Legendary action-cinema master John Woo and international superstar Tony Leung reunite for the first time since the 1992 classic HARD BOILED in RED CLIFF, the epic historical drama based on a legendary 208 A.D. battle that heralded the end of the Han Dynasty. RED CLIFF opens as power hungry Prime Minister-turned-General Cao Cao (Zhang Fengyi) seeks permission from the Han dynasty Emperor to organize a southward-bound mission designed to crush the two troublesome warlords who stand in his way, Liu Bei (You Yong) and Sun Quan (Chang Chen). As the expedition gets underway, Cao Cao’s troops rain destruction on Liu Bei’s army, forcing him into retreat. Liu Bei’s military strategist Zhuge Liang (Takeshi Kaneshiro) knows that the rebels’ only hope for survival is to form an alliance with rival warlord Sun Quan, and reaches out to Sun Quan’s trusted advisor, war hero Zhou Yu (Tony Leung). Vastly outnumbered by Cao Cao’s brutal, fast-approaching army, the warlords band together to mount a heroic campaign unrivaled in history that changes the face of China forever. A massive hit in Asia and the most expensive Asian film production of all time, RED CLIFF is a breathtaking war epic that marks the triumphant return of John Woo.
This is a great history movie, based on the legendary battle in 208 that marked the end of the Han Dynasty. The setting is great, the movie uses a ton of extras and is generally very pleasing to the eye. The story, as Woo himself said, is only about 50% factual, but it’s still gripping enough to hold you close to the chair for a whopping four hours and 37 minutes. Five stars for an excellent movie.
