Ip Man: Kung Fu Master

Ip Man: Kung Fu Master (Chinese: 叶问宗师) is a 2019 Chinese martial arts film co-written and directed by Li Liming and starring Dennis To as Ip Man. It is To's third portrayal of the Hong Kong martial artist, after The Legend Is Born: Ip Man (2010) and Kung Fu League (2018).^[4] The film depicts Ip Man's stint as a police officer in Guangzhou before the Chinese Communist Revolution in 1949. The film did not get a theatrical release in China, but instead it was released digitally via streaming on Youku.

Ip Man: Kung Fu Master
Film poster
Traditional Chinese	葉問宗師
Simplified Chinese	叶问宗师[1]
Hanyu Pinyin	Yè Wèn Zōngshī
Jyutping	Jip6 Man6 Zung1-si1
Directed by	Li Liming
Written by	Li Liming Shi Chingshui
Produced by	Xu Huidan Sui Xiaonan Wang Nan Zhou Lili
Starring	Dennis To Yuan Li Ruoxin Tong Xiaohu Yue Dongfeng Chang Qinyuan Zhao Xiaoguang Ren Yu Michael Wong
Cinematography	Guo Lei
Edited by	Huang Rongjun
Production companies	Baile Media Beijing Kai Pictures Beijing Palm Entertainment
Release date	23 December 2019 (2019-12-23)
Running time	83 minutes
Country	China
Box office	$116,781[2][3]

Plot

Set in Guangzhou during the 1940s, shortly before the Chinese Communist Revolution of 1949, the film follows Ip Man (Dennis To) during his time serving as a police officer. When a series of brutal murders targeting martial arts masters begins plaguing the city, Ip Man is assigned to investigate the case alongside his police colleagues.

The investigation leads Ip Man to uncover a conspiracy involving Japanese forces who are systematically eliminating Chinese martial artists in an attempt to suppress traditional Chinese kung fu. As the body count rises, Ip Man realizes that the killers are specifically targeting masters of different fighting styles, suggesting a coordinated effort to weaken Chinese martial arts culture.

Throughout the investigation, Ip Man must balance his duties as a police officer with his responsibility to protect the martial arts community. He faces dangerous opponents, including the ruthless Japanese agent Sasaki-Zuo (Zhao Xiaoguang) and the skilled fighter Tokugawa (Ren Yu), who prove to be formidable adversaries in both combat and strategy.

As the case intensifies, Ip Man discovers that the conspiracy reaches higher levels of authority than he initially suspected. He must use his Wing Chun skills and police training to protect innocent martial artists while uncovering the truth behind the systematic attacks. The film culminates in a series of intense fight sequences where Ip Man confronts the masterminds behind the plot, ultimately preserving both justice and the integrity of Chinese martial arts traditions.

Cast

• Dennis To as Ip Man
• Yuan Li Ruoxin as Qing Chuan
• Tong Xiaohu as Director Yuan
• Yue Dongfeng as Qiao Wu
• Chang Qinyuan as Cheung Wing-sing
• Zhao Xiaoguang as Sasaki-Zuo
• Ren Yu as Tokugawa
• Li Rizhu as Ribby
• Michael Wong as San Ye

Release

Ip Man was released in China digitally exclusively on Youku on 23 December 2019.^[1][5] The film was given a limited release in the United States on 11 December 2020.^[6]

The film will be available On Demand via Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, FandangoNOW, DirecTV, and more on March 9 throughout the United States.^[7]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an aggregated score of 36% based on 11 critic reviews.^[8]

Leslie Felperin of The Guardian rated it two out of five stars and wrote "the film takes itself a bit too seriously and reshuffles the deck of plot tropes instead of inventing its own ideas..."^[9]

Film Hound Magazine criticized Li's poor storytelling by stating "...perhaps not a great structural storyteller or indeed a fluid one, as evidenced by the amount of scenes that end on a fade to black..." overall giving the film three out of five stars. ^[10]