘Twister’, a hulking boxing champion with an air of the period gangster about him, the British colonialists are quickly introduced as the enemy - Twister’s flagrant disrespect for ‘Chinese boxing’ sets in motion a chain-of-events that will result in a brace of hard-hitting, inter-discipline duels that see the righteous Chinese heroes stand up for the honour of their country and its martial arts traditions.
Not only is this story’s change of direction a little disappointing because it is what we might expect from a more basic Hong Kong martial arts film, but it is also - as was the depiction of the Japanese in part one - somewhat troubling for the viewer. A sense of nationalism in Hong Kong/Chinese cinema is nothing in new, but as the world moves further and further away from the eras depicted in period films, it is both fascinating and bizarre to witness the gusto with which certain Chinese filmmakers present broad, ugly caricatures of past-oppressors in the name of bolstering contemporary national pride and identity. If anything, Ip Man 2 represents a deepening of this ‘problem’ – the first film’s principal villain, Hiroyuki Ikeuchi’s General Miura, at least had a recognizable sense of warrior’s honour and respect for Ip Man; his desire to fight him born more out of a need to test himself against a credible opponent than any sense of oppression. No such element is afforded to Shahlavi’s ‘Twister’, whose personality outweighs even his heavyweight physique, and remains a rather one-note villain. This is not to take away from Shahlavi, who works hard in the role (especially in the combat scenes), but is not afforded the screen-time or nuance to flesh out his antagonist, as the filmmakers take no chances at all that the audience won’t be clamouring for the defeat of the ‘gwailo’.
But if Ip Man 2 strikes an inconsistent balance between its first and second hours, it scores consistently - and consistently high - in the other areas that matter. Once again, Donnie Yen delivers a terrific performance, building on the quiet grace that so surprised long-time admirers in the first movie, and adding to it a sense of dignity that is both appealing and, occasionally, affecting. The early scenes with Ip Man sitting quietly, smiling through the frustration of having a school with no students, are rather poignant, and ensure that even newcomers to the Ip Man legend will accept him as their hero right from the off. Yen is destined to become as synonymous with this role as Jet Li was with Wong Fei-hung.
As the conflicted Master Hung, Sammo Hung brings all of the weight and gravitas acquired over his nearly five decades in the fight film industry, commanding the screen and audience as easily as he does the kung fu masters and students he oversees. Huang Xiao-ming is engaging and appealing as the hot-headed Wong Leung, even if the character is the most disserved by the story shift, more or less disappearing from the film in the second half. Throughout the cast, there are pleasing guest appearances from returning faces like Fan Sui-wong and Simon Yam - and if their various scenes don’t always feel absolutely essential to Ip Man 2’s core narrative, their presence is nevertheless a clear indication of the filmmakers’ attempt to create not your usual quick cash-in, but a bona fide martial arts saga, which lends both films an invaluable sense of prestige.
As action choreographer, Sammo Hung has much more to work with than he did previously, staging a series of unique and thrilling battles, pitting Ip Man’s Wing Chun style against a variety of other disciplines, most notably Hung Kuen and Western boxing. His work here exceeds that of the first movie, and his collaboration with cinematographer Poon Hang-sang (veteran of Jet Li’s Fearless, among other notable entries in the genre) makes thrilling use of Kenneth Mak’s gorgeous production design - the highlight being the table-top fight between Ip Man and Master Hung. Unique, inventive and thrilling in its conception and execution, it is a worthy successor to the actors’ maiden dust-up in Yip’s earlier Kill Zone, and another reminder of Hung’s genius with staging action scenes.
Ip Man 2 is not without its issues and flaws, but in broadening out the canvas of the mythology, Wilson Yip has crafted a sequel that deserves comparison with the Once Upon A Time In China series. What next for part three? Should Donnie Yen overcome the trepidation he has expressed in interviews about trying to top his work in part two? Tantalisingly, there remains at least one more relationship to extract from the Ip Man mythology - the one between Master Ip and his teenaged disciple, Bruce Lee. In a splendid coda to Ip Man 2, this story is teased when a precocious youngster swaggers into Master Ip’s school and requests to be taken on as a student. Played by Jiang Dai-yan - a child actor who not only bears an uncanny physical resemblance to Lee at that age, but also a fine flair for mimicking the ‘Little Dragon’s’ signature mannerisms - Lee’s appearance is a crowd-pleasing one. In fact, one may even go as far as saying that it begins to deliver on an unspoken promise to audiences (especially international) that the Ip Man films would, to some extent, explore the early life of the martial arts movie legend. Given that Lee’s name has been used prominently in the two films’ promotion, it seems only fitting that he make an appearance, and - for all the flaws in the narratives of the first two films - a final movie focusing on the positive effect martial arts teaching had on a young icon-in-waiting who was, at that stage of his life, something of a troublesome delinquent is entirely desirable. Reportedly, image rights issues with Lee’s estate prevented the filmmakers from featuring him more prominently in this film, but one would hope these are resolved if and when Yen and Yip decide to conclude their trilogy.
