The Grandmaster (2013)

The Grandmaster (2013)

Director:  Kar Wai Wong
IMDB Rating:  6.6 (1/4/14)
PuRock's Rating (10):  6 Kung Fu Styles
If this film had an older siblings:   Ip Man, 2046

Pros:  Set Design, Fight Sequences, Beautifully Shot
Cons:  Lack of Narrative, Disjointed Story   

"What's your style?"

This is a question I ask myself every morning in the mirror and I honestly don't know the answer.  We do know Kar Wai Wong's patented film making style, but this film fails to live up to its potential.  Oh how much I wanted to love The Grandmaster.   Kar Wai Wong's In the Mood for Love is one of my favorite films of all time. Then you get Tony Leung and Kar Wai Wong reuniting (again) in a martial arts flick?  Sign me up. Then came the disappointment.

The film is about a well known Kung Fu master, Ip Man. Most notably known for training Bruce Lee.  Now I'm not exactly sure what the film was aiming for. It wasn't a biopic (the character disappeared often).  It also wasn't a pure Kung Fu film (there were fights, but it didn't dominate the screen time).  What exactly was it? The narrative was very vague and broad, leaving you in confusion about the story.

The best aspects of the film are the fight sequences and set design.  I expect nothing less from Kar Wai Wong in creating a beautifully unique environment.  A visual playground where the actors can literally chew up the scenery.  The fight sequences inter-playing with the sets was very entertaining.  There's this one fight scene in the snow with a passing train that is an elegant spectacle,  poetry in motion.  

But besides the fight sequences, most of the action in plot occurred with narrative text on a black screen. Often telling us what has come to pass  Most of the story you want to see about Ip Man is summed up in text not in visuals. Almost as if the film is too good for the story.  But this is nothing new for Kar Wai Wong, his stories often lack narrative but there is usually a sense of direction and point.  Something this film struggled with.

Overall, its a mixed bag.  If you're interested in a film about Ip Man, its probably best to skip this and go watch Ip Man & Ip Man 2 instead.