FILM REVIEWS:
IP MAN: KUNG FU LEGEND (HK 2026) ***
Directed by Li Liming
The IP MAN franchise has been very popular with Asian audiences. It should be noted that there are two of these.
The Donnie Yen series (main franchise) contains 4 films: Ip Man (2008) and Ip Man 2 to IP MAN 4: THE FINALE.
The Dennis To spin-off series, including this film reviewed here, tells independent stories about Ip Man and is not connected to the Donnie Yen continuity.
Both actors are martial arts experts, with Dennis To being a former Wushu champion and martial arts icon.
IP MAN: KUNG FU LEGEND is set in 1950s Hong Kong, after Ip Man has become an established Wing Chun master. The film opens with Dennis Top as the IP MAN passes the 3 difficult tests in order to meet the standard and thus open his own Martial Arts school. The first test involves fighting with one hand while holding an oil lamp. During the fight, the light must not go out, nor any oil be spilt. The second involves him fighting blindfolded and defeating his opponent. The third is also just as impossible for any fighter, period. Yet he succeeds. He thus opens his own martial arts school and defends the local kung fu community against Western commercial interests and criminal organisations. A Western-owned boxing gym and its criminal allies try to dominate the local martial arts community. Local schools face closure through intimidation and violence, and Ip Man becomes the leading defender of traditional Chinese martial arts, culminating in a series of battles against corrupt businessmen, hired fighters, and gangsters.
The story involves him being framed and then convicted to prison. This is the main difference between the other IP MAN films. But the storyline is not as important as the action pieces, which are the reason fans go see the franchise. The opening fight sequences are solid enough to impress and promise fans that more is to come. The tone involves a bit of emotion with his wife and child, but again, like the other IP MAN films, the emotional narrative is lacking.
The film demonstrates the principles of Wing Chun—especially: centre line control, economy of motion, forward pressure, and close-range efficiency. However, neither franchise depicts "real" fighting exactly as it would occur. Both are choreographed for cinema, and both occasionally sacrifice realism for dramatic effect.
Comparing the previous IP MAN films and the current one, KUNG FU LEGEND,
centres on Wing Chun but tends to be more traditional in appearance, slightly slower and easier to follow and more focused on martial arts demonstration than nonstop action, willing to mix in techniques from other Chinese martial arts when the story calls for it. The fights often resemble classic Hong Kong kung fu films from the 1980s and 1990s more than the sleek, high-intensity style of the Donnie Yen, original IP MAN series.
IP MAN: KUNG FU LEGEND has no theatrical release in North America, but it goes straight to debuting on Digital, 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray & DVD July 14 from the Well Go USA distributor.
Trailer:
