Red Cliff II

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Red.Cliff.II.2009.720p.BluRay.x264.AAC-[YTS.MX]

The first half of this film was at least amusing but it starts to fall apart from there. This film is more cartoonish than the first movie and not realistic at all, a lot of parts in the movie never really happened in Chinese history. From what I heard the final battle scene of this movie wasn't even fought by the people who are portrayed in the movie, I assume John Woo went this direction cause he only spent time developing only a handful of characters and to top it off the movie ends with a wimper. The first movie at least had some good battle scenes, but part 2 really lacks the battle scenes compared to part 1 and I thought part 1 lacked action as well. John Woo just added a lot of drama without actually adding anything to the brutality of war. The final stand off in the movie was absurd and not believable and it's not just cause it didn't happen in Chinese history that way even though I don't know the Chinese historical context I know a lot of the parts portrayed in the movie to be false. Even when John Woo tries to add character development to some of the other characters like Sun Shangxiang he was doing more damage than good, cause it wasn't captivating what so ever. I don't even want to get into the bad dialogue cause it well pretty bad. I will give this movie a 7 cause at least the first half of the movie was more captivating than part 1 although the battle cause it was ridiculous and not very engaging the ending was a let down as well. 7/10

I saw the original two-part five-hour Chinese release version of RED CLIFF on DVD earlier this year. I was eager to see the shortened two-and-a-half-hour North American theatrical release version for two reasons: 1) to see it on the big screen and 2) because I thought that shorter would be better. The five-hour original was simply way too long; there was plenty of material that could have been removed without sacrificing anything. Magnet Pictures released this film quietly in only two theaters in Manhattan and no theaters in my home borough. By the time I could devote an evening to see it, some three weeks after it opened, it was down to playing at one out-of-the-way theater on the Lower East Side and only at times that were impossible for working people, so I had to make a trip into Manhattan on the weekend for a morning show on Sunday, December 13, 2009. The good news is that I was quite pleased with the final result. I thought it played beautifully at two-and-a-half-hours and found it far more gripping, suspenseful and exciting than the longer version. There are plenty of moments that would have elicited applause, laughter and cheers had this played to a full multiplex crowd on a Friday night at a centrally located theater, say, in Times Square. Unfortunately, it did not have that opportunity. And because it's so inconvenient for most people to see, I can't go around recommending this to the people I think would enjoy it. I wish that John Woo and his producers had made more of an effort to find a suitable North American distributor for RED CLIFF, the most expensive film yet made in China. From what I've heard, Woo asserted that he made this film for his Chinese audience, to which I respond, what about your American fans? We championed your Hong Kong films for years and ensured a growing reputation here that enabled you to come over in 1993 and begin directing films in Hollywood—the start of a ten-year stretch that made you a wealthy man and a respected auteur the world over. You belong to the world, now, Mr. Woo. Aren't the rest of us entitled to see one of your best films in a proper theatrical setting? After all, five years ago Zhang Yimou's Chinese epic, HERO, was released by Miramax to multiplex theaters across the U.S. and even hit #1 at the box office for its opening weekend. I saw HERO on opening night in a sold-out house at a 42nd Street multiplex in Manhattan with a very respectful audience that seemed to appreciate its stylized tone, fanciful fight scenes, and all-star cast. While not as star-heavy, RED CLIFF is much more of a genuine crowd-pleaser, with a more engaging plot and far more action, and would certainly have sent exhilarated fans out to eagerly spread the word among their friends. Woo's American fanbase deserved the opportunity to do that. RED CLIFF offers narrative film-making in a classical style that used to be quite common in Hollywood. Among today's American filmmakers, only Quentin Tarantino comes close and only in select films like this year's INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS. RED CLIFF reminds me of the epics that filled me with awe in neighborhood theaters as a child, most notably Anthony Mann's two spectacles, EL CID (1961) and FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE (1964). The failure of RED CLIFF to reach its audience in the U.S. is emblematic of everything that's wrong with movie distribution in this country today. I've placed this review in the IMDb entry for RED CLIFF Part II, because that's the part that comprises the bulk of the North American release version.

