The first “Ip Man” remains one of the greatest martial arts films ever made so I went into “Ip Man 2” with high expectations. I am pleased to report that this is a sequel delivers the goods. Whether it tops the original is something that will likely have to be debated by the fans.

Now living in Hong Kong, Ip Man (Donnie Yen “Hero”, “Iron Monkey”) tries to open up a martial arts school so that he can teach Wing Chun. He finds that teaching in Hong Kong is not an easy task as he must first win the respect of the local martial arts masters. After fighting for his livelihood, he will have to fight for Chinese culture against an aggressive British boxer (Darren Shahlavi “Alone In The Dark”).

Many may dislike the fact that the “Ip Man” films only very loosely follow the life of the real Ip Man. The historical inaccuracies even include there seeming to be no evidence that the real Ip Man fought any British boxer in Hong Kong but the films are nevertheless entertaining. Donnie Yen is really good and his fighting is extraordinary. Sammo Hung (“Dragons Forever”) is also really good as Hung Chun-Nam. The relationship between Ip Man and Hung Chun-Nam is also really interesting and their fight scene is spellbinding. The British boxer ‘Twister’ is a great villain. I also love the Bruce Lee scene at the end of the movie.

The fight scenes in the first “Ip Man” were quite realistic so some may not like the fact that the ones in this film feature more wirework. I think both techniques produce fantastic results and there is no denying that both films contain some of the best fight scenes ever put to film. The fight on a dining table between Donnie Yen and Sammo Hung had me completely engrossed in what was on the screen. If you enjoyed the first “Ip Man” film then you I imagine you will love this movie too and if you have not seen either, you really need to see both of them.