#Darren Shahlavi

[theactioneer]

Bloodmoon (Siu-Hung Leung, 1997)

[andy121019]

My @letterboxd review of Ip Man 2 (2010)

[adamwatchesmovies]

Ip Man 2 (2010)

Ip Man 2 is a lot like Rocky IV but not as fun. Like Balboa’s fourth adventure, it features a cartoonish antagonist and the nationalism is basically a main character. This film also features expertly choreographed martial arts sequences and a climax that - while predictable - does deliver what audiences want to see. It’s a major step down from the first but if you want action and don’t want to think, it’ll satisfy.

Now living in Hong Kong with his family, Wing Chun master Ip Man (Donnie Yen) seeks to open a school to teach his unique martial arts style. Unfortunately, the competition in the big city is fierce. Before Ip Man can accept students, he must prove himself to the other master, notably Hung Chun-nam (Sammo Hung). Rivalries are set aside after British boxer Taylor "The Twister" Miller (Darren Shahlavi) challenges Hong Kong's champion to prove whose technique is the best.

Like Ip Man, this sequel can be split into two halves. The first has Ip Man humbly learning the ways of this big city and gathering pupils. Even though you know no one can defeat Ip Man, the film maintains tension by introducing Wong Leung (Huang Xiaoming). Young and arrogant, you just know he’s going to get his master in trouble. When he does, things get crazy. We’ve seen Ip Man battle multiple opponents before but never as many as he does here. What makes it more complex is that while he’s also trying to avoid getting hurt/killed, he has to pull his punches to prevent himself from making an enemy of these students' master.

It would be a shame not to discuss the choreography on display. There are some impressive - and extended - sequences that put most of what we see in North America to shame. The best is the fight in which Ip Man must prove himself against Hung Chun-nam, another high-stakes battle in a unique arena that’ll have you screaming “ohhhh!” more than once.

Then, we get to the second half and that sweet energy drink of action might as well turn to mop water. I’m not going to say that the British occupying China in the 1950s weren’t racist but in this movie, they’re the most racist you could be. You wind up hating “The Twister” more than you did the war criminals in the previous film, which I suppose might be a good thing - a way to keep upping the ante so to speak - but this is the second movie in a row when “foreign devils” come in and start stomping on China. Technically, the opponents Ip Man is up against - all of which are corrupt and dishonest - are British, not American but with the similarities this film has to Rocky IV, you can’t help but wonder if writer Edmong Wong isn't trying to right some wrong. I’m willing to say it might be just me but it's not the only off-putting aspect of Ip Man 2. Ip Man’s wife, Cheung Wing-sing (Lynn Hung), for example. She’s given nothing to do except be a pregnant lady who worries.

The deeper into the film we get, the worse it becomes. At one point, Twister insults Chinese martial arts by comparing them to dancing, boasting that British boxing is superior in every way, etc. Audiences don’t buy it for a second. Styles like Hung Ga or Wing Chun allow you to use your legs so you want to see him cut down to size (the blatant racism also makes him plenty hateable). When Hung Chun-nam enters the arena, things go bad. How could they not? The man’s old and asthmatic, he’s going against an opponent who towers over him and is in a completely different weight class. After exchanging blows, it’s clear Chun-nam needs to throw in the towel, but he doesn’t. He has to stand up for the Martial Arts, whose feelings have been hurt by this one guy. Eventually, Chun-nam dies. It’s tragic but no one questions his decision despite the seven children who will now have to grow up without a father and the widow he leaves behind. Caring about yourself or your family? That’s less important than caring about what some stranger thinks. Even Ip Man’s family thinks so, which is why our hero misses the birth of his second child to compete in the rematch. It isn’t totally selfish, however. Once Ip Man wins, his glorious technique and humble victory speech cure the brain damage Chow Ching-chuen (Simon Yam) suffered!

