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Updated Friday, January 16, 2009 3:57 pm TWN, By Erika Wang, The China Post

Red Cliff II 赤壁：決戰天下

"Red Cliff II" (赤壁：決戰天下), is the second and final installment to the Chinese epic "Red Cliff" (赤壁), based on the Battle of Red Cliffs (赤壁之戰) that was fought at the end of the Han Dynasty before the era of the Three Kingdoms. Southern warlords Liu Bei (You Yong) and Sun Quan (Chang Chen) join forces against northern Prime Minister Cao Cao (Zhang Fengyi).

After a brief synopsis of scenes from the first film, "Red Cliff II" begins with a scene in Cao Cao's camp where a game of cuju, an old form of soccer, is taking place. Sun Shangxiang (Vicki Zhao) has disguised herself as a soldier and periodically sends secrets about Cao Cao's army via pigeon post to Zhuge Liang (Takeshi Kaneshiro), Liu Bei's chief advisor.

Meanwhile, an epidemic is quickly spreading among Cao Cao's ranks and threatening to weaken his army. In an act of psychological warfare, the northern warlord sends the infected corpses towards the southern allies' camp in an attempt to contaminate them as well.

Eastern Wu's viceroy and chief army commander Zhou Yu (Tony Leung) and Zhuge Liang enter into some serious wagers as they try to one-up each other. While Zhou Yu vows to eliminate Cao Cao's naval commanders, Zhuge Liang promises to produce 100,000 arrows in three days' time. Failure to keep their word is to result in execution.

Of course, both keep their word — and their lives. In a stroke of genius that is characteristic of adviser Zhuge Liang, he sets off with a small fleet of straw-covered boats and tricks Cao Cao's navy into firing arrows which end up stuck on Zhuge Liang's boats, therefore providing the allied camp with much needed weaponry. Cleverly planned ruses and strategic ploys like this abound as both sides prepare for battle.

Tony Leung as the righteous Zhou Yu and Takeshi Kaneshiro's intimidatingly cerebral Zhuge Liang take their witty quips and banter to a new level. Although the second part of the epic builds some friction between Zhuge Liang and Zhou Yu, both veteran actors deliver outstanding performances portrayals the brotherly characters, who, despite being fiercely competitive, are also mutually loyal and greatly admire each other.

Colorful warriors such as Guan Yu (Ba Sen Zha Bu) and Zhao Yun (Hu Jun), and Zhang Fei (Zang Jinsheng) are unfortunately relegated to smaller roles in the sequel. In fact, they all but disappear around the first half (as part of the storyline), only to reappear just in time for the final battle scene.

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	"Red Cliff II" (赤壁：決戰天下), is the second and final installment to the Chinese epic "Red Cliff" (赤壁), based on the Battle of Red Cliffs (赤壁之戰) that was fought at the end of the Han Dynasty before the era of the Three Kingdoms. More Photos (5)


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