It’s almost impossible to consider the U.S. cut of The Grandmaster without wondering what’s been lost, to the point of regretting that either Harvey Weinstein or director Wong Kar-Wai (depending on which story you read) doesn’t trust American audiences to pick up on simple nuances, character titles and motivations, and historical context.
In the last several years, Hong Kong cinema has had a fascination with legendary Wing Chun martial artist Ip Man that borders on manic obsession, to the point where it wouldn’t be surprising to find out that Hong Kong cinema spent a week secretly living in Ip Man’s pool house and going through his garbage.
Zhang Ziyi has been named Actress of the Decade by organizers of CineAsia, the annual three-day regional distributors and exhibitors trade show. Ziyi is no stranger to the event. In 1999 Zhang Ziyi who was a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing was awarded the Star of Tomorrow prize before her career …