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IP MAN 2 -Review
It’s Sammo Hung who deserves the kudos for this sequel.
It may be Donnie Yen’s reprisal of Ip Man, the man who would mentor Bruce Lee if you’re unfamiliar with this man’s provenance, who is bringing the same kind of furious fists and feet that he brought to the first film or director Wilson Yip’s fresh take on a genre that has been beaten like the prunish face of any man coming out of the well-choreographed fight sequences but it’s really all about the action when it comes to Ip Man 2. It’s the latter of these points that explains why this film needs to be consumed and enjoyed for what it is and not, unfortunately, what it could have been.
Sure, the story of how Ip comes to Hong Kong in order to teach his own brand of Wing Chun to the town’s locals seems innocuous enough but the pushback from the city’s version of mafioso types who don’t take kindly to people like him coming in to do what they already have well under control results in what can only be described as action films 101. It’s the approach that you ought to keep things light while giving the masses what they want that hinders this movie from becoming better than it is.
It’s the David vs. Goliath, Danielson vs. Johnny, kind of brouhaha that we’ve come to expect out of these kinds of films for decades now. It ought to be a lot more disappointing than it is but it’s Sammo Hung who ought to be credited for making a story that, frankly, isn’t infused with the kind of richness that the first Ip Man was imbued with as he sequences fight scenes that make you sit in awe of how original you can be with a pair of fists and a table. In a set piece that can only be called mesmerizing, Ip and Hung (who plays big boss Master Hong Zhen Nan) battle it out on a wobbly table top that brings together magical feats of physicality, brutality, and the nuance of men who understand fluidity and a director who knows how to capture it all. The level of detail that went into making this look as physically intense as it was is not overlooked and is reason enough to go and see these men battle it out on a wobbly piece of furniture.
The problem with most modern fight sequences in action films is that we have been conditioned by ADD like editing that doesn’t allow you to focus. It’s a small thing to ask for, just to be able and concentrate on the most thrilling aspects of going head-to-head with someone who also wants to kick your head in, but Yip gets it and he captures Hung’s expert level choreography as a ballet of violence. It’s gorgeous.
The downside to all of this, however, is that this is film also born and bred of stale dualities. After the aforementioned face-off with Hung, which ought to have been the film’s final fight sequence, Ip Man has to contend with some British in the same manner that Jet Li did in 2006
s Fearless. The Brits are shown as brutes who are savage and racist and bigoted and lumbering, all the things that you would expect of a film that needs to position its players in the most obvious way in order to define what’s at stake for both parties. In a world that’s more shades of gray than it is black and white there is a laziness in painting with too wide a brush. I can appreciate why it was done but it doesn’t make it any better when the eventual outcome is of no surprise to anyone with a discerning eye for mediocre storytelling. It should be noted, however, that none of this takes away from the fight sequences that are at the same time seamless and thrilling.
Ip Man 2 deserves to be experienced for the talent working behind the scenes to make the words and story less of a focus as it’s Yen’s physicality throughout that ends up being the true charm of this film. Seek it out and ensconce yourself in a martial arts movie that’s low on plot but heavy on thoughtful action set pieces. In a landscape littered with zero calorie action films this is like a big can of spinach: just what the body needs for big muscles.
ENTER THE VOID – DVD Review
It’s just one of those movie where you’re either going to love it and make you want to revise your favorite films of 2010 just because of how mind-blowing original and fresh it is or it’s going to make you rue the day you ever let it defile your DVD player.
I’m revising my list.
The undeniable thing about director Gaspar Noe’s last feature, 2002’s Irreversible, was that it dealt with violence, sexual assault, and love. The three things were married in a whirlwind of creative filmmaking that was at once inspiring and revolting. From an opening sequence that, honestly, made me queasy with the multiple turns the camera makes to a rape that is hard to watch no matter how fictional it was Noe penetrated my willingness to accept the world he created. That openness is key to either buying into his fiction or rejecting it wholesale. The thing about Enter The Void, then, is where he takes us and whether we want to journey with him.
The story of how this low rent drug dealer makes the leap from wayward miscreant to watchful angel is one that is completely fresh and original. Without question, Noe takes some of the boldest steps in making a film that is completely his own and by reinventing the process of shooting in first person. Just because The Rock looked foolish doesn’t mean it isn’t a viable means of presenting a film and that’s what we get here, a lot of reinvention. The thumping bass, the strobing lights, the nihilism that is on display as our protagonist Oscar makes the leap from living, breathing dealer to dying corpse whose consciousness separates from his body on a journey to a world we can only imagine happens before we all die. The story of how one brother looks over his sister tethers this movie to sound ground. What comes after his world goes dark is a ride that you’ll either want to get on again or never come close to…ever.
Highly recommended for those who want to give their limbic system a good workout.