Builds upon the groundwork of part one, and exceeds it in the areas most audiences will care about - acting, production and action. If the depiction of foreigners remains an issue in the genre, it should nevertheless not obscure the fact that Ip Man 2 is supreme, peerless entertainment where it counts. JN
Having defeated the best fighters of the Imperial Japanese army in occupied Shanghai, IP Man and his family settle in post-war Hong Kong.
Struggling to make a living, Master IP (Donnie Yen) opens a kung fu school to bring his celebrated art of Wing Chun to the troubled youth of Hong Kong. His growing reputation soon brings challenges from powerful enemies, including pre-eminent Hung Gar master, Hung Quan (Sammo Hung). However, when corrupt colonial officials stage a life-or-death contest with formidable British boxer, Twister (Darren Shahlavi), to humiliate the Chinese people, the masters quickly forget their differences.
Soon, the eyes of the nation are on the one man capable of securing a victory - Grandmaster IP Man!
Film: IP Man 2 Release date: 7th March 2011 Certificate: 15 Running time: 104 mins Director: Wilson Yip Starring: Donnie Yen, Simon Yam, Sammo Hung, Huang Xiaoming, Darren Shahlavi Genre: Action/Biography/History/Martial Arts Studio: Cine Asia Format: DVD & Blu-ray Country: Hong Kong
DVD Special Features:
• Audio commentary by Hong Kong cinema expert Bey Logan
• Trailer gallery
• Shooting diary
• Making of
• Four big scenes (discussion with Kenneth Mak and Wilson Yip)
• Deleted scenes
• Gala premiere
• Interviews gallery
• Three Cine Asia world exclusive documentaries: ‘The Wing Chun Connection’, ‘Wing Chun in Action’ and ‘Legacy Of The Master’
Film: Ip Man Release date: 26th October 2009 Certificate: 15 Running time: 106 mins Director: Wilson Yip Starring: Donnie Yen, Simon Yam, Hiroyuki Ikeuchi, Fan Siu-wong, Xiong Dailin Genre: Martial Arts/History/Action/Drama Studio: Cine Asia/Showbox Format: DVD Country: Hong Kong
Donnie Yen takes on the role of the man Bruce Lee called “Master”, in an ‘event’ martial arts movie the like of which Hong Kong cinema has not produced in some time. With Yen reuniting with Wilson Yip, will this continue their run of good form after the successes of Kill Zone and Flashpoint?
Ip Man tells the story of its eponymous hero, a 20th century martial arts expert who lived and taught first in Foshan, China, before moving to Hong Kong in 1949. The film chronicles his life up until his departure from China.
During the Second Sino-Japanese War, the righteous Wing Chun master struggles to survive while staying true to his principles of honour, righteousness and loyalty. Largely eschewing taking students, Ip is forced to reconsider as the might of the Japanese grows ever more impressive, and he realises that it sometimes takes more than local folk legend to inspire people…
Hong Kong cinema has, for the best part of a century, made good use of Chinese folk heroes. The most famous is Wong Fei-hung, often referred to as a ‘Chinese Robin Hood’. Over one hundred different movies centre around the, usually heavily fictionalised exploits of the 19th century figure, and the illustrious list of actors to have played him includes such notable names as Kwan Tak-hing, Gordon Liu, Jackie Chan and Jet Li. An extension of martial arts oral history - itself ripe for embellishment and reinvention necessary for cinematic effect - Hong Kong fight films have made similar good use of other such figures as Leung Jan (a 19th century Wing Chun master played by Yuen Biao in The Prodigal Son), ‘Butcher’ Lam Sai-wing (a disciple of Wong Fei-hung memorably portrayed by Sammo Hung in The Magnificent Butcher), and Huo Yuan-jia (whose real-life mysterious death prompted the cinematic vengeance of fictional student Chen Zhen, who has been portrayed on film by Bruce Lee and Jet Li, and on television by Donnie Yen).
Ip Man is perhaps the last of these folk-heroic figures fit for lionisation by Hong Kong cinema, his prime years being just ‘historical’ enough for the filmmakers to take biographical liberties in the name of romanticising the legend, while his proficiency in a fighting style that is infinitely more practical than the flowery, enhanced methods usually depicted in Hong Kong fight movies gives him an appealing contemporary relevance.
