Review of The Grandmaster (2013) by Reymundo W — 02 Sep 2013

Viewers should recalibrate their expectations before they watch the first frame of this movie. This is no Jackie Chan action flick. Expect a slow, sultry flow of sweeping visual beauty instead of the raw, meaty, blur of kicks and blows.

Wong shows that Ip Man was not the only Grandmaster of martial arts during a very troubled time in China. The Grandmaster is a sensuous feast of sight and sound that lavishes and indulges the audience to long tracking and lingering closeup of Ziyi Zhang and Hye-kyo Song.

Wong Kar-Wai knows how to film women, frequently filming his female stars in their radiant best. The lighting, camera angles, makeup and blocking elevate Ziyi Zhang. Her spirited and restrained performance dominates the film.

Silenced by limited lines, a crowded and chopped narrative, and relegated to a supporting role by the scope and focus of the script, Ziyi's character showed a caged rage, a seasoned pain, and a smothered passion that seared the big screen.

You almost hear her heart beat and break. She blows away Tony Leung. He has nothing to counter her moves, her words, her burden. She carried this movie. Watch The Grandmaster for Ziyi's masterful performance.

Watch this movie if you want to see, hear and taste this rare cinematic delicacy.