There’s a lot to love in the first half of Ip Man 2. Scrutinize the latter half at all and the film becomes problematic for multiple reasons. What is it with this series and needing to remind us of Ip Man’s connection to Bruce Lee? I’d rather just watch Rocky IV again. At least that movie is so goofy you never wind up with the wrong kind of expectations. (Original Cantonese with English subtitles, March 26, 2021)

[badmovieihave]

Bad movie I have I-Spy 2002

[ryukang1995]

Mortal Kombat (my version) - actor influences/inspirations

Jax - Wesley Snipes, Michael Jai White, Steve James

Johnny Cage - Linden Ashby, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Brandon Lee

Kano - Trevor Goddard, Darren Shahlavi, Vernon Wells

Kitana - Talisa Soto, Jennifer Connelly, Tia Carrere

Kung Lao - Mark Dacascos, Donnie Yen, Yuen Biao, Paolo Montalban

Liu Kang - Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee, Robin Shou, Jason Scott Lee

Raiden - Christopher Lambert, Sonny Chiba

Shang Tsung - Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, John Lone, James Hong

Sonya Blade - Cynthia Rothrock, Bridgette Wilson, Cameron Diaz, Jaime Pressly

That's all for now.

[tvboaerosmith]

Watching all the Ip Man movies and Darren Shahlavi from Ip Man 2 looks so much like Smith that I'm very unnerved.

Ip Man rocks by the way. I'm unsure if all the characters were real people, but I like the naming, too. 清泉 is such a nice name. As a matter of fact, 光耀 and 葉問 too.

[nofatclips]

Accented Cinema on Ip Man and [how to write] Superman

[fuforthought]

Tai Chi II (1996)

[3slash74movies]

[scenesandscreens]

Ip Man 2 (2010)

Director - Wilson Yip, Cinematography - Poon Hang-sang

"I am Ip Man of Wing Chun."

[andy121019]

My @letterboxd review of The Marine 3: Homefront (2013)

[kungfutemple]

[twilightronin]

Ip Man 2

[ryukang1995]

Mortal Kombat - actor influences for the characters (9/3/2024):

- Liu Kang - Bruce Lee/Brandon Lee/Jackie Chan/Robin Shou/Jason Scott Lee/Jon Foo/Shin Koyamada/Ludi Lin

- Kitana - Cynthia Khan/Michelle Yeoh/Tia Carrere/Jennifer Connelly/Talisa Soto/Samantha Win/Adeline Rudolph

- Sonya Blade - Cynthia Rothrock/Cameron Diaz/Bridgette Wilson-Sampras/Sandra Hess/Jaime Pressly/Natasha Henstridge/Katheryn Winnick/Jessica McNamee

- Kung Lao - Yuen Biao/Donnie Yen/Jet Li/Mark Dacascos/Paolo Montalban/Max Huang

- Raiden - Sonny Chiba/Christopher Lambert/Jeffrey Meek

- Johnny Cage - John Saxon/Jean-Claude Van Damme/Linden Ashby/Loren Avedon/Matt Mullins/Casper Van Dien

- Jax - Jim Kelly/Carl Weathers/Steve James/Wesley Snipes/Michael Jai White/Lynn Red Williams/Mehcad Brooks

- Kano - Vernon Wells/Trevor Goddard/Darren Shahlavi/Josh Lawson

- Shang Tsung - James Hong/Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa/John Lone

- Scorpion/Hanzo Hasashi - Hiroyuki Sanada/Sho Kosugi/Chris Casamassa/Ian Anthony Dale

- Sub-Zero/Kuai Liang - Keanu Reeves/JJ Perry/Yoshi Sudarso

- Noob Saibot/Bi Han - Gordon Liu/Francois Petit/Joe Taslim

- Shao Kahn - Brian Thompson/Clancy Brown/Martyn Ford

There are other characters that I have actor influences in mind for, but for the sake of time, these are the main ones.

Now, it goes without saying that I also have the actual performers from the games in mind for the characters (ex.: Kerri Hoskins as Sonya, Ho-Sung Pak as Liu Kang, or Rich Divizio as Kano), but for this post, I narrowed it down to film and TV actors, including those who played the characters in the adaptations.

[fuforthought]

Fantastic new Ip Man 4 poster paying homage to the entire series.