Perhaps most notable about Ip Man, the real person, is his association with Bruce Lee, who he took in as an eager teenage martial arts prodigy. Despite the fact that he assigned his day-to-day tuition to one of his senior instructors, rarely does an account of Bruce Lee’s life not include at least one reference to Ip Man (or Yip Man, as he was more commonly referred to until the release of the movie), and the film certainly traded on this in its marketing campaign. As the first major motion picture on this 20th century martial arts master, this big budget and occasionally sumptuous production heralds a mini-avalanche of Ip Man-themed biopics. Ip Man 2 has already been released in Hong Kong, and no less a name than Wong Kar-wai is currently producing a film provisionally titled ‘The Grandmaster’, in which the role of Master Ip will be essayed by none other than Tony Leung Chiu-wai.
It may be that audiences have to wait some time for an authentic depiction of Ip Man the character, Ip Man the life lived, for Wilson Yip’s effort is a distinctly whitewashed affair, playing fast and loose with the subject’s biography. Almost none of the depicted events actually occurred, the film glosses over certain details, such as his opium addiction and membership of the Kuomintang political party - its fierce opposition to the victorious Communists being the real reason Master Ip left China for Hong Kong in 1949.
That said, the film is notable for injecting the folk hero with the odd dash of fallibility, even if this mostly centres around his early favouring of martial arts over his role as husband and father. While a little ham-fisted, moments such as Ip Man ushering away the infant son who just wants to show him his new drawing in order to continue an impromptu training session are some of the more effective dramatic beats, wholly unexpected in an otherwise sanitised biopic.
20th century Hong Kong martial arts cinema was dominated mostly by Wong Fei-hung, and it could well be that the 21st is ruled by Ip Man. But if Hong Kong filmmakers are finding new heroes for their martial arts movies, the same cannot be said of their storytelling and politics. Ip Man, the film, is punctuated with the same sort of almost-uncomfortable nationalism that might alienate foreign audiences. Particularly of note is its depiction of the Japanese, which suggests that local audiences are as keen to see the old Japanese enemy given a cinematic pasting now as they were back in 1972 when Bruce Lee sent a cinema into raptures by telling Japanese baddies that his people were “not sick men.” The rushed-into-production Ip Man 2 is further indicative of this and, without ignoring the suffering of Chinese people during Japanese occupation, one is moved to ponder exactly when Hong Kong filmmakers might stop leaning on this storytelling crutch.
Yip, as a director, brings no personal touch or style to offset this unfortunate jingoism. The second half of the film, set after the Japanese take control of the country, is shot in distinctly saturated colours that give the film an effective look to mirror the characters’ misery, but is simply too obvious a device to truly drive home the awfulness of the Chinese predicament under Japanese rule. Like with his previous Donnie Yen star vehicle, Flashpoint, there is occasionally the sense that there is a unique director contained within the parameters and requirements of a straightforward action film; the odd offbeat quirk - such as Ip Man’s son riding a tricycle through a fight scene to relay a message from ‘Mama’ that ‘Baba’ should start fighting back before everything in the house is shattered - standing out from the otherwise tried-and-trusted scenes and sequences.
But it is an indication of his mostly hands-off, impersonal approach that a viewer is never sure if his directorial choices are always intentional. Consider a sequence in the first fifteen minutes of the film, when a disgruntled martial arts master storms into a restaurant to seek the young urchin who has besmirched his reputation. The ‘blocking’ of this scene - a wide shot, with principal characters in the foreground and extras lined up to fill out the frame behind them - is extremely reminiscent of the directorial style prevalent in Hong Kong films as far back as Bruce Lee’s era, very ‘stage-y’ and with a clear debt to Peking and Cantonese Opera theatrical traditions. Yip shows such technical proficiency in other areas - his editing and montages being generally effective - that it is reasonable to suspect this curious visual is a tribute to the Hong Kong martial arts genre history, which Ip Man continues, but this is undermined by the extremely straightforward script - as earnest a story as you will find, and completely lacking in irony or self-referential commentary.
But where Yip does have success is in the performance of his leading man. Free of the almost narcissistic posturing that characterised his turns in films like Kill Zone, Flashpoint and, especially, Dragon Tiger Gate, Donnie Yen delivers a measured and subdued performance that is completely unexpected. While the non-fighting scenes may not give him much to work with, Yen brings genuine grace and gravitas to a role that would initially seem ill-suited to him. It is a testament to his performance that it is hard to imagine anyone else in the part and, regardless of whether there are better Ip Man films to come, Yen seems destined to become and remain synonymous with the character.
