Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

Ip Man 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 22, 2011

Wilson Yip's "Ip Man 2" (2010) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Showbox Media. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer; TV spots; three new and exclusive featurettes; audio commentary by Hong Kong Cinema Expert Bey Logan; making of featurette; cast and crew interviews; photo gallery; deleted scenes; behind the scenes featurette; footage from the film's gala premiere; trailers; and more. In Cantonese, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The masters

The end of the Sino-Japanese War. After being seriously wounded during a political protest, Ip Man (Donnie Yen, Bodyguards and Assassins) manages to escape Foshan with the assistance of Zhou Qing Quan (Simon Yam, Bad Blood), who is shot in the head by a Japanese soldier. Ip Man settles in Hong Kong, where he decides to open a martial arts school and teach Wing Chun for a living.

Ip Man’s first student, Wong Leung (Huang Xiaoming, The Sniper), gets in trouble with a group of students attending respected master Hung Quan’s (Sammo Hung, S.P.L.: Kill Zone) martial arts school. When Ip Man attempts to help him out, he is challenged by Hung Quan to prove that he is worthy of being addressed as master. During an official ceremony, Ip Man is tested by some of Hong Kong’s best masters. He defeats all but Hung Quan - their fight ends in a draw, which immediately attracts the attention of the media in Hong Kong.

Ip Man is granted the right to run his own martial arts school, but tensions between his students and Hung Quan’s remain high. Hung Quan also gets irritated by Ip Man’s decision not to contribute to a fund that is supposedly established to assist masters in Hong Kong during difficult times.

Meanwhile, a tough British boxer, Twister (Darren Shahlavi, Hostile Environment), backed by various British officials in Hong Kong, challenges the masters to prove that they can be as deadly on the boxing ring as he is. Shortly after, a high-profile boxing match is staged in which Twister defeats Hung Quan. After the boxing match, Twister delivers an insulting speech, which inspires Ip Man to step up and defend Hung Quan’s honor as well as the image of Chinese martial arts.

There is plenty of style but very little substance in Wilson Yip’s Ip Man 2, the follow-up to his hugely successful Ip Man. Instead of going against the Japanese oppressors, this time around the legendary Wing Chun master faces Hong Kong’s British colonizers, while trying to set up a small martial arts school and live a decent life. Unfortunately, aside from an impressive dose of kicks and punches, as well as some fancy camerawork, Ip Man 2 does not offer anything else worthy of one’s attention.

Edmond Wong’s script is surprisingly weak. Anyone looking for some insight on Ip Man’s teachings would be better off sticking with Ip Man, where there were at least some partial attempts to highlight important events from the master’s fascinating life. In Ip Man 2, the focus of attention is almost exclusively on Ip Man’s clash with two fighters – one played by the legendary Sammo Hung, the other by veteran action star Darren Shahlavi.

Ip Man 2 is also marred by a myriad of familiar clichés, which touch on political subjects that feel completely out of sync with the film’s agenda. Unsurprisingly, occasionally Ip Man 2 feels more like a badly scripted Chinese propaganda piece than a biographical film about a legendary martial arts master.

Still, the action is sizzling. The fights, directed by Samo Hung, will surely impress hardcore action fans - most of them are very intense and terrifically choreographed. Pooh Hang-Sang’s (Blood: The Last Vampire) lensing is also pleasing, though the endless fast camera cuts and zooms eventually tire the eyes.

Ip Man 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Wilson Yip's Ip Man 2 arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Showbox Media.

I cannot see much of a difference between the Hong Kong Blu-ray release of Ip Man 2, which local distributors Universe Laser & Video Co. produced quite some time ago, and this new release courtesy of Showbox Media. Both appear practically identical - fine object detail is outstanding, clarity excellent, and contrast levels consistent throughout the entire film. Edge-enhancement and macroblocking are not an issue of concern, but I must admit that there were two scenes on this release where the blacks look somewhat sharpened. The first scene is very early into the film, where Ip Man is seen smoking a cigarette. The second is during the third round of master Hung Quan's final fight. This being said, there are no traces of heavy noise reduction - the grain is intact and well resolved. There are no serious stability issues to report in this review either. All in all, this release is an excellent, very affordable alternative for those fans of Ip Man 2 who could not take advantage of the pricier Hong Kong release. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Ip Man 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and Cantonese Dolby Digital 2.0. For the record, Showbox Media have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image frame and the black bar below it.

The Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is outstanding. There are a number of very impressive action scenes in the film that benefit enormously from the loseless treatment. When I reviewed the Universe Laser & Video Co. Blu-ray release of Ip Man 2 I kept going back to the clash of the masters to compare the various audio tracks that were on it -- suffice to say the Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track on this release is just as impressive as the Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track. The bass and the surround channels are incredibly active, while the high-frequencies are never overdone. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and exceptionally easy to follow. I did not detect any pops, cracks, hissings, or dropouts to report in this review either. This is a disc that you could use to test the muscles of your audio system, folks!

Ip Man 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: Some of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray disc are encoded in PAL. Therefore, you must have a Region-Free player capable of converting PAL to NTSC in order to view them in North America.

• Interview Gallery - cast and crew members discuss the production history of the film, the key characters in it, the message of the film, how the majority of the fights were shot, etc. In English, Cantonese and Mandarin, with imposed English subtitles where necessary.
  
  -- Wilson Yip (32 min, PAL).
  -- Sammo Hung (7 min, PAL).
  -- Donnie Yen (4 min, PAL).
  -- Huang Xiao Ming (17 min, PAL).
  -- Lynn Hung (6 min, PAL).
  -- Simon Yam (5 min, PAL).
  -- Louis Fan (4 min, PAL).
  -- Kent Cheng (6 min, PAL).
  -- Youe Hong (14 min, PAL).
  -- Ashton Chen (6 min, PAL).
  -- Pierre Ngo (7 min, PAL).
  -- Darren Shahlavi (15 min, PAL).

• 4 Big Scenes - a look at the shooting of the following scenes:
  
  -- Wushu Institute/Ip Man's Home - in Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles. (3 min, PAL).
  -- Lee Hung Kee Fish Market - in Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles. (3 min, PAL).
  -- Chinese Restaurant Challenge Match - in Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles (3 min, PAL).
  -- Boxing Match - in Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles. (3 min, PAL).

• Shooting Diary - raw footage from the shooting of the film. Without dialog. (4 min, PAL).

• Making of - a standard featurette with additional comments from different cast and crew members discussing the production history of the film, key scenes, the narrative, etc. The featurette contains raw footage from the shooting of the film. In Cantonese and Mandarin, with imposed English subtitles. (18 min, PAL).

• Deleted Scenes - three deleted scenes. In Cantonese and English, with imposed English subtitles.
  
  -- Cash & Congee (3 min, PAL).
  -- BBQ Duck (2 min, PAL).
  -- The Twister vs Bubo Buster (5 min, PAL).

• Gala Premiere - footage from the film's premiere in Hong Kong. In Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles. (3 min, PAL).

• The Wing Chun Connection - instructors from the Inosanto Academy discuss how Wing Chun came to exist and the various techniques it incorporates. An exclusive CineAsia/Showbox featurette. In English, not subtitled. (28 min, 1080p).

• Legacy of the Master - senior Wing Chun instructor Phil Morris discusses Ip Man's legacy and Wing Chun's history. An exclusive CineAsia/Showbox featurette. In English, not subtitled. (35 min, 1080p).

• Wing Chun in Action - senior Wing Chun instructor Phil Morris demonstrates various fighting technique. An exclusive CineAsia/Showbox featurette. In English, not subtitled. (26 min, 1080p).

• Trailers -
  
  -- UK Trailer - in English, not subtitled. (2 min, 1080p).
  -- Original Trailer - in Cantonese, with optional English subtitles. (3 min, PAL).
  -- TV spot - in Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles. (30 sec, PAL).
  -- TV spot - in Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles. (15 sec, PAL).
  -- Ip Man UK Trailer - in English, not subtitled. (3 min, PAL).

• Trailers - a gallery of trailers for other Showbox Media releases. (1080p).

• Commentary - an audio commentary by Hong Kong Cinema Expert Bey Logan. In English, not subtitled.

Ip Man 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you are looking to add Wilson Yip's Ip Man 2 to your library, I strongly recommend that you consider this new Blu-ray release courtesy of British distributors Showbox Media. It looks and sounds fantastic. It is also loaded with excellent supplemental features, including a fantastic audio commentary by Hong Kong Cinema Expert Bey Logan and three brand new, exclusive featurettes. RECOMMENDED.