Metrograph

Wong’s seventh film with Tony Leung Chiu-Wai appeared in the midst of a spate of movies about its subject, the legendary martial artist Ip Man, but being a Wong movie The Grandmaster was a thing unto itself, a travelogue through the tumultuous history of China and Hong Kong from the years of the Sino-Japanese War on, pulsing with a feeling of loss and the beauty of tradition. The set pieces rank with Wong’s very highest accomplishments, most notably a train platform showdown showpiece between Leung and Zhang, whose exquisite work playing Ip Man’s doomed rival in martial arts/forbidden love interest won her Best Actress honors at Taiwan’s 50th Golden Horse Awards.

Distributor: Lionsgate