The “Ip Man” franchise is arguably the most entertaining martial arts franchise out there. The first film remains a classic and I think this fourth and final entry in the series is the best since the original. It’s definitely much more engaging than the third film and a terrific end to a wonderful series.

Ip Man (Donnie Yen “Hero”, “Kung Fu Killer”) has now been diagnosed with cancer. His rebellious son faces expulsion from school so he decides to travel to San Francisco to find a school for his son. There he also catches up with his most famous student, Bruce Lee (Danny Kwok-Kwan Chan “Kung Fu Hustle”). Together the two must deal with the hostilities facing the local Chinese community.

Donnie Yen is as great as always as Ip Man. I thought he may have slowed down now that he’s got older but the fights in this movie are as energetic as ever. Danny Kwok-Kwan Chan does a reasonable job as Bruce Lee. He’s not in the movie all that much but the scenes with him are entertaining. The person who steals the show has to be Scott Adkins (“Ninja”, “Triple Threat”) as the merciless Gunnery Sgt. Geddes. Adkins has improved his American accent since some of his earlier films and he has clearly been perfecting his fight skills over the years.

“Ip Man 4: The Finale” contains one of the best fight sequences ever as the final battle sees Donnie Yen face off against Scott Adkins. It’s a truly exhilarating spectacle where we see two of the best guys in the business go at it. There are some moving moments throughout so it has some good drama elements too. For anybody that even vaguely likes martial arts movies, you owe it to yourself to see the “Ip Man” franchise.