Don't tell me how well you fight,
or how great your teacher is,
or brag about your style.
Kungfu -
two words.
Horizontal. Vertical.
Make a mistake - horizontal.
Stay standing and you win.
Isn't that right?
THE GRANDMASTER
We're from Foshan.
My father ran the family business.
He exported goods to Hong Kong.
The Ips have a long history in Foshan.
They named a street after us.
That's how wealthy we were.
Before I turned 40, life was easy.
I lived off my family money.
I had only one passion.
At seven, I started learning kungfu.
My master was Chan Wah-shun.
Foshan's Wing Chun began with Leung Jan.
I'm the third generation.
When I started, my master was seventy.
The day I became a disciple,
he tied the sash himself.
This sash stands for school and teacher.
It stands for honor.
You are now a martial artist.
You must live your life with honor.
One sash, an unbroken tradition.
I lived through dynastic times,
the early republic, warlords,
Japanese invasion and civil war.
Finally, I came to Hong Kong.
What kept me going
was the martial arts code of honor.
My wife, Zhang Yongcheng,
was the descendant of an Imperial Minister.
She was a woman of few words
because she knew their power.
We understood each other well.
She loved music.
I'd take her to hear opera.
People were so conservative back then.
Nice women didn't visit places like this.
But gossip didn't bother her.
When I went out, she lit a lamp
and left it lit till I came home.
If life has seasons,
my first forty years were spring.
1936. Foshan, Guangdong Province.
In 1936, Foshan
was a prosperous city.
Life was peaceful and good.
Back then, men socialised in brothels.
Such places were popular in the South.
Foshan's finest was Republic House.
Its walls were covered in gold,
so we called it the Gold Pavilion.
It was the first to have an elevator.
Enter a prince, exit a pauper.
You'd spend money like water.
It was like a social club
for martial artists.
Good men can be found among rogues.
And hidden masters too.
People saw it as a pleasure palace.
But to us,
it was a battleground.
I claim three accomplishments in life.
First, I united Xingyi and Bagua styles.
Second, I became the director
of the Northern Martial Arts Union,
bringing together Tongbei, Cannon Fist,
Tai Chi, Yan Qing and other schools.
Third, I took the northern masters south.
In 1929,
the First Southern Martial Arts Academy
was founded under my supervision
after talks here in the Gold Pavilion.
I'm getting old.
It's time for new blood.
I held a retirement ceremony up North.
You invited me to hold a second one here.
It's my farewell to
my southern comrades.
Up North, the one who took part
was my top disciple, Ma San.
He'll be my successor.
Please give him your support.
I'd always wanted
to take the southern styles north.
Sadly, my time's up.
I want to hold a demonstration match
with a southern martial artist.
Someone you all support.
Pick one.
Think you're good enough
to challenge the Old Master?
Let's keep it simple.
I'll take you all on.
Get him!
that at the ceremony up North,
I had the honor.
To worship at the feet of the Buddha
first pass the Guardian of the Gate.
That's me.
How can I represent the South?
The southern schools
are Hung, Lau, Choy, Lee, and Mok.
In rank,
you are all my seniors.
You're the leaders and masters.
I have no standing.
The reputation of the South is at stake.
We Southerners
may be petty,
but we don't run away from a fight.
We're not afraid of these Northerners!
This is a challenge.
We will rise to it.
Isn't that right?
Absolutely!
It must be you.
I'll take the kids to my mother's.
Less for you to worry about.
When a man reaches forty,
he needs to be sure of things.
When it's all over,
come pick us up.
Do you know
why a knife must have a sheath?
Its power lies not in sharpness,
but in concealment.
You're too sharp a blade.
You have to stay put.
My sheath
is you, Master.
With you around,
I'm under control.
I can no longer control you.
You're too anxious to make your mark.
For now, leave Foshan.
Miss that train,
and I'll break your legs.
Central News:
Southern armies
marched north
claiming for autonomy.
