Movie Review: Red Cliff I & II/赤壁 I & II

Takeshi Kaneshiro as Hiram P. Dunn…

Red Cliff was released in 2 parts in Asia in 2008 and January 2009.

I saw both parts in the cinema.

But I went home between them.

They were condensed into a single film for release in the West, so I’m combining both parts to treat the two films as a whole.

Obviously, the two parts are totally interrelated, and I don’t think they’re different enough to deserve a review each.

But what do I know, right?

Well, I do know there aren’t two films called The Five Commandments.

 Wait…

I’ve never read Three Kingdoms.

Or played any of the games.

I tried to read it, but the profusion of names made my head swim. It reminded me of the Old Testament. I ended up having a dream about a fight between David and Guan Gung.

And David lost.

And Guan Gung held up that huge weapon and said

“FROM MY COLD DEAD HANDS!!!”

I awoke in a cold sweat.

Ye gods, where were we???

I didn’t know the story of the Battle of Red Cliff or anything else in Three Kingdoms.

But I also felt lucky, because without having seen any of the numerous adaptations, whether on film or TV, I didn’t have any bias or prejudice for a particular version or actor.

A lot of people I spoke to criticized the film because they already had favorites in their mind of what the characters ‘should’ look and act like.

I can understand that, because Sean Connery is James Bond and all the rest of the actors, while occasionally entertaining, aren’t really James Bond, are they?

“No, they’re not.”

I can also say that after watching both movies, I still don’t know the story of the Battle of Red Cliff.

Like so may other classic Chinese stories told in movies, the producers understandably and justifiably assume that their audience already knows the story, so there’s no point in really telling it.

That means not knowing the story, and knowing you’re not going to be told the story, there’s really nothing to do but sit back and watch the films, and that’s fine.

For me, this story isn’t really about the events as much as the presentation.

It’s about spectacle, and there’s plenty of that.

This is John Woo set free from the limitations of Hollywood, and a budget far in excess of what he was used to having for a Chinese-language film.

It’s like a Michael Bay movie, but a lot better.

A star-studded cast inhabits this massive film, bringing life to characters and events that can only be described as larger than life.

Tony Leung and Takeshi Kaneshiro lead a strong cast, all of whom turn in commendable performances.

Who will blink first?

Lin Chi Ling’s film debut is an impressive turn in a minor but pivotal role as a woman caught up in events that are much larger than she is, even as she is at least partially the cause of them.

Yeah, I know, but… can you blame me?

Vicky Zhao Wei is very entertaining as Sun Shangxiang.

“Hurry! She’s got cake!!!”

Shidō Nakamura is at first glance a disappointment as as Gan Xing; all he does is a lot of scowling and only a little speaking, all of which is dubbed, but he’s very entertaining, and provides some comic relief as well as dramatic heft.

“Grrrr…”

The battle scenes are huge in scope and the CGI is occasionally obvious, but it’s also to be expected.

You couldn’t build these sets in real life without massive expense.

Not even in China.

All of John Woo’s recurring themes are here:

Loyalty,

honor,

brotherhood verging on romance,

and birds.

It’s a good movie that’s interesting, well-made, and a lot of fun to watch.