Ip Man: The Legend Is Born
Herman Yau

The story: As children, Ip Man and his adopted brother Ip Tin Chi (played as adults by Dennis To and Fan Siu Wong respectively) are sent to learn wing chun martial arts in Foshan, China. Years later, their lives and loves are played out against the historic backdrop of Japanese encroachment into mainland China in the 1910s.

Wing chun has certainly come a long way. No longer is it likely to be greeted by that cry of erroneous recognition: “Wang Chung? The group which sang Everybody Have Fun Tonight?”
The fact that the prequel is striking less than two months after Ip Man 2, starring Donnie Yen, hit screens here is as good a measure of its popularity as any.
Legend is being billed as a semi-biographical account of the youth of Ip Man, teacher of action superstar Bruce Lee. The key word here is “semi”.
Despite being based on an actual person, the various elements in the film feel mighty familiar.
The two brothers grow up fighting alongside and getting into mischief with Li Mei Wai (played by CJ7’s Xu Jiao and upcoming actress Rose Chan). No prizes for guessing that the set-up leads to romantic entanglements down the road.
When Ip Man takes on a bully and impresses the well-off Cheung Wing Shing (a spunky Huang Yi) and later stands up to a mocking Caucasian while studying in Hong Kong, it all seems like requisite checkpoints on the road to deja vu.
There is a missed opportunity when Ip Tin Chi’s poignant tale of sacrifice and emotional conflict is eventually revealed. Alas, it is quickly glossed over perhaps because it would have taken the focus away from Ip Man.
What keeps the film watchable is the graceful fluidity and excitement of the close-quarter hand-to-hand combat. The competent action scenes are courtesy of Tony Leung Siu Hung who, together with actor Sammo Hung, won last year’s Golden Horse and Hong Kong Film Award gongs for Best Action Choreography for Ip Man (2008).
Instead of action star Yen though, moviegoers get newcomer Dennis To who had small parts in the other two Ip Man flicks. The physical resemblance between the two actors ties the films together and To’s competition-winning martial arts skills certainly come in handy.
Director Herman Yau (True Women For Sale, 2008) steps in for Wilson Yip who helmed the first two instalments and he could have done a better job with the episodic and choppy pacing.
Legend also boasts a turn by Ip Chun, eldest son of the real-life Ip Man. The 86-year-old gives a cheekily spirited performance and gets to put the reel-life Ip Man in his place.
With auteur Wong Kar Wai reportedly working on a movie on the same subject matter, one wonders if this is going to be a case of overkill. The day could well come when the mention of wing chun is met with: “No thanks, I’d rather Wang Chung tonight.”
(ST)