The Central Army blocked their advance.
The situation is explosive.
Halt!
Let us pass.
Sorry. This street is closed off.
No one bearing arms can enter.
Do you know who's in that rickshaw?
Call out the Gong Family disciples!
Miss Gong, it's good you're here.
Win or lose, it's a disgrace.
My father has never lost.
There's no question of losing.
And so what if he wins?
They'll say he beat a nobody.
Ip Man's not at his level.
Where's my father?
Brother.
It's me, Baosen.
Isn't the Northeast big enough for you?
You had to come to Foshan? Get up.
I'm taking you home.
Home?
How's that possible?
The Japanese control the Northeast.
The Japanese flag
won't wave over me.
The time's not ripe.
Making soup like this
is a lot of work.
It's not soup.
It's snake stew.
Isn't that a winter dish?
It's a dish from a long time ago.
Yes, decades.
was a Snake Year.
You left the Northeast that year.
The fire has to be right for stew.
Too low -
it'll lack taste.
Too high -
it'll scald.
There's a lesson in that.
Go.
Wait till the fire can take this wood.
I'll go then.
The South may secede.
It's no time for diplomacy.
We're getting old.
Don't risk your reputation.
Ip is more than he appears to be.
Force it,
things could go wrong.
I know what I'm doing.
I'm creating opportunity.
This fire today
needs new wood.
Your northern colleagues
disapprove of this match.
It's a huge honor.
This Ip doesn't deserve it.
It's not how things are done.
Don't follow the herd.
If the old never let go
when will the young get their chance?
Ip Man has talent.
Let's see if he can prove himself.
The Gong Family has never lost before.
With you here,
what right does he have?
I once had a temper like yours:
winning was everything.
But life's bigger than that.
Take a longer view.
Past the mountains
the world opens up.
Not to see the good in others,
not to admit their talent,
is to lack generosity.
Our high standards in martial arts
apply to character as well.
Father,
why did you bring me to a brothel?
If you don't see something,
does it not exist?
No harm in seeing.
The first time I came here
was before you were born.
Twenty years have passed in a flash.
In life,
ability isn't everything.
Some thrive in light,
others in shadow.
The times make us what we are.
I asked you to come South
to bring things full circle
and to let you see
how I step down.
Since you were little,
you've watched me fight.
This is the last time.
You're engaged to be married.
The Martial World
is no longer your world.
Be a good doctor.
Live a peaceful life.
This is my greatest wish.
Master Ip.
We're here to celebrate.
Your big day is coming up.
We'd like to show you our support.
I'm humbled, Uncle Deng.
It's nothing at all.
Don't mention it.
Please.
On behalf of the ladies
and staff, congratulations.
That's quite a battle formation.
Sister San heads our Peking Opera troupe.
She dabbles in Bagua.
She'd like to offer a few pointers.
Please.
After you.
Bagua is based on swordplay.
Single reverse palm is a single blade.
Double reverse palm is a double blade.
The feet arc out and in.
There are 64 transformations.
Attack comes out of nowhere.
Sister San, it's just practice.
No need to smash the ancestral tablets.
I've done that many times before.
No big deal.
Mr Ip, Bagua is underhanded.
Beware.
Thank you.
Ah, Mr Ip.
Today is a happy day.
We in Accounts wish you well.
Xingyi began with General Yue Fei.
It uses the fist as a spear.
Drill
Chop
Cross
Blast
Crush
Such sensitivity - impressive!
That Crushing Fist is quite something.
Mr Ip,
each challenge leads to a higher peak.
Xingyi is brutal.
Don't underestimate it.
Let's see how high the peaks get.
Hmm. This will be fun.
My turn now, Master Ip.
And what have you got for me, Yong?
A string of firecrackers.
That move, isn't that Hung Gar?
I'm a jack of all trades.
You do mix it up.
What's wrong with that?
So long as it works.
The 64 Hands have endless combinations.