About the DVD:
FROM Gaspar Noé, THE DARING AND VISIONARY DIRECTOR OF IRREVERSIBLE COMES his First Feature in Eight Years and HIS MOST MIND-BLOWING MASTERPIECE — an Extraordinary and Unforgettable Story of Drugs and Other Loves
Eight years after he shook the world with his one-of-a-kind nightmare Irreversible, director Gaspar Noé is back with his next feature, ENTER THE VOID, which pushes cinematic boundaries even further. The hallucinatory new film, praised by critics around the world arrives on Blu-ray and DVD.
Noé, who bravely pushed limits (and dared viewers to watch) in the disturbing I Stand Alone and the Monica Bellucci shown-in-reverse-order rape drama Irreversible, follows those worldwide sensations with another triumph. ENTER THE VOID is Noé’s most assured and haunting film yet, a “head trip†a la Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey and at the same time a piercing modern drama.
Newcomer Nathaniel Brown and Paz de la Huerta (HBO’s Boardwalk Empire) star as a brother and sister trapped in the hellish nighttime world of Tokyo where he deals drugs and she works as a stripper. A crime gone bad leads to shocking violence and then moments of transcendence in which the movie plunges viewers into death and rebirth as no film has done before via “mesmerizing camerawork†(The New York Times) that make it “a dazzling and brutal exercise in cinematic envelope-pushing†(New York Post). Stunning audiences around the world, ENTER THE VOID is a cinematic experience that no serious movie lover can miss.
DEATH RACE 2 – DVD Giveaway
I had no clue this existed until I found it laying on my front stoop.
While I can’t vouch for whether the follow-up of Death Race with Jason Statham from Dutch filmmaker Roel Reiné was any good it was written by Tony Giglio and Paul W. S. Anderson, and stars Luke Goss, Ving Rhames, Danny Trejo and Sean Bean. There’s some genuine talent in there and how can you go wrong with FREE as I have a few copies to give out. Send your name and address to Christopher_Stipp@yahoo.com to be entered in a contest to win a free DVD copy of this film. It’s cheaper than Redbox so go ahead and try to win a copy…
About the film:
FROM THE FILMMAKERS WHO BROUGHT YOU DEATH RACE & THE RESIDENT EVIL FRANCHISE
LUKE GOSS, DANNY TREJO, VING RHAMES & SEAN BEAN STAR IN THE ALL-NEW EXPLOSIVE ACTION THRILLER
DEATH RACE 2 UNRATED
SEE HOW IT ALL BEGAN
ON BLU-RAYâ„¢ COMBO PACK, DVD & DIGITAL DOWNLOAD
JANUARY 18, 2011 FROM UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOME ENTERTAINMENT
Universal City, California, October 5, 2010 – A deadly driving competition spawns a racing legend in Death Race 2, an all-out action thrill ride, coming to Blu-rayâ„¢, DVD and Digital Download January 18, 2011 from Universal Studios Home Entertainment DVD Originalsâ„¢. Danny Trejo (Machete), Ving Rhames (Piranha 3D), Sean Bean (The Lord of the Rings trilogy) and Luke Goss (Hellboy 2: The Golden Army), star along with returning cast members Fred Koehler (“Lostâ€) and Robin Shou (Beverly Hills Ninja), in an all-new prequel to Paul W.S. Anderson’s 2008 adrenaline-fueled action-thriller, Death Race. Packed with more of the heart-stopping action, spectacular stunts and shocking twists that propelled the original to cult status, the 2-disc Death Race 2 Blu-rayâ„¢ Combo Pack and DVD will include unrated and rated versions of the film as well as in-depth bonus features that go behind the scenes of the thrill-packed story of the greatest Death Racedriver of all time. The Blu-rayâ„¢ Combo Pack also includes a digital copy of the unrated movie that can be viewed on an array of electronic and portable devices anytime, anywhere. Preorder close is November 30, 2010.
The latest in the hugely successful line of DVD Originals™ from Universal Studios Home Entertainment Productions, Death Race 2 is directed by Roel Reiné (The Marine 2, The Lost Tribe). The film isproduced by Paul W.S. Anderson, Jeremy Bolt and Mike Elliott and executive produced by Roger Corman. Death Race 2 is an official South African/German Co-Production, produced in South Africa by Universal Pictures Productions GmbH and Moonlighting Death Race Films C.C. and co-produced by Genevieve Hofmeyr and Ralph Tuebben.
BONUS FEATURES ON BLU-RAYâ„¢ AND DVD:
·    Deleted Scenes with introduction by director Roel Reiné
·    Deleted Shots Montage with introduction by director Roel Reiné
·    The Race Begins: The Evolution of the Death Race—A look at how the prequel fits into the Death Race franchise.
·    Cheating Death: The Stunts of Death Race 2—The film’s death-defying stunt crew invites viewers along on the ride of a lifetime.
·    Fast Cars and Firearms: The Cars of Death Race 2—Take a look under the hood of the awe-inspiring autos featured in the film.
·     Feature Commentary with director Roel Reiné
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