⭐
Directed by: Wilson Yip, a god amongst men
This is legitimately one of the best films I've ever seen. It's the perfect mix of martial arts, historical fiction, and drama, so that it's the best of all three. It's about the Japanese occupation of China during World War II, which almost never gets depicted on film. And it's got some of the best character work and action in a movie I've ever seen. This movie is the Rocky of China - so darn good that it spawned three sequels, most of which were also great, because as I said, the story set-up is so darn good!
Premise - in 1939, the man who would become Bruce Lee's kung fu master, Ip Man (pronounced Yip Man), is living in a Chinese village famous for its martial arts. When the Japanese invade during World War II, amid mass starvation and brutality, Ip Man finds his martial arts skill in demand as the Imperial Army seeks to augment its skills with local talent. The resulting struggle will risk his life and the soul of his martial art.
There's a little bit of Chinese cultural posturing in this (they love doing that), but considering its about the Japanese invasion of China - a famously brutal campaign that Japan has done famously little to acknowledge - it's the most justified instance of it ever. Like I said, it's also a piece of history that almost never gets depicted (the only example I can think of is The Flowers of War) and one of the big jobs film does is show us history we wouldn't otherwise know about. So, awesome!
This is rated R - there's a few moments of gratuitously bloody injuries so the audience knows a hit really hurts, and there's a moment where a man gets shot in the head - but aside from that it's a pretty tasteful and friendly depiction. And even better, it's on Netflix in a lot of countries because it's distributed by China instead of Hollywood, so it's very easy to find.
Recommend. Watch. It's in my top ten of all time. Now you know.
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