Your Wing Chun is a three-trick pony.
Spade, Pin, Sheath.
How can it compete?
Three's enough to take care of you.
Yong, your fireworks have fizzled.
What of it? I'm an old man.
Youth trumps skill.
He might be a grandmaster,
but don't hold back.
You'd better win.
This has been a real privilege.
To victory!
Good luck.
Every generation produces new talent.
Mr Ip, we were fated to meet.
For my final contest
I suggest we match wits,
not skill.
Do you accept?
As our guest,
it's up to you.
When our Union was founded 25 years ago,
a man came from the South.
He offered a challenge.
He held out a flat cake
and asked our Master to break.
Our Master wasn't offended.
He even named the man our first chairman.
It wasn't because of his kungfu
but what he said -
Kungfu divides into North and South.
Must the country divide as well?
That man was also from Foshan -
Ip Yun-biu.
He was a great man.
Today,
meeting another Mr Ip,
I will ask that same question.
Mr Ip,
can you break this cake in my hand?
A Tai Chi master kept a bird from flying
by giving it no perch
from which to fly.
The Old Master's skill is too great.
Mr Ip is a sparrow in his palm.
I don't think he can do it.
The world is a big place.
Why limit it to North and South?
It holds you back.
To you,
this cake is the country.
To me it's much more.
Break from what you know
and you will know more.
If the Southern arts go far,
what boundary is the North?
Would you agree?
Well said.
All my life, I've been the victor.
My technique has never failed me.
I never thought I'd see
the limits of my own vision.
Mr Ip,
today I've made you famous.
In future,
you'll face challenges at every step.
I hope you'll be like me.
Pass on the torch.
Never give up the faith.
Keep the light burning.
Miss Gong, you mustn't do this.
The Gongs have never been defeated.
I will redeem our honor.
Give this to Ip. He'll understand.
I have no chance
to be as great as Father.
It wasn't my choice.
But I'll make my mark.
Go.
Tonight, following Northern custom,
the winner will host a banquet.
Neither Ip Man nor I will attend.
You'll represent me.
Don't worry.
I'll do the right thing.
Let's go!
Of Master Gong's martial arts,
Ma San inherited the steel
and his daughter the silk.
She is the sole heir to the 64 Hands.
Her moves are deadly.
In booking the whole place first,
she forces your hand.
Don't underrate Gong Er.
The Martial World has four taboos:
monks, Taoist priests, women and children.
Grappling with them is a bad idea.
She's gone to so much trouble -
how could I not accept?
Three days ago,
my father sat here.
Tonight,
it's between us.
Please.
Pity about the lovely decor.
Kungfu is about precision.
If anything gets broken,
you win.
Mr Ip,
I showed you the 64 Hands
so that you'd know
the world is a big place.
Kungfu isn't just charging forward.
Look behind you as well.
I hope that's enough of a clue.
It went your way this time.
Who knows what
next time will bring.
Come.
I'll be waiting.
Take care.
I dream of seeing the 64 Hands
again in the snow.
I'm waiting. What's keeping you?
Does it fit?
Does Foshan get this cold?
You look lovely.
Let's take a family photo.
October 1938. Foshan fell to the Japanese.
In October 1938,
the Japanese invaded Foshan.
Their army took over our home.
If life has four seasons,
we went from spring straight to winter.
I'll be back with dinner.
Help me prosper?
Rescue me from poverty?
I've never been poor in my life.
The country's in crisis
and everyone is suffering.
To be poor is no big deal.
I'd rather starve
than eat Japanese rice.
I won't collaborate.
I have plenty of friends.
They'll help me through.
Enjoy your dinner.
You won't find those friends here,
only collaborators.
We had a dinner just now.
These are the leftovers.
If it's not beneath you,
take them back to your family.
How can I accept?
Dirty money paid for it.
No point in waste. We're old friends.
You're most welcome.
They're brand new.
I was going to the Northeast.
But that's impossible now.
