''The Legend Is Born: Ip Man'' (Chinese: 葉問前傳) is a 2010 Hong Kong

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or c ...

martial arts film Martial arts films are a subgenre of action films that feature numerous martial arts combat between characters. These combats are usually the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often are a method of storytelling and character expr ...

based on the early life of the

Wing Chun Wing Chun (Chinese: 詠春 or 咏春, lit. "singing spring"), sometimes spelled Ving Tsun, is a concept-based fighting art, form of Southern Chinese kung fu and close-quarters system of self-defense. In Mandarin, it is pronounced "Yong Chun. ...

grandmaster

Ip Man Ip Man, also known as Yip Man, ( / 叶问; 1 October 1893 – 2 December 1972) was a Hong Kong-based Cantonese martial artist and a grandmaster of the martial art Wing Chun when he was 20. He had several students who later became martial art ...

, directed by

Herman Yau Herman Yau Lai-to (; born 13 July 1961) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter and cinematographer. Filmography * 1987: ''Tragic Hero'' – Co-Cinematographer * 1987: '' No Regret'' – Director * 1988: '' The Truth'' – Cinematographer ...

and starring

Dennis To Dennis To Yu-hang (born 1 January 1981) is a Hong Kong martial artist and actor. He started his career as a wushu practitioner and won several awards at various competitions, including a silver medal at the 2002 Asian Games and a gold medal at ...

in the titular role. The film was followed by a sequel in 2013, Ip Man: The Final Fight. Though not made in collaboration with

Wilson Yip Wilson Yip Wai-Shun (; born 1964) is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker and screenwriter. His films include ''Bio Zombie'', '' The White Dragon'', '' SPL: Sha Po Lang'', '' Dragon Tiger Gate'', ''Flash Point'' and the ''Ip Man'' series. Early career ...

's ''

'' or ''

Ip Man 2 ''Ip Man 2'' (Chinese: 葉問2:宗師傳奇, also known as ''Ip Man 2: Legend of the Grandmaster'') is a 2010 Hong Kong biographical martial arts film loosely based on the life of Ip Man, a grandmaster of the martial art Wing Chun. A sequel to ...

'', ''The Legend is Born'' features several actors who appeared in Yip's films, including

Sammo Hung use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinate ...

, Louis Fan, and

Chen Zhihui Chen Zhihui is a Chinese actor best known for playing supporting roles in various films and television series since the 1980s. Some of his more notable roles in film include: Master Chin in '' Jet Li's Fearless'' (2006); Zhang Fei in '' Three Kin ...

. The film also features a special appearance by

Ip Chun Ip Chun (born Ip Hok-chun; 10 July 1924), also known as Yip Chun or Yip Jun, is a Chinese martial artist in the style of Wing Chun. He is the elder of two sons. Chun's father Ip Man was the Wing Chun teacher of Bruce Lee. Early life He was bor ...

, the son of Ip Man. Released as ''Ip Man Zero'' in German and Dutch-speaking areas.

Plot

As a child, Ip Man learns Wing Chun from

Chan Wah-shun Chan Wah-shun ( 1849 – 1913), nicknamed Money Changer Wah (找錢華) and Money Clutcher Wah (爪錢華), was a student of the Wing Chun grandmaster Leung Jan (梁贊). He is noted for being the martial arts teacher of Ip Man. Background Bo ...

together with his adopted brother Ip Tin-chi and their mutual friend Lee Mei-wai, who later develops unrequited feelings for Ip while Tin-chi develops unrequited feelings for Mei-wai. After Chan's death from an illness, Ip Man continues to learn Wing Chun from his senior,

Ng Chung-sok Ng, ng, or NG may refer to: * Ng (name) (黄伍吳), a surname of Chinese origin Arts and entertainment * N-Gage (disambiguation), a handheld gaming system * Naked Giants, Seattle rock band * '' Spirit Hunter: NG'', a video game Businesses ...

