Red Cliff

John Woo was one of the reasons I got into watching Hong Kong films many years ago.  Unfortunately it's been ages since he's put out anything that I've been able to tolerate, let alone enjoy. His constant use of Woo-isms (just give the doves a rest, already) and attempts to go Hollywood left me cold.

So I didn't have high hopes for Red Cliff, especially after I heard Chow Yun Fat walked off the set right at the start.

It's nice to be wrong sometimes.

Red Cliff has some minor problems, but as a whole it's visually stunning, beautifully acted, and has some fantastic battles.  Woo can't resist a few Woo-isms, but for the most part they are surprisingly restrained.  As for Chow Yun Fat leaving, I'd have to say it was probably for the best. Tony Leung is a very fine actor and I'd be surprised if anyone else could have done as well in the role of Zhou Yu.

Red Cliff is based on events during the Three Kingdoms period in ancient China. This is the first half of two films and as such there's a some time spent building up for the next film. Don't fret though, there's a decent amount of action to keep you entertained during the first part.

Three different kingdoms are vying for control in China. Prime Minister Cao Cao is the most powerful and has the the most troops by far, so general Liu Bei's wily advisor Zhuge Liang (Takeshi Kaneshiro, who is also very good) advises that he make an alliance with the third faction, led by warlord Sun Quan. Zhuge Liang and Sun Quan's advisor Zhou Yu (Tony Leung) square off against each other in a battle of wits and will to see if the alliance will happen in some truly entertaining sequences.

Even together, Sun Quan and Liu Bei don't have anywhere near enough troops to fight Cao Cao head-on—but they do have the two smartest men in the kingdom to come up with a strategy.

It's impossible for me to review Red Cliff without mentioning that while I'm hardly a scholar, I'm somewhat familiar with the source material. I played the old Koei Romance of the Three Kingdoms games* over and over when I was younger and I even read the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. So I watched with childlike delight as my favorite characters lit up the screen, re-enacting battles I distantly recalled. When people have cherished childhood memories of a thing it's hard to equal or surpass them on a movie screen. Woo managed to pull it off here.

While I think that familiarity with characters like Guan Yu, Zhuge Liang, Cao Cao, Liu Bei, Sun Quan, and so forth would definitely add to someone's enjoyment of this film, it really isn't a requirement. I watched the movie with someone who wasn't familiar with the source material and they also liked it. The lush visuals, music, fantastic over-the-top combat, great cast, and acting make Red Cliff one of my most highly recommended Chinese films of 2008.

Woo, I even forgive you for the doves. I can't wait for part two.

* Fans of Koei's Dynasty Warriors will probably get a kick out this movie too (or at least the battle sequences). No one wants to hear how many times you've fought the battle of Chi Bi or how you'd do it differently, though.