Movie Description
Ip Man 2 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 2008 film Ip Man, Ip Man 2 was directed by Wilson Yip and stars Donnie Yen, who reprises the leading role. Continuing after the events of the earlier film, the sequel centres on Ip's early life in British Hong Kong. He attempts to propagate his discipline of Wing Chun, but faces rivalry from other practitioners, including the local master of Hung Ga martial arts, Hung Chun-nam (Sammo Hung), and later the British boxing champion Taylor "The Twister" Miller (Darren Shahlavi).
Producer Raymond Wong first announced a sequel before Ip Man's theatrical release in December 2008. For Ip Man 2, the filmmakers intended to focus on the relationship between Ip and his most famed disciple, Bruce Lee. However, they were unable to finalize film rights with Lee's descendants and decided to briefly portray Lee as a child. Principal photography for Ip Man 2 began in August 2009 and concluded in November; filming took place inside a studio located in Shanghai. For the sequel, Yip aimed to create a more dramatic martial arts film in terms of story and characterization; Wong's son, screenwriter Edmond Wong, wanted the film to explore the treatment of Hong Kongers during the colonial era and Western perceptions of Chinese martial arts.
Ip Man 2 is the second film in the "Ip Man" film series. It premiered in Beijing on 21 April 2010, and was released in Hong Kong on 29 April 2010. The film met with positive reviews, with particular praise for the film's storytelling and Sammo Hung's martial arts choreography. The film grossed over HK$13 million on its opening weekend, immediately surpassing Ip Man's opening weekend gross. During its theatrical run, Ip Man 2 brought in over HK$43 million domestically, and its domestic theatrical gross made it the highest grossing Hong Kong film released during the first half of 2010. In total, Ip Man 2 grossed an estimated US$49 million worldwide. This amount does not include successful DVD sales all over United States, Asia and Europe.