The Grandmaster (2013)
"Yi dai zong shi" (original title)

The story of martial-arts master Ip Man, the man who trained Bruce Lee.

Director:

Kar Wai Wong

Writers:

Kar Wai Wong (story), Kar Wai Wong,

Stars:

Ziyi Zhang, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Chen Chang

Cast

Credited cast:
Ziyi Zhang	...	Gong Er
Tony Leung Chiu Wai	...	Yip Man
Woo-ping Yuen	...	Chan Wah-shun (Chen Huashun)
Cung Le	...	Tiexieqi
Hye-kyo Song	...	Cheung Wing-sing (Zhang Yongcheng)
Chen Chang	...	The Razor Yixiantian
Siu-Lung Leung
Jeana Ho	...	Golden Pavilion Courtesan
Cheung-Yan Yuen
Jin Zhang	...	Ma San
Benshan Zhao	...	Ding Lianshan
Meng Lo
Elvis Tsui	...	Xiong Weiyuan
Kuan-Chun Chi
Shun Lau	...	Rui

Storyline

Ip Man's peaceful life in Foshan changes after Gong Yutian seeks an heir for his family in Southern China. Ip Man then meets Gong Er who challenges him for the sake of regaining her family's honor. After the Second Sino-Japanese War, Ip Man moves to Hong Kong and struggles to provide for his family. In the mean time, Gong Er chooses the path of vengeance after his father was killed by Ma San.

---

Plot Keywords:

martial arts master | martial arts | fight | fictional character based on real life person | one against many | 

---

Taglines:

In Martial Arts there is no right or wrong, only the last man standing.

---

Genres:

Action | Drama

---

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [jp]

Country:

Hong Kong China USA

Language:

Mandarin Cantonese Japanese

Release Date:

23 August 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Grandmaster

Filming Locations:

Chikan Movie and Television City, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China

Company Credits

Production Co:

Annapurna Pictures, Annapurna Pictures, Block 2 Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min 130 min (Hong Kong)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tony Leung Chiu Wai trained four hours a day for a year in preparation for his role as Ip Man.

---

Quotes

Gong Er: My father would always say, people who practice martial arts go through three stages: seeing yourself, seeing the world, seeing all living beings.

User Reviews

Casey's Movie Mania: THE GRANDMASTER (2013)

Wong Kar-Wai's 10 years-in-the-making of the so-called Ip Man biopic is exquisitely photographed and blessed with some dazzling fight choreography, but THE GRANDMASTER is mostly a scattershot mess of unfocused direction.

When director Wong Kar-Wai first announced the project way back in 2002, I bet a lot of die-hard fans are eager to see how the critically-acclaimed art-house director is going to do a big-screen treatment of the legendary Ip Man. Fast forward to 2013 (after a string of delays and whatnot), THE GRANDMASTER has came and gone with mostly favorable reviews and successful box office runs. However, after finally watching it, I must say that THE GRANDMASTER turns out to be an overrated effort after all.

Likewise, Wong Kar-Wai is always meticulous when comes to distinctive visual flair. Philippe Le Sourd and Song Xiaofei's sumptuous cinematography is nice to look at, while beautifully framed Yuen Woo-Ping's fight choreography with such balletic mix of slow motion and various camera speeds. The rest of the technical credits are equally ace -- ranging from its elaborate production design to its detailed costume design. On the plus side, the first half is particularly engaging. As for the cast, Zhang Ziyi excels the most as the hotheaded, yet emotionally frustrating Gong Er.

The second half is hastily stitched together, while burdened by terribly inconsistent pace. It's understandable that Wong Kar-Wai's movie is always fragmented but this time, THE GRANDMASTER is way uneven yet unfocused. Another biggest problem here is the sudden change of focus from narrating Ip Man story to Gong Er story. If that's not insulting enough, the introduction of Chang Chen's The Razor character feels vague and needless altogether. Apart from Zhang Ziyi's exceptional performance, it's rather surprising to see the usually-reliable Tony Leung Chiu-Wai doesn't impress much as Ip Man. Although he is charismatic enough, he fails to expand his Ip Man character with a satisfying emotional center other than looking cool or broods a lot. Popular Korean actress Song Hye-Kyo is sadly neglected in a thankless role (thanks to Wong Kar-Wai for cutting off most of her scenes in the editing room) as Ip Man's wife, Zhang Yongcheng.

It's quite sad to see what could have been another classic Wong Kar-Wai movie-in-the-making turns out to be a disappointment. Strictly for die-hard fans.

http://caseymoviemania.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-grandmaster-2013.html