Signs of this dubious phenomenon started to spread on China's social media, from the surge of ticket sales from a single cinema, sold-out ghost screenings at midnight and during daytime on a weekday, fully booked front two rows (often considered less desirable seats) in theaters in advance, and abnormally high ticket prices alleged to falsify an enhanced performance at the box office.Ī screen capture from Sina Weibo account of Dongfang Daily. Internet users began to speculate on the authenticity of box office earnings, with renowned Sina Weibo user dianyingpiaofangba, who specializes in analyzing box office performances in China, calling to "stop films from paying the price of these actions (box office frauds)." This is a mind-blowing figure in March, when box office performances tend to be weak. Surpassed 300 million yuan ($46 million) on March 5, the second day since its opening. , is bulk-purchasing discount tickets through cinema chains across the country to enhance the film's perceived performance. This may seem like good news, except that the high earnings were marred by fraud allegations that Dayinmu Film Distribution, the distributor of , the third installment of the hit kung fu franchise based on the life of a martial arts master specializing in Wing Chun skills, has enjoyed massive success on its opening weekend in China.Īccording to estimates from the Beijing-based box office monitor Ent Group, the fight flick grossed 443 million yuan ($68.1 million) in just three days. Still, this isn’t enough to knock down “Ip Man 3.Donnie Yen and former boxing champion Mike Tyson pose As usual, the unflappable Yen shows off his calm, zen style of fighting but no one’s going to be showering Tyson with Oscars any time soon. The one drawback – or plus, depending on one’s tolerance for unintentional humor – is the cardboard acting. It’s this side of the film that gives it an emotional resonance that’s not usually found in martial-arts movies.īesides the strikingly staged and well-choreographed fight scenes, “Ip Man 3” is also an enjoyably cartoonish Hong Kong time capsule where Frank and the English police are routinely called “foreign devils,” the English still say “cheerio,” cha-cha classes are the in thing, and the thugs look like extras from “American Graffiti.” Just as all this is happening, Ip Man has to deal with his wife being diagnosed with terminal cancer.
So, once again, Ip Man has to fight for what’s right. With ambitions of being as widely admired (and feared) as Ip Man, he’s tempted to the dark side when one of Frank’s minions hires him as muscle.
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Meanwhile, Cheung Tin-chi (Jin Zhang), the father of another student, is a down-on-his-luck would-be wing chun master who makes a living as a rickshaw driver and underground, back-alley kung-fu brawler. He and his toughs rough up the principal and torch the place.
Frank (Tyson), an American crime lord in Hong Kong, wants the property where Ip Man’s son attends school. He’s settled into an easy, quiet life in Hong Kong with his wife (Lynn Hung) and young son (Wang Yan Shi).īut, as in “The Godfather” – where just when you thought you were out, they drag you back in – trouble comes looking for him. In “Ip Man 3,” it’s 1959, and an older Ip Man (Yen, reprising his role) seems to have put all that behind him. “Ip Man” and “Ip Man 2” portrayed the character as a freedom fighter in China against the invading Japanese in the ’30s and in Hong Kong against British colonialism in the ’40s respectively. It’s more visceral and fun than its two predecessors and other riffs on the man’s life such as “Ip Man: The Final Fight” or Wong Kar-Wai’s beautiful but chilly “The Grandmaster.” But “Ip Man 3” – the latest in a long line of films about the legendary Ip Man, the real-life master who trained Bruce Lee in the mighty art of the wing chun style of kung fu – is more than this burst of stunt casting and pop-culture cool suggests.Ī satisfyingly electric action movie that is also surprisingly touching and personal, “Ip Man 3” confounds the usual downward spiral of sequels. ‘Ip Man 3’ is a satisfying, surprisingly touching action movie – Orange County Register Close MenuĪny movie that features Hong Kong martial arts/action star Donnie Yen going up against Mike Tyson with fight choreography designed by Yuen Woo-Ping (“The Matrix,” “Kill Bill”) at least has a sense of humor about itself.