With the cast established, their motivations solidified, the stage set and the first volleys already thrown in the original, John Woo is able to just sit back, relax, and make the thoroughly indulgent epic action picture he always wanted in its sequel. Where the first film thematically leans more in the direction of theology and politics, backed by a brief taste of large-scale military maneuvers, this follow-up is a full-gale blast of battlefield planning and dramatic execution. History buffs may grimace at a few of its flashier moments, like the warrior who uses his spear to pole vault over enemy battalions, but those are rare enough to write off as passing fits of eccentricity from a director who's not always known for his realism. Besides, the real sizzle lies with the world-class, hour long battle scene that closes the picture - and the obscene amount of fascinating war maneuvers seen therein. It's the mother of all fight scenes, an intense, unrelenting thrill ride the likes of which hasn't been seen from the west in decades, if ever. And, as Woo addresses one of my biggest complaints about the first Red Cliff - the generic, evil-for-the-fun-of-it enemy commander who's admirably rounded out in a few powerful scenes - it's ultimately an even better effort than its predecessor. A thrilling, intense, large-scale classic that makes for one hell of a payoff.

The battle of the Red Cliff, which is the climax from the first half of "Romance of the Three Kingdom" by Luo Guanzhong is perhaps the most spectacular war story in all of Asia. Until the outbreak of Russo-Japanese war, it certainly was one of the biggest battle of the region, and perhaps the biggest in terms of numbers of people involved. Director John Woo assembled an international talent of actors to create this one of a kind epic movie. He's described it as 50% fictional, but he must have put lot of thoughts into the fiction part, because all the filling that he puts in works to enhance the story, and brings excitement to each scene. The story is somewhat long, and for ones who are not familiar with the historic saga of this battle, may feel that it's overly protracted, but the movie was geared mainly for the Chinese audience (China bankrolled the film), who are intimately familiar with the characters described in this story. I'm sure many went to the theaters to see their favorite heroes come to life. The casting is done exceptionally well, as they convey the authority of the characters they are playing. Clever casting from different countries around Asia (China, Korea, Japan, and Taiwan) ensured that people of those countries will not see it as foreign film, but one of their own. This certainly is the best warrior based movie to come out of China, and even for the jaded director John Woo, the greatest masterpiece. Superbly crafted movie, and equally superb story telling, captures all the highlights of the Battle of the Red Cliff. Part 1 was good, but this blows the doors off of Part 1. One of the greatest movie to come out of Asia.

I was so disgusted with Part 1, I didn't even bother going to the cinema to catch Part 2, and I have just watched Part 2 on DVD. I wish I'd done the reverse instead! although Part 2 is still marred with some of the irritatingly dumb dialogue, completely gratuitous, made up stories and "cute" characters and unnecessary "art" touches (John Woo calling Oscars...), it contains less fillers and the lavish production is amply showcased. Perhaps the fact that I sat through Part 1 inoculated me from the effects in Part 2, or maybe Woo heeded the audience's complaints and cut out more of the cr*p. Two outstanding elements that made the film worth watching - the actor who plays Cao Cao and the set with all the grand battle scenes. It got too pyrotechnical for me, but it screams money. There are plot lines that are quite unbelievable - as I'm not that familiar with the true historical context, I cannot ascertain if they actually took place, but a brilliant tactician like Cao Cao surely would not be as gullible as the film portrayed? In the end, there were far more interesting secondary characters with their subplots in the original history, not to mention the novel itself, without John Woo having to fabricate and invent paper thin ones with their equally shallow "stories". It also leads to an uneven script - alternating between brilliant prose from the novel and other classics and "dumbed down" meaningless drivel and "jokes" thought up by less refined modern minds. These "touches" irritate any audience who has a good knowledge of the original - they would feel insulted. I saw partial episodes of those made for TV series produced in China, very much less glamorous and low budget, but ultimately intelligent and engaging. For an audience with no inkling of the original, Red Cliff 2 - with less of those "Meng Meng" moments and more scenes from the tactical battles - is probably entertaining and satisfying enough. This I gathered from the feedback of others. Thus, I'm giving it 7 stars in my attempt to stay objective to the best of my ability.

