Aug 03 2012

Ip Man review

I’ve been an Amazon Prime member for quite some time now, but one aspect that I don’t use nearly often enough are the prime videos on demand. This past week, I took advantage of the free films that were available and watched one entitled Ip Man. I thought it was a little unusual that a martial arts film would have such high ratings, and considering I was in the mood for something like it, I decided to give it a go. I was very pleasantly surprised!

Ip Man - Donnie Yen

The film focuses on Yip Man (also spelled Ip Man), who was a martial artist in the southern Chinese town of Foshan. Foshan was known as one of the primary kung fu hubs for many decades, and many travelled there in order to learn from one of the many masters who opened martial arts schools in the city.

Even though there were several inaccuracies about Ip Man’s life (which were likely there for cinematic effect and drama), much of the story was factual and based during the Second Sino-Japanese War (taking place from 1937 to 1945). During that time, the Japanese were infiltrating regions of China and attempting to enforce their cultural beliefs and systems. Though I’m unsure if Foshan was one of the targeted cities, or if Ip Man really had any influence on the war, it was fascinating to get a little bit more background regarding an event about which I essentially knew nothing.

Yip Man studied the martial art of Wing Chun, and trained many students throughout his career. Amongst those students was the very well-known Bruce Lee. Having not read anything about the film before I watched it, I actually didn’t know that until right at the end as the credits were starting to roll.

As I said, the film was surprisingly good! I expected just another martial arts show, but this one had a great story (no matter how embellished it may have been regarding his life, the war, et cetera), some great drama, and nice cinematography in spots. The only problem was that the version to which I had access was dubbed instead of subtitled, and the voices were a bit distracting. In any case, I would recommend you watch it. It’s not the most exceptional film I’ve ever seen, but it was entertaining, and provided some perspective on a historical event. I would say that it’s deserving of 7 stars:

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Cheers,
Zach

Aug 02 2012

Fortune cookie wisdom part IV

It’s that time again, where I’ve accumulated far too many of those little scraps of paper wisdom from fortune cookies. Before reading these little Confucian tidbits, you may want to check out parts I, II, and III (which are all examples that I eat far too much Asian food ;)).

Anyway, here are the ones from the past few weeks:

  • They say you are stubborn; you call it persistence.
  • There are a lot of bumps on the road to easy street.
  • Opportunities multiply as they are seized; they die when neglected.
  • Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat.
  • Those who can endure most are rewarded most.
  • The most beautiful adventures are not those we go to seek.
  • Our brightest blazes of gladness are commonly kindled by unexpected sparks.
  • Our life is the creation of our mind.

I thought that these ones provided a good mix of existentialism, Eastern philosophy, and internal versus external perspective. The first one is something that I say all the time when discussing doctoral programmes–you don’t need to be intelligent, you just need to be stubborn (or the more nicely connoted “persistent”). I am particularly fond of the penultimate one though, as I have found it to be true throughout my own life, and sometimes personal anecdote turns something sterile and cold into something rich and warm.

Cheers,
Zach

Jul 31 2012

Ice Age 4: Continental Drift – review

Not all that long ago, a friend and I went to see Ice Age 4: Continental Drift in the theatre. I was a little iffy about it, seeing as it is the fourth part of the series. It has been my experience that by the fourth instalment, the cast, story, and humour has been overplayed. However, the newest Ice Age film was packed with as much action, plot, and laughter as its predecessors!

Ice Age 4 - Continental Drift - crew on a boat

Manny, Diego, and Sid set out on another adventure, but this time, they have to find their way back to land. Due to the actions of a particularly mischievous saber-toothed squirrel, the land starts to separate (which, by the way, is a far better explanation of continental drift than is tectonic plate shifting ;-)) and split away from its state of Pangaea. The three find themselves setting sail on an iceberg, not knowing which way will get them back home. On their way, they face treacherous storms, a band of pirates attempting to rule the open seas, and arguably worst of all, Sid’s Granny (voiced by the incredible Wanda Sykes).

As with the previous Ice Age films, this one was packed with hysterical one-liners. I don’t want to give away any of the great ones, but I will mention the one that was in the trailer (as you’ve likely already seen that). During one of the storms at sea, a gigantic crab lands on the iceberg on which the crew are stranded. Sid gets a look of terror on his face, points upward, and exclaims “HOLY CRAB!” The play on words was great, and I hope that the writers found a way to preserve the humour when translating the film into other languages.

Ice Age 4 - Continental Drift - HOLY CRAB

Anyway, don’t be worried about seeing the latest release in the Ice Age tetralogy (or quadrilogy if you like to follow the industry’s diction) thinking that it won’t live up to the rest of the series; it definitely does!

Cheers,
Zach