Ip Man is based upon the real life of Ip Man, a Wing Chun grandmaster and teacher of Bruce Lee. Set in the 1930s, it starts at Fo Shan where Ip Man is known as the best martial artist in the area, despite not having his own school. Ip Man is shown to keep to himself, modest and charismatic. We get to see his skills when he pits off against an aggressive and obnoxious outsider creating issues in the area. Just as you are expecting this outsider to be the villain of the film, a time skip happens and takes on a darker turn. Ip Man mostly takes place during the Japanese invasion of China. Ip Man falls from grace and he struggles to keep his family alive in a world where they are suppressed and lacking food. Naturally, the film takes on the view that the Japanese are the villains (although the Japanese General actually has some honor, it is his subordinates that are more your typical bad guys) and the Chinese as the suppressed population who will ultimate unite and overthrow the Japanese. While the middle of the film slowed the pacing significantly, there is a solid build up towards the climax of the final fight. Overall, while there are some questionable characters who adds nothing to the film, Ip Man has great fight scenes and a personal story.
