Ip Man 4 (5 Stars)

This is a wonderful film, and I'm glad I finally own it on Blu-ray. I gave it five stars when I saw it in the cinema, but when I watched it today I was even more impressed by the drama. There are fewer fight scenes than in the previous three films in the Ip Man Tetralogy, but that's not necessarily a negative.

We see Ip Man nearing the end of his life. Admittedly, Donnie Yen is too young for the role – he doesn't look like a man in his seventies – but he still manages to give the impression of an elderly man in his mannerisms. Ip Man's fighting abilities have diminished since the previous films, but he's still a force to be reckoned with.

The film is set in America (Los Angeles) in 1964, and its main theme is racism. The white people look down on the Chinese, and the Chinese look down on the white people. Both groups consider themselves superior. Ip Man, as a visitor to the country, tries to help them accept one another. The topic of racism against black people isn't openly discussed, but there are small hints. We see that in buses the black people have to sit at the back.

Another important topic is family. Ip Man struggles to get on with his son after his wife died in the third film. Ip Ching is a rebellious teenager. This is artistic license, because he was actually 28 in 1964, but that doesn't make the film any worse. It's not supposed to be a documentary or biopic, even if it refers to some of the events in the real Ip Man's life. Grandmaster Wan of the Chinese Benevolent Association is also struggling with his teenage daughter Yonah, because she has no interest in learning martial arts.

It's tragic to see Ip Man losing his fight against cancer. At the beginning of the film he's told to stop smoking, but he can't. Cigarettes are evil. Not even a renouned martial artist like Ip Man had the will power to give up cigarettes, and he paid the price.

I'm very impressed with Scott Adkins as the racist American sergeant. He's an incredible martial artist, and he's also a good actor. He's appeared in minor roles in a few films I own, such as "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" and "Doctor Strange", but I've never noticed him until now. I need to check out the films where he plays the lead role.

The film may have less action than the previous films, but it has more of a story. I think you know what I mean. Today it was the story that I appreciated.

Success Rate:  + 1.8

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