Sell them and I can feed my family.
Why is there a button missing?
Is there?
Must've dropped off.
I began studying kungfu at seven.
Before I turned forty,
I was never beaten.
When that happened,
It was life that dealt the blows.
In eight years of war
I lost everything.
Money,
friends...
China will never die!
Girls obey their Madam.
Gangsters obey their boss.
Our boss was Sun Yat-sen
We followed his orders.
We Southerners have fire in our bellies
and a sense of honour.
Only cowards fear the Japs.
I'll kill any I see!
in a Japanese bombardment.
Collaborators took over the Gold Pavilion.
Finally, I lost my family.
Ip Man lost two daughters in the war.
No one move!
Where are you going? Show your IDs!
Hurry.
IDs!
Where are you going? IDs!
Halt!
1939. Traveling to Northwest University
Gong Er meets The Razor,
a Nationalist agent.
1940. Ma San collaborates with the Japanese,
taking an official post in
the puppet government.
Do you remember what I taught you?
Yes.
Never put yourself first,
show respect.
There's always someone better.
To yield is not to lose.
Master, you have taught me
to be modest
and know my place.
I took you in as an orphan.
You brought
credit to our school.
Let's go over
my supreme move.
The Old Monkey Hangs up his Badge.
Have you practiced it?
Yes.
You know the key to it?
I was never told.
It's looking back in reflection.
It's not the upward move,
but the turning back.
Understand what I'm saying?
A warrior molds himself to the times.
What if
I can't turn back?
Then the Gong Family legacy
cannot live on in you.
Stay back.
Let him go.
Never darken my door again.
Get lost.
Master!
The whole clan
heard you were coming
and raced in from all over.
And Jiang?
He's keeping them company.
Miss Gong,
they're awaiting your decision.
They didn't come all this way
to hear my decision.
Did Father have any last words?
Don't seek vengeance.
Miss,
your father forbade revenge.
I agree Ma San deserves to die.
It's a massive crime
to betray one's teacher.
Nothing is worse.
On the other hand,
it was your father
who united Xingyi and Bagua.
Ma San worked hard at Xingyi.
And your father taught you
the 64 Hands himself.
The two of you are his legacy.
If you stand together,
the legacy remains whole.
Besides,
if you take action,
whatever the outcome,
people will laugh.
They'll say what's this Gong school
where the disciple kills the master,
and the daughter kills her brother-in-arms?
A pack of wild animals?
Besides, as for Ma San,
even your father couldn't finish him off.
You think you can?
Miss Gong,
we're old men.
We made the long trip here
with your best interests in mind.
Take our advice.
Just get married.
Your father's last words
were Don't seek vengeance.
If you kill Ma San
won't that go against his wishes?
My father said that
out of love for me.
He wants me to have a peaceful life.
But if I don't avenge his death,
I'll never be at peace.
I understand what you're saying.
With respect,
he treated you
all like brothers.
After he died,
you should've dealt with Ma San.
Instead you come here
as his messenger.
After all my father did for you!
I know
Ma San works for the Japanese.
He's got power.
But I'll stand up for my family.
Is he coming, or not?
What does it matter?
He comes, you go,
and that's the end of it, right?
It's better to let it go, Miss Gong.
Some things are out of our hands.
It's the Will of Heaven.
Maybe I am the Will of Heaven.
Oh ye gods and spirits
guide this soul to Paradise!
Halt!
We mustn't stop!
Don't block the road.
Keep to the side.
Move!
Ma San ordered us
to escort the body.
Miss Gong,
Ma San's men
are blocking the road.
The have banners of mourning.
Troublemakers!
Miss Gong,
time is of the essence.
Jiang!
Tell Ma San he's a dead man.
Let's go!
Oh ye gods and spirits
...guide this soul to Paradise!
They're here.
Stop her.
Keep her back.
Let me at her.
Stop her.
Stay back. We're here for Ma San.
