Yip Man 3
Yen was at the Shanghai International Film Festival and one of the reasons he attended this year's festival was to speak on top moments of his career during a masterclass. The actor, known specifically for bringing mixed martial arts into mainstream Asian filmmaking, spoke on one particular moment that involved filming a fight with Mike Tyson. As reported by "The Hollywood Reporter", Yen admits that it was an intimidating experience and, despite being a fan of Tyson's boxing career, he recognized that he is a boxer, rather than an actor. Yen then goes on to describe how he had to treat the scene as a real boxing match:
It's pretty cool to know the process that Yen had to engage in when shooting the fight scene with Tyson. Yen was aware that all of Tyson's moves and beats were that of a boxer and not an actor. It's not going to be second nature for Tyson to hit a mark or pull punches. Yen had to be on top of his game just in case Tyson did what came naturally to him. Not because Tyson was threatening in any way but because Tyson is used to doing what is second nature to him. That shows that Yen respects the process of performing and the process of what goes into being the mentality of a fighter.
Ip Man 3 was released in 2015 and had Yen returning in the title role. The film follows Master Ip as he is forced to stand against a group of criminals led by a twisted property manager (Tyson) looking to claim a school. The biographical action drama was shot in Shanghai and went on to gross $157 million at the global box office on a $36 million budget.
The actor, who held his Masterclass at the 24th Shanghai International Film Festival recently, shared that he went into filming with the former professional boxer knowing that the latter was not an actor and would not be able to fake his punches like an actor would.
"When I was in a scene with him, I had to remind myself that I have to be very cautious. I did not allow myself to think I was shooting a scene for a film," said Donnie. "I had to treat it as a real fight in a boxing ring with him and it was a matter of life and death. I couldn't afford to be distracted in any way, otherwise it wouldn't have been a K.O., it would have cost me my life."
"That was so dangerous! I literally felt the air move with his punch, which was like a truck coming towards me head-on. I felt that wind... that's still so clear in my mind, so dangerous! His fist was so huge, and it touched my hair," he said.
On the other hand, the actor is set to appear in the fourth instalment of the Keanu Reeves-starrer, "John Wick", and is currently promoting his new Hong Kong movie, "Raging Fire" - which is also the last movie by director Benny Chan prior to his death.
Most detailed and most action film of the Ip Man series. Ip Man 3 shows too many events of Master Ip's life. Max Zhang's action sequences were too good and look more brutal than Master Ip. Fight with Frank (Mike Tyson) was amazing.But the elevator sequence was unforgettable.
Ups the schmaltz factor on the previous two installments (not exactly lacking in that department for starters) with a shamelessly executed cancer subplot - I'm either so in the tank for these that it doesn't matter or I'm just easily manipulated, or maybe it's both. Nice to see the slender thread of Ip being kind of an absentee husband picked up so markedly here, but as ever the fights are the thing, this time handled by Yuen Woo-ping instead of Sammo Hung. They're great! The bladed segment of the final fight deserves an Oscar for sound design alone.
In a scene where Ip Man and his new sidekick power their way through 100 incompetent henchmen in something reminiscent of West Side Story without the music, it becomes clear that this film is now devoid of the special something that held the first two films together and is now an 'all show and no grow' run-of-the-mill action flick.
Even though it is no match to the original, the third instalment in Wilson Yip's Ip Man series brings som