Product Details

• Actors: Donnie Yen, Sammo Hung, Simon Yam, Darren Shahlavi
• Directors: Wilson Yip
• Format: Blu-ray, Dolby, NTSC, Surround Sound, Widescreen
• Language: Mandarin Chinese
• Dubbed: English
• Region: Region A/1 (Read more about DVD/Blu-ray formats.)
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Well Go USA
• DVD Release Date: April 19, 2011
• Run Time: 108 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (243 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B004I11VZ0
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,698 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • #23 in Movies & TV > Blu-ray > Foreign Films

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Donnie Yen continues to exert his status as the magnetic and skilled star on the international martial arts cinema scene in Ip Man 2, the sequel to his blockbuster 2008 biopic of the iconic Wing Chun grandmaster. The film, also directed by Wilson Yip, picks up where its predecessor left off, with Ip Man (Yen) and his family relocating from China to Hong Kong in the early 1950s. There, he attempts to establish a Wing Chun school, but is challenged at every turn by potential students like Wong Leung (Huang Xiaoming), who later became one of Ip's greatest disciples, and other schools, including a Hung Ga school led by Hung Chun-nam (the legendary Sammo Hung, who also serves as the film's martial arts choreographer). Ip's astonishing skills help him to defend his school's honor, but in order to truly establish roots in Hong Kong, he is forced to participate in a city-wide boxing competition, where he faces a variety of styles and competitors, including an unscrupulous British fighter (Darren Shahlavi). Fans of the original Ip Man may be disappointed by the scope of the sequel, which focuses more on fighting and less on the political and societal tensions that gave its predecessor an emotional gravitas. But for those who simply want to see Yen unleash his seemingly supernatural talents, Ip Man 2 consistently delivers, and ups the ante by including such cult figures as Shahlavi, Louis Fan Siu-Wong (Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky), and Shaw Brothers veteran Lo Mang (Five Deadly Venoms) among its cast members. And for those hoping to finally see the connection between Ip and his most famous disciple, Bruce Lee, the film's coda gives a brief glimpse of their momentous first meeting.

The two-disc Collector's Edition set includes an 18-minute making-of featurette that includes behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the cast and crew; all major participants are also featured in a sizable gallery of individual interviews that range from brief chats to 30-minute conversations. A quarter of the deleted scenes offer a few extra minutes of fighting trimmed from the theatrical release, while a trio of trailers and a lightweight shooting diary round out the supplemental features. Sadly, genre expert Bey Logan's commentary, which appears on the UK version of the disc, is not included here. --Paul Gaita

Product Description

International superstar Donnie Yen reprises his iconic role as the real-life kung fu Grandmaster Ip Man, widely known as the man who brought Wing Chun to the world with the help of his star pupil, Bruce Lee. Master Ip, a new arrival in British-occupied Hong Kong, wants to open a martial arts academy to teach his unique Wing Chun style. A corrupt group of martial arts masters, led by Master Hung (Sammo Hung) refuses to allow him to teach in peace until he proves himself as a kung fu master. Ip s troubles continues when he is forced to enter a brutal King of the Ring boxing match against Twister, a Western-style boxer who insults the Chinese locals, in a East versus West knock-down, drag-out fight to the finish.

Bonus Features
Making Of
Trailers
English Language

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 77 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars IP Man - good, classic kung fu!!! January 30, 2011

By Haunted Flower

Format:Blu-ray

I was lucky enough to get an advance copy of this new film starring Donnie Yen (You may remember him from "Hero") entirely in Cantonese with English subtitles which will be out in theaters in the U.S. and Canada on January 28th. Donnie Yen is reprising his role here as the real-life kung fu grandmaster Ip man in this martial arts film. I never saw the original but apparently in it, he escaped the Japanese occupation of his hometown and with his pregnant wife and family have moved to Hong Kong which is living under British colonial rule.

Ip Man begins his life in Hong Kong barely making ends meet renting an apartment and trying to start a martial arts school to teach his Wing Chun style. He is challenged by several neighborhood ruffians who eventually grudgingly give him respect and ask to serve under him as students. Being a kind-hearted man and pleased with the opportunity to teach, he does not push them very hard for their student fees knowing they are also struggling financially under British rule. His school is put up against other martial arts schools in the area competitively and they all clash and fight with territorialism. Eventually all the schools must unite together in order to face the British for their honor.

The British are demanding payments from the schools in return for allowing them to stay open (like offering "protection" in gangster movies). The British do not respect the Chinese and often ridicule them in public. A Western-style boxer named Taylor "Twister" Milos comes to town to fight and entertain the British and by mocking and insulting the Chinese martial arts demonstration opening act, Ip must step up to defend the honor of his people and his own kung fu, Wing Chun.