, before eventually leaving

Foshan Foshan (, ), alternately romanized as Fatshan, is a prefecture-level city in central Guangdong Province, China. The entire prefecture covers and had a population of 9,498,863 as of the 2020 census. The city is part of the western side of the ...

to study in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

. In Hong Kong, after a field hockey match, Ip and his schoolmates are racially insulted by a Westerner, which Ip takes offence to. When the Westerner slurs them in Chinese, a further incensed Ip challenges him to a fight and proceeds to defeat him soundly. Following the incident, Ip's notoriety and popularity skyrocket. While getting medicine to treat the Westerner, who he now refers to as a friend, he meets master

Leung Bik Leung Bik (born Leung Bik-wo with the courtesy name Tai-wah; 1845 – 1911), also known as Mr. Bik (), was a Wing Chun martial artist. He was one of Ip Man's teachers. History He was born in Foshan in 1845 as the second of the nine sons of Leun ...

, who is actually the son of

Leung Jan Leung Jan (born Leung Tak-wing; 1826–1901) was a Chinese martial artist and Wing Chun practitioner from Heshan, Guangdong. He was known in Foshan as ''Mr. Jan of Foshan'' and ''King of Wing Chun Kuen''. Leung Jan is one of the earliest well- ...

, Chan Wah-shun's teacher. Over the course of his time in Hong Kong, Ip Man learns a more varied and improved style of Wing Chun from Bik that differs greatly from Chan Wah-shun's orthodox style, and his martial arts prowess improves tremendously. Meanwhile, in Foshan, Ip Tin-chi rises to become a prominent businessman under another Wing Chun martial arts association, and Japanese businessmen arrive in Hong Kong. Ip returns to Foshan after five years away and reunites with his peers. Believing that Ip has disrespected the memory of Chan Wah-shun by deviating from traditional Wing Chun techniques, an angry Chung-sok attacks him; not wishing to hurt his senior, Ip deliberately loses their fight, and their relationship becomes greatly strained as a result. Ip also later falls in love with

Cheung Wing-sing Cheung Wing-sing (; 1897 – 1960) was the wife of Wing Chun master Ip Man. Biography Little is known about Cheung's birth and childhood life except that she was a relative of the Qing Dynasty official Zhang Yinhuan () (1837–1900), who was i ...

, the daughter of the vice-mayor of Foshan. When Mei-wai realises that Ip Man loves Cheung, she accepts Ip Tin-chi's love for her. On their wedding night, her godfather is murdered and Ip is arrested as a prime suspect after being witnessed struggling with him; Cheung lies that Ip was with her the entire evening in order to have him released from jail. Mei-wai later discovers a letter to Tin-chi, revealing his involvement in the murder of her godfather, and informs Chung-sok. Attempting suicide, she is saved by Tin-chi, and they try to leave Foshan but are stopped by the Japanese. Mei-wai is captured and Tin-chi is ordered to kill Ng Chung-sok due to his knowledge of the letter; they also threaten to kill Mei-wai to ensure Tin-chi's co-operation. At the martial arts association, Ng Chung-sok is defeated by Ip Tin-chi and the Japanese. Ip arrives in time to save Ng Chung-sok from being killed and then subsequently defeats the Japanese and Tin-chi. Tin-chi then reveals that he is actually a Japanese sergeant named Tanaka Eiketsu, and that was sent to China to infiltrate and work as an undercover agent. Ip then rushes off to the pier to rescue Lee. He defeats the Japanese and rescues Mei-wai, who tearfully reveals that she has miscarried Tin-chi's child; meanwhile, Tin-chi performs

seppuku , sometimes referred to as hara-kiri (, , a native Japanese kun reading), is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honour but was also practised by other Japanese peop ...

to end his life. At the pier, they discover that the Japanese have been smuggling Japanese children to China, possibly as future undercover agents, similar to Tin-chi. Ng Chung-sok is seen narrating the story of the night to new apprentices at the martial arts association. Ip's son,

, is seen among the new apprentices. Ip Man arrives back at the association and is shown married to Cheung.

Awards and nominations

*Winner of the

China Movie Channel Media Awards China Movie Channel Media Awards (电影频道传媒大奖) are presented at each Shanghai International Film Festival The Shanghai International Film Festival (, French: ''Festival international du film de Shanghai''), abbreviated SIFF, is on ...

for Best Male Supporting Role to

Shanghai International Film Festival The Shanghai International Film Festival (, French: ''Festival international du film de Shanghai''), abbreviated SIFF, is one of the largest film festivals in East Asia. "China's biggest film festival" according to the Hollywood Reporter. Ne ...

2010. *Nominated at the

for Best New Actor to

2010.

