For those that have seen the movie already, can somebody explain "The Razor" character? He seems to pop out of nowhere, has only a single scene that barely interacts with any of the other main characters, and otherwise has a very different pace from the rest of the movie.
shareYeah, I was thinking the exact same thing. He shows out of nowhere and kicks ass, and then there's that scene in the barbershop that also seemed to have nothing to do with the rest of the movie.
shareSpoilers:
Razor is a martial artist who joins the nationalist to fight against the Japanese occupation. When we first see him, he is on a train, ready to attack when Japanese soldiers get on board. When Zhang Ziyi's character Gong Er notices his plan, she sits next to him and pretends to be asleep so that Razor will not attack in vain and get hurt. They form a bond after spending a whole night in the train.
When Razor later tries to leave the nationalist group, he is threatened to be killed so he has no opion but to fight a large group under the rain and earns his way out. But now that he has betrayed his former comrades (something rather disgraceful for conservative eyes), he cannot be a master anymore and has to settle in Hong Kong and lead his life as a barber. Obviously, he is not an ordinary barber and displays his skills when dealing with a small time crook.
We see Razor a couple of times in front of the Gong family house after Gong Er decides not to marry him and seek revenge for her father. It is also important that he is generous enough to accept the crook to his barbershop after their fight. He is not a villain but a real master, sadly left alone without a title at the end of his journey.
His presence is essential to the film in two regards: First, his style is the only one in which we see actual killing and real blood. Kung Fu is not only a battle of wits and philosophies but has a destructive side as well. The film brilliantly shows this variety. Second, Ip Man and Gong Er's relationship is very complex and multi-layered not only because Ip is married, but also Gong Er cares for Razor. So Razor contributes to a symmetry between characters.
Thanks for that. I didn't recognize him on the train. I must have been focused on his hand and the coat or something.
shareWow!
This helped me understand the bits of this film which was frankly a puzzle for me.
He doesn't have much dialogue or any background explanations so I was curious of his role.
Thank you for this.
I also have a feeling part of his story has been cut short in the theatrical cut. The rumored 4 hour director's cut makes me think he was supposed to be featured a lot more in the movie than we ended up seeing.
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Wow!
This helped me understand the bits of this film which was frankly a puzzle for me.
He doesn't have much dialogue or any background explanations so I was curious of his role.
Thank you for this.
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Agreed, as all of that is omitted from the U.S. version. We never see Gong Er on the train with Razor at all. They do show him fighting in the rain and being at the barber shop. Then he meets Ip Man and there so called fight last 2 secs before they part ways. They did explain a few things about him, but I was so pissed and bored by then, that I probably missed most of it.
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Thanks a lot for the explanation, what an enlightenment!
shareThat helps indeed, thanks!
there's a highway that is curling up like smoke above her shoulder
we were a bit left behind who the "mysterious" man was gong er was supposed to marry, now we finally understand.
now the movie seems a lot more logical to me :P
Actually, no.
宫若梅 Gong Er’s financee
[The fiancee of 宫若梅 Gong Er is played by 張智霖 ChiLam, who also sings in the brothel 金樓. From every interviews I have read, this is most likely just a case of one actor playing two different roles. It is not meant for 宫若梅 Gong Er to marry the singer.]
From
http://moonlightknighthk.wordpress.com/2013/01/24/meanings-of-the-grandmaster/
Thanks for the information, Lao. I was pretty sure Gong Er was already engaged when she met the Razor. I had no idea it was to the singer. (The Razor definitely would've been a better match, anyway.)
shareShe wasn't engaged to the singer either. WKW just said that he used the same actor for both, but he played different people since the fiancee is only seen from the back
shareOh, okay! I understand. Kind of like how Tony Leung was shot from behind, in the WKW produced film, "Sound of Colors," to represent the man Dong Jie fell in love with, but Tony Leung played a different character in the film.
share>>He is not a villain but a real master, sadly left alone without a title at the end of his journey.
These days many amateurs go on-line and claimed that they are grandmasters. ...
Is it true that the "train" scene is not in the U.S. release ? I think that part is important to introduce his character.
In fact, I don't recall seeing him in any "barber" scene or "singer" scene in the first release.
Btw, for those who don't know this actor, his name is Zhang Zhen from Taiwan. He acted in 2 other WKW movies, "Happy Together" and "2046".
he was also the main actor in WKW's short film "The Hand" and the music video he made for DJ Shadows "Six Days"
shareThe Razor is not engaged to Gong Er
I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good.
A very nice and clever interpretation.
Thank you for enlighten me!
I found a website that offers explanation from Wong-Kar-Wai's interviews
http://moonlightknighthk.wordpress.com/2013/01/24/meanings-of-the-grandmaster/
Thanks for the link. I'll explore it and seek some answers.
shareThank for the info. ...
shareWell, this movie is actually not only about Ip Man of Wing Chun , but it actually about Three Grandmaster of Kungfu in the World War II Era that due to certain circumstance choose different path of life.
Yi Xian Tian ( Razor ) : He is my favorite character in the story. This mystery man real name is actually Liu Yun Jiao (secret agent for the nationalist Kuomintang and instructor of the Chiang Kai Shek's bodyguards) , He set up Barbershop in Hongkong in the World War II Era but later set up Martial Art School in Taiwan. He is the Master of Ba Ji Quan, a Martial Art that is not less great than Wing Chun.