Since you're my senior,
I won't force my way in.
But know this.
You can't hide from me forever.
I will take back my family's legacy.
Come out!
Better to advance than to stop.
The Old Master taught me this.
It became my philosophy of life.
It's a shame
he couldn't follow his own advice.
His precious teachings are mine now.
You want them -
send a member of the family.
You'll be marrying out.
You don't count.
Don't ask after me.
No news means I'm gone.
Find someone else.
Miss,
to give up such an ideal marriage -
is it really worth it?
Think it over.
If you take those vows,
you'll never be able to marry,
teach, or have children.
There's no turning back.
Father,
can you read what's in my heart?
If you agree with me,
show me a flame before Buddha.
Better to advance than to stop.
He mocks us for having no successor.
I can only advance.
I can't stop.
1950. Hong Kong. Tai Nan Street
Ever taught before, Master Ip?
To teach for a living
is a new experience.
So why now?
I'm starting a new life.
You've got your things.
You're confident.
Saves running back and forth.
In Hong Kong no one knows Wing Chun.
Any special moves?
Not really.
Three basic hands - Spade, Pin, Sheath.
How many forms?
The Concept,
The Bridge,
and Darting Fingers.
Weapons?
Double Knives
and the Six-and-a-half Point Pole.
Anything else?
That's it.
Bone-setting,
internal energy -
I don't do any of that.
Drifters,
lion dancers -
I don't teach those types.
Why not?
Kungfu isn't a sideshow.
So I won't teach drifters.
Lion dancers jump at firecrackers.
They're always brawling
and showing off,
all for a bit of cash.
It's crude.
I'll ask you straight -
ever been in a real fight?
It's wall-to-wall kungfu schools here.
They start fights over nothing.
Master Ip,
have you got what it takes?
Try me and find out.
Fight! Fight!
I've had a few years of training.
Show me your stuff, Master Ip.
Have you had lunch?
Barbecued pork and rice.
I suggest you wait a bit.
It'd be a shame to waste it.
Waste it?
Brother Hung,
are you okay?
Where's the tea?
Tea?
To give to your new master!
We've put a bed here for you.
I hope it'll do for now.
Sorry it's a bit shabby.
Is there a hammer?
Master Ip,
The boys and I want some lessons.
Eighty cents a head.
Cheap enough.
But call yourself a master,
you'd better deliver the goods.
No snake oil.
How good's your kungfu, anyway?
Lock the gate.
Hey!
Little fucker.
Shut the door and it's on for real.
You've got two hands and two feet.
How you gonna beat us all?
You're mistaken.
I have two hands but
Wing Chun has eight kicks.
Never mind your boys.
There's more than enough for you.
More than enough for me?
That one's free.
First kick.
Fourth kick.
One more left.
Do you remember our oath?
What oath?
I vow with all my heart
to be loyal
and obedient
to the Party.
I fear neither hardship
nor sacrifice.
Should I forsake these vows,
I accept the harshest punishment.
Fuck.
The war is over.
This is Hong Kong.
But we stand by our code -
Join us alive.
Leave us dead.
I'm leaving now.
Can you stop me?
Try us and see.
In exile in Hong Kong, The Razor
ran the White Rose Barber Shop.
1950. Chinese New Year's Eve. Hong Kong
You don't look like you need a doctor.
I'd like to see the 64 Hands again.
If you don't mind me saying -
You lost. I won.
Have a seat.
If you'd said that at the door,
I wouldn't have made it so easy
for you to get your dumplings.
Thank you.
You know,
I'd hoped to visit the Northeast in 1937.
There was a challenge waiting for me.
I had a warm coat made.
But the war stopped me from going.
I didn't keep the coat,
but I still have one of its buttons.
Call it a memento.
The 64 Hands is too important a legacy.
Why let it disappear?
In centuries of martial arts history,
so many things
have vanished.
Why should the Gong Family arts survive?
Mr Ip,
no art is higher than Heaven
no gift more solid than Earth.