Cast

* Louis Fan as Ip Tin-chi / Tanaka Eiketsu, Ip Man's oath brother * Huang Yi as

, Ip Man's love interest * Rose Chan Ka-Wun as Lee Mei-wai, Ip Man's junior. *

Wen Junhui Wen Junhui (; ; born June 10, 1996), professionally known by his stage name Jun (), is a Chinese singer, dancer, and actor based in South Korea. He is a member of the South Korean boy group Seventeen and its subunit Performance Team. Before ...

as young Ip Man *

Xu Jiao Xu Jiao (, born 5 August 1997) is a Chinese actress. She made her film debut in the 2008 sci-fi film ''CJ7'' where she played a boy, and won the Hong Kong Film Award for Best New Performer The Hong Kong Film Award for Best New Performer is a ...

as the younger Lee. *

, Ip Man's '' sisuk'' *

, Ip Man's ''

sifu Shifu () in Mandarin, or sifu in Cantonese, or sai hu in Hokkien, is a title for, and the role of, a skillful person or a master. The character 師/师 means "skilled person" or "teacher," while 傅 means "tutor" and 父 means "father." Though ...

'' / Austin Yuan *

Hins Cheung Hins Cheung King Hin (; born 1 February 1981), is a Chinese people, Chinese-born Hong Kong singer, songwriter, record producer, and businessperson. He made his debut in 2001 with the studio album ''Hins' First.'' He has since released 17 studio ...

as Cho, Ip Man's love rival *

Yuen Biao Yuen Biao (born Ha Lingchun; 26 July 1957) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist and stuntman. He specialises in acrobatics and Chinese martial arts and has also worked on over 80 films as actor, stuntman and action choreographer. He was one of t ...

as Ng Chung-sok, Ip Man's senior master. *

Lam Suet Lam Suet (; born 1964), or Lin Xue, is a Hong Kong film actor. Life and career Lam was born in Tianjin, and came to Hong Kong as a youth in 1979 to receive inheritance money left by his grandfather. Soon after, all the money had been squander ...

as Cheung Ho-tin, the vice-mayor of Foshan and father of Cheung Wing-sing *

Sire Ma Sire Ma (; born 31 July 1987), or Ma Choi, is a Chinese actress based in Hong Kong. Her birth name is Sima Saier (). She was the 2nd runner up at the Miss Hong Kong Pageant 2008, simultaneously winning the Miss Photogenic Award. She later went on ...

as Cheung Wing-wah, Cheung Wing-sing's younger sister *

Bernice Liu Bernice Jan Liu (born January 6, 1979) is a Canadian actress, singer, and commercial model based in Hong Kong. She has previously held the title Miss Chinese Vancouver 2000 as well as Miss Chinese International 2001, the latter position bringin ...

as Kitano Yumi *

as Ip Man's father * Kenny Kwan * Andy Taylor as foreign challenger at the field hockey match

Controversy

Sin Kwok-lam (

's son's student and producer) apologized and served tea to Yuen Jo Tong for misrepresenting his grandfather

Yuen Kay Shan Yuen Kay-shan () nicknamed Yuen Lo-jia () was a Grandmaster of Wing Chun. The youngest of five brothers, he became known as "Foshan Yuen Lo-jia" (Yuen the Fifth of Foshan). Chu, Robert, et al. ''Complete Wing Chun: The Definitive Guide to Wing ...

's reputation and status in

history. (In the movie, Yuen Kay Shan was portrayed as Ip Man's younger kung fu brother, not as skillful as Ip Man). This had the Yuen and Yiu families criticize the movie in interviews. After the Yuen and Yiu families voiced their displeasure about Yuen Kay Shan's portrayal in the movie on Ip Man, movie producer Si Kwok Lam and co-producer

apologized six times and "served tea" to Yuen Kay San's grandson, Yuen Jo Tong, for misrepresenting, and being disrespectful to, the legendary 1000 death duel champion during the 1920-1950s, Yuen Kay Shan.

Production

''The Legend is Born: Ip Man'' was shot in Foshan.

Release

The film was released in Hong Kong on 24 June 2010.

Home media

VCD

DVD

Blu-ray Disc

References

External links

* * *
Full movie
on

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Legend Is Born: Ip Man, The 2010s Cantonese-language films Hong Kong biographical films 2010 films 2010 action films Kung fu films Funimation Films directed by Herman Yau Depictions of Ip Man on film 2010s Hong Kong films