I know that was a lot of summary, but it seemed needed to really get across the themes in this movie. This film is a delightful throwback to the good ol' days of kung fu. Though I love the wire martial arts styles in films like "Hero", "House of Flying Daggers", "Fearless", and "Iron Monkey", classic kung fu battles of men hitting and kicking each other in defense of their homes, family, country, honor, etc. still are a pleasure to watch. I loved Donnie Yen in "Hero" (basically loved EVERYTHING about that movie) and it was so enjoyable to see him in this role and to find out it was based on a real person's story who eventually went on to train a young Bruce Lee. Wow! This probably won't be a very wide release in the U.S., but if you happen to see it is in your area and you love martial arts movies, go have a fun afternoon in the theater! Yes, you will have to read subtitles, but that's ok. I felt like I could have watched the entire movie muted without subtitles and still understood easily what was going on since everything is so physical not only in the fighting scenes but in acting and reacting in conversation.

35 of 42 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Not quite as fantastic as the original, but still incredibly entertaining. February 15, 2011

By C. Sawin VINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

Ip Man is still the only martial arts film I've ever given a perfect score. Similar films usually throw in those silly bits of humor that come off as lame rather than actually being humorous. It probably hits its target overseas audience well, but the difference in culture probably has something to do with how American audiences don't appreciate those bits as much. Either that or the storyline is usually fairly simple or borderline atrocious while the fighting scenes are spectacular. If you're a fan of martial arts films, you see these types of films for the action scenes. A good storyline and exceptional acting are usually just a bonus. Ip Man broke those boundaries. It had an intriguing storyline and a fantastic cast to compliment its jaw dropping action sequences. The only flaws the film seemed to have was that it eventually had to end and left the audience wanting more especially the way the film ended. The desire for a sequel was extremely high and, for the most part, the sequel doesn't disappoint.

I had originally thought that Ip Man 2 wasn't able to capture the same amount of heart that the original film had, but I no longer believe that to be true. Ip Man 2 still has all the heart and emotion that the first film did. Everything from Ip Man realizing his friend Quan (Simon Yam) is brain damaged because of him to Ip Man trying to restore honor to the east by taking on a western boxer, the emotion is still there. It just isn't as strong or as powerful as it was in the first film. The same atmosphere is established quite easily, but the struggle to show the world that Wing Chun is a respectable martial art seems to take a backseat to other plot points that aren't necessarily less important but seem to take away from what made the first film so special.

The sequel is still very solid and extremely entertaining. Any scene in the film featuring Sammo Hung is gold. His adamancy for the Chinese culture is half of his character's charm. The other half is split between him trying to provide for such a large family and the amazing action sequences he's a part of. The sole reason to see this film is for the Ip Man/Master Hung match that takes place on a table top. If you've seen S.P.L. Killzone, you know how fantastic a battle between these two can be. However, the Yen/Hung match in Ip Man 2 tops the one in Killzone though. Their encounter will be the thing fans will remember and be talking about the most after walking out of the theater and for good reason.

Just a few sidenotes and nitpicks, the sound effects seemed to be off at times. The main occurrence being when Ip Man goes to meet Master Hung at his dojo after their pupils get into it for the second time. After Hung tells his pupils to leave, the sounds of their footsteps just didn't feel genuine and seemed like the sound was too loud or excessive or something. The film also features the fastest baby delivery ever in recent film memory. The woman goes into labor one scene and two scenes later, she's holding a baby. No mess and no 27 hours of labor? Why have an old fashioned pregnancy when you can just DVR it and fast forward through it later? Lastly, the film leaves you wanting even more than its predecessor did. Mostly due to the Bruce Lee tease featured at the end of the film.

Ip Man 2 doesn't sweep you off your feet and smack you in the face quite as hard as its predecessor, but it's still very worthy of carrying the "Ip Man" name and is a joy to watch. If you enjoyed the hard-hitting action of the original film, then you'll have no problem being entertained by this sequel.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Legend, Yes May 3, 2011

By Damian P. Gadal VINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

Due to the limited release of this follow up to the original Ip Man movie I wasn't able to see this in the theater. So, I waited for this to come out on DVD and also on Amazon Video Streaming. The wait was well worth it.

This is a great martial arts film, and movies along at a very nice pace, with lots of tension as you cheer on Ip Man.

Though I really liked the film, I gave it four stars rather than five because I liked the first film much better. That's because the story in the first film was a bit more original, meaning this story was predicable (reminded me of Rocky), but still worth watching.

Viewers should know that this film isn't exactly a biopic, but loosely based on the life of Yip Man, who taught Wing Chung to Bruce Lee.

If you've seen the first Ip Man, you definitely need to see this film.

Donnie Yen is outstanding. Looking forward to seeing more of him in the future.