Nothing lasts forever and that's fine.
Keep this button.
As for what may and may not be seen,
let's not talk about it now.
Mr Ip, ten years ago on New Year's eve
do you know where I was?
Mr Ip,
may I have a word?
The Gong arts belong to the Gong family.
The 64 Hands aren't there just for show.
The Gong Family lives.
I know how much talent is there.
I'm keen to learn.
I'll be waiting.
People - they change with the times.
Wear shoes that suit the crossing,
and underpants that fit your ass.
In Hong Kong,
I can only afford these cigarettes.
Back home,
I smoked real Manchurian tobacco.
Now that was smoking.
Be mild, good, respectful,
thrifty, deferential.
Deferential is the key.
Let's say I'm smoking.
A stranger sits down.
I defer to him: Have a smoke.
Even if he doesn't smoke, he must accept
or he'll make me lose face.
Mr Ip,
have a smoke.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
You've got the gift.
Twenty years ago,
we could have sparred.
What a shame.
Some work in the light,
others in shadow.
The face of a school must be spotless.
Blood must flow only in the shadows.
If not, if it stains the face,
then the school itself may perish.
The face offers the cigarettes.
The dirty work is done in the shadows.
Mr Ip, you're too late.
Forget the 64 hands -
you'll never see even one.
1940. Chinese New Year's Eve. The Northeast.
Is it hard to kill a man?
Miss Gong,
it's not like in the old days.
Murder is punishable by death.
Is Ma San worth it?
we make our own path in life.
Should we go home,
or keep waiting?
It's New Year's Eve.
He'll be here soon.
We have to wait.
All right.
We'll wait.
This is between Miss Gong and Ma San.
Everyone else stay out of it.
There you are,
still playing with your monkey.
Deal with him!
Get him!
You're worse than a debt collector,
trying to ruin my New Year's Eve.
The dumplings are in the pot,
but you won't be eating them.
I let you off before
to avoid destroying the Gong clan.
You should know when to give up.
Those needing salvation burn joss.
Those who are hungry, eat.
What I must do,
I will do and nothing can stop me.
The Gong Family legacy
must return to me tonight.
Fine.
It's a part of me.
You want it -
come and get it.
Master!
Keep away.
Ma San,
speak!
That day,
the Old Master
spoke to me
about his supreme move -
Old Monkey Hangs up his Badge.
He said the key to the move
was turning back.
At the time,
I didn't get it.
I thought
he couldn't keep up with the times.
The Gong Family legacy
I return to you.
Let's be clear.
You didn't return it.
I took it back myself.
Miss Gong!
Miss Gong!
1952. Hong Kong. White Rose Barber Shop
Sorry.
I miss my mom.
You got my notice about the memorial?
Yes.
Open a business, follow the rules.
It's the same everywhere.
Do you know how much weight
a summons from me carries?
It's measured in gold.
Brother, I've got the money.
And I've got my life.
Whichever is worth more,
take it.
I like those eyes of yours.
They remind me of my mom's.
Want both? Or just one?
Not so fast.
How about,
you do the honors?
Forget it.
You're a real man.
It's the anniversary of my mom's death.
I'll leave you those two lamps of yours.
As the rivers flow, we'll meet again.
I'll take my leave.
Want the money -
there're rules for that too.
What use are rules?
Keep it simple.
I stab you three times then you stab me.
How common.
Then raise the tone.
See that chair over there?
If I can't plant your ass there,
keep the cash.
You're kidding, aren't you?
Brother,
here's your prayer money.
Next time you'll be joining your mom.
Off you go.
To tell the truth,
Take me as a disciple!
Teach you?
It'd be a waste of my time.
That's speaking honestly too.
Just a few pointers?
That same year, The Razor began teaching.
Baji kungfu came to Hong Kong.
In 1952, Gong Er stopped seeing patients.
Some say her old injury drove her to opium.
Others that she was obsessed with kungfu.
