Red Cliff 赤壁

After 16 years of abysmal Hollywood offerings, Woo has returned to his homeland to direct the most expensive Asian film to date.

The first part of Woo’s historical epic “Red Cliff” hit box offices last week, with the second half of the four-hour film scheduled to be released in early 2009.

Woo, a cool-handed master of bullet ballet triad films, ventures into new territory with the infamous Battle of Red Cliff tale, and though his debut in the genre is flawed, he manages to reign in the epic narrative with both action-packed choreography and humble reverence for his characters.

It’s 208 AD, and the scheming Prime Minister Cao Cao is set to inherit the fading Han Empire. Having already conquered the North, Cao Cao sends his mighty army to the southlands of China, in an attempt to unify the entire kingdom under his control.

As Cao Cao’s men march towards them, General Liu Bei’s military strategist Zhuge Liang organizes an alliance with Sun Quan, a neighbouring warlord.

The two consolidate their armies, and Zhuge and Sun’s Viceroy Zhou Yu lead the allied forces to a minor victory against Cao Cao’s formidable cavalry, a precursor to the great battle still to be won at sea.

With the enemy’s massive fleet on the opposite banks, Zhuge and Zhou cautiously plan their next military move against the powerful Cao Cao, in a battle of chess-like wit and cunning.

Woo’s casting woes prior to production were almost as dramatic as the film itself, with a revolving door of actors moving in and out of roles in dizzying turns. Tony Leung Chiu-wai, turned down the role of Zhuge Liang (which was later taken up by Takeshi Kaneshiro), but came back to the production to replace Chow Yun-Fat as Zhou Yu, after Fat unexpectedly bowed out during the first week of shooting.

Kaneshiro is surprisingly good as the youthful and smart strategist, displaying a confidence of ease; a man whose strength is clearly more brains than brawn. His character plays counterpoint to Leung’s Viceroy; soft wisdom partnered with hard experience. Kaneshiro’s Zhuge is the sagacious strategist, while Zhou Yu is a man wizened by battle, the elder, more experienced of the two. Together, Zhuge and Zhou share duties as the brains of Liu Bei’s military operations.

1|2|Next Page>>

SharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos Respond to this email