As pleasing as his general performance is, perhaps most impressive is Yen’s command of the Wing Chun fighting style. Having made great strides in incorporating ultra-modern MMA techniques into his recent work, Yen reminds us of his preternatural versatility and athleticism, seeming every inch the Wing Chun master (he reportedly spent nine months in training for the role). Action director Sammo Hung is no stranger to Wing Chun on film, nor Chinese folk heroes - he explored both in the films Warriors Two and The Prodigal Son - but his presentation of the style in this film is on another level to those earlier efforts, his choreography making this most practical and efficient of martial arts cinematically appealing whilst retaining admirable authenticity. Yuen Wo-ping may be Hollywood’s favourite fight director, and Ching Siu-tung the ‘go-to guy’ for operatic wuxia, but Ip Man is a timely reaffirmation of Hung’s place in the annals of Hong Kong film history. The big man definitely still has it.
Something of a missed opportunity. Ip Man is a lush production, with some truly wonderful fight sequences, but it’s a shame that the scriptwriters did not execute their job with the same level of care and meticulousness that Donnie Yen put into what will surely be a career-defining performance. JN
Film: Fatal Move Release date: 31st August 2009 Certificate: 18 Running time: 112 mins Director: Dennis Law Starring: Sammo Hung, Simon Yam, Jacky Wu Jing, Danny Lee Genre: Crime/Thriller/Drama Studio: Cine-Asia/Showbox Format: DVD Country: Hong Kong
Penned and directed by a man whose previous working credits include producer of the riveting Tria flick Election, a literal ‘kick ass’ lead, and a synopsis that includes the words violence and gang warfare, this was all set up to deliver on its title.
The story, which, to be honest, should have been copyrighted by now goes: Lin Ho Lung, played by the legendary Sammo Hung (Project A, Eastern Condors) is the head of Hong Kong’s most powerful Triad society. Danny Lee (The Killer, City On Fire) reprises his regular role as an honest police officer, who is trying to find a way to put the family in jail for good. One night, Lin Ho Tung, and an associate of Lung’s family, Simon Yam (Full Contact, Election), attend a big drug deal. Predictably, it all goes pear-shaped.
After that promising opening, the rest of the movie descends into badly put together fight scenes, even worse torture sequences, betrayal on both sides of the law, and the most unnecessary amount of violence committed to screen in a long time…
With a cast that consists of actors from classics including The Killer, Mad Detective, Exiled, Dragons Forever, it’s baffling how this ended up such a turkey, where you have no care for any of the characters.
Taking another Danny Lee film as an example, The Killer, without the narrative flowing perfectly, the action would not work - you feel engaged with Chow Yun Fat’s character by the way director John Woo chooses to craft each scene. In the final church battle, without the drive of Fat trying to escape his violent world, and take Sally Yeh to undergo eye treatment, the movie’s narrative wouldn’t go anywhere. The ending here is simply puzzling, with Sammo Hung and Wu Jing fighting for the trailer not the storyline – there is no reason for this event to happen.
Taking one scene, which sums up the problem: two random girls, the audience has never seen before, are sun-bathing on a beach. One of the girls suddenly feels the need to urinate. Whilst doing her ‘business’, without reason or indication, she begins to feel a rush of uncertainty about the space she is currently squatting in. Lo-and-behold, the girl finds the dead body of a Hong Kong Triad. Indicative of the movie as a whole, there’s no reason for such a convoluted interjection.
This movie was initially banned in some countries, due to its excessive bloody violence throughout. Jackie Chan’s The Shinjuku Incident suffered the same indignation. The difference is The Shinjuku Incident’s violence is pretty shocking - Fatal Move’s violence is only shockingly bad. Its inclusion only intended to cover the lack of depth.
That brings us to the most annoying element of Fatal Move - the constant use of black CGI blood, which ruins any chance of shock value. The moment the practical effects are on screen in deep red, it’s replaced with blatantly obvious computer-generated black blood. This movie follows the trend of modern stinkers such as Blood: The Last Vampire and Ninja Assassin, where this tool is used excessively. The reason Ichi The Killer, Martyrs and Battle Royale are so disturbing is down to the crucial use of practical effects.
It’s depressing to see such talent on screen, yet being subjected to an endurance test. Sammo Hung just walks around the screen with nothing to do – well, besides badly impersonating Bruno Ganz’s performance as Hitler in Downfall. The make-up department should also hang their heads in shame – giving Sammo the look of an aging, obese pensioner. More shockingly, the film makes no use of his talent in the fight sequences.
The DVD Cover reads “One Wrong Move, And You’re Dead.” The word wrong is outlined in red - take the hint. TJP