I last saw her at a teahouse.
Do you know this opera?
I think I heard it before in Foshan.
Something about a dream.
A Dream of Love.
Love is just that, a dream.
It's said
no instrument is as lovely as a voice.
Words always sound better sung.
Has Miss Gong studied opera?
Just the basics.
Back then if I'd put my mind to it,
I'd be an opera star.
All those tales, happy and sad...
If I tired of Yang Family Women Generals,
I'd sing Waking from a Dream.
Think of it -
me on stage, you in the audience,
meeting that way.
Wouldn't that be something?
But what if it was sold out?
You flatter me.
If you came, I'd save you a seat.
You've performed well in the opera of life.
You have both timing and skill.
Unfortunately,
you never saw beyond your role.
I'd no idea you watched me like an opera.
This opera of mine,
applauded or not,
will play on to the end.
I asked you
here to bring things to a close
and say what needs to be said.
Are you going somewhere?
We have a saying in the North -
a tiger never quits the mountain.
We've both been living on foreign soil.
I'm so very tired.
I want to go home.
But I wanted to return this to you first.
As for the 64 Hands,
I've already forgotten them.
I was lucky to meet you in my prime.
Sadly, my time is running out.
To say there are no regrets in life,
is just to fool yourself.
How boring it would be without regrets.
Mr Ip, to tell you the truth,
I cared about you.
I don't mind telling you that.
It's not a crime to love.
But that's all it can ever be.
I never said that to anyone before.
Seeing you tonight,
I don't know why, it just came out.
Let's say we suspend this game
of chess between us.
Take care.
In life, as in chess,
a move once made stays on the board.
What we have
is simply fate.
Your father once said,
never give up the faith.
Keep the light burning.
I hope that one day
I'll see the 64 Hands once more.
My father said mastery had three stages -
being,
knowing,
doing.
I know myself.
I've seen the world.
Sadly, I can't pass on what I know.
This is a road
I won't see to the end.
I hope you will.
Is this street of schools
all the Martial World has come to be?
A great age offers a choice:
stay or move on.
I choose to remain in my era,
the times when I was happiest.
In 1953, Gong Er died in Hong Kong.
She kept her vows
to the end.
Tomorrow I take Miss Gong's coffin home.
She left this for you.
In imperial times I was an executioner.
The Republic left me out of a job.
Had Master Gong not taken me in,
I'd have landed in the gutter like a dog.
He never looked down on me.
He made me his daughter's guardian.
My fierceness would protect her.
He nicknamed me Lucky Star,
so fortune would shine on her always.
For a woman,
taking vows is a kind of death.
To avenge her father,
she vowed never to marry or teach,
to remain single her whole life.
She kept that vow.
These are the ashes
from when she cut and burnt her hair.
She said she knew you a long time,
But you didn't really know her,
nor she you.
Seeing these ashes,
you'll understand her better.
Mr Ip,
the Gong Family is through.
Miss Gong belongs to you now.
Like her father,
Gong Er never lost a fight.
She only ever lost to herself.
1953. Ip Man gets his Hong Kong ID
after the border to China is shut.
The day I left Foshan,
I wanted to say something
but couldn't speak the words.
My heart will carry me back to you.
When I left her that time,
I thought I'd be able to return.
But it was the last time I saw her.
After that I only had the path ahead.
There was no turning back,
and no road home.
In 1960, Zhang Yongcheng died of illness.
Ip Man never returned to Foshan.
Okay, begin.
Left fist
out,
palm open,
turn the wrist,
pull back,
right fist,
out,
open,
twist the wrist,
pull back.
Mr Ip,
all encounters in this world
are a kind of reunion.
They say I popularized Wing Chun.
I hope they're right.
I never did it for fame.
The martial arts belong to all.
We're all on the same quest.
It all comes down to those two words -
Horizontal. Vertical.
Ip Man was a huge inspiration to others.
has been carried around the world.