I first saw the 148 mins version in 2009 on a dvd which I own. Saw the 288 minutes version few days back. I liked the 148 mins version but i liked the 288 mins version even more n inspite of the runtime, i never felt like fiddling with my phone. In fact, i found the film very captivating. The film has tons of action. A true old school war with tons of bows n arrows, spears, swords, horses, ships, etc. Apart from the battlefield action sequences, all the characters are awesomely developed, the cinematography is lovely n some of the scenes are picturesque. There is absolutely no shaky cam or fast cut editing. One can easily make out what is going on during the war scenes. None of the scenes is shot in too much darkness. We have a daring character Gan Ning (Nakamura Shido II) who does a stint like Steve McQueen's character from Hell is for Heroes. I love both the scenes. The hand chopping scene, the sword slashings n the spears piercing, are all brutal. After finishing the film, rice flour and sugar stayed on my mind. I tried the recipe on YouTube. Some drawbacks - The initial scene with the baby on the back n running n fighting is lol n far fetched. John Woo had already done this mistake in Hard Boiled with the baby peeing n all. Another far fetched n lol scene in this movie is that of catching a woman in midair.

A quote extracted from the novel in Romance of Three Kingdoms: ' An alliance will be formed after a long separation, and a separation will begin after a long alliance.' And this is the point the audience will receive at the end of Red Cliff 2. While it seems to make sense for John Woo to come with an American edit version (which concentrates the story in two hours) out of Red Cliff Part 1 and 2 (total of five hours), sometimes, it is much more better to see whole picture, than to force a chunk of concentration. This explains why some Asians grumbled that they have to pay for the price of 2 tickets to see a whole story. Red Cliff 2 continues from where it ended in Part 1: The Battle of Sanjiangkou. After the alliance between the Kingdom of Xu, led by Liu Bei, and East Wu, led by Sun Quan, has defeated Cao Cao's army, Cao Cao has suffered a major setback. While the battle is fight with honor, Cao Cao's plot of spreading typhoid using the dead soldier's body to Red Cliff, causing an outbreak of typhoid among the soldiers of Xu and East Wu. And so it forces Viceroy Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang, the military strategist of Liu Bei, to come out with plans to paralyze Cao Cao's army. Eventually, the whole story ends with a hour of the battle of Red Cliff, which makes the movie the main highlight. To avoid twisting the historical facts for commercial purpose, John Woo has ensured that sufficient time is given to tell the story. This can be explained by the 5 hour duration for the whole story to be told. More feelings of emotions were focused in Part 2, compared to Part 1. Sun Shangxiang (Vicki Zhao Wei), the Princess of East Wu, falls in love with a soldier from Cao Cao's army. Their affection was displayed thru a very simple piggyback ride, which enables Shangxiang to draw a map of Cao's formation when infiltrating herself into Cao's army. Compared to the much hyped and unnecessary physical intimacy between Zhou Yu (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) and his wife, Xiao Qiao (Chiling Lin), the former seems to fit in much more better to the war epic. For those who are expecting more wit in Part 2, they will be rewarded with the psychological tactic and the famous 'Borrowing the arrows using the scarecrows', which was one of the main highlight in Three Kingdoms. Reprising his role as Zhuge Liang, Takeshi Kaneshiro displays the wit of Zhuge and his ability of forecasting the weather to trick Cao's navy into shooting arrows to them when they are lack of arrows. The much talked about battle of Rec Cliff is the main reason why one should pay for two tickets to see them. The battle begins with the most frequently used quote: 'Everything is ready, except the east wind.' Here, Zhou Yu and Sun Quan's navy are using the fire to burn Cao Cao's navy, which combines the two main highlights of the novel: Borrowing the East Wind and The Burning of Battleships. It seems that the breathtaking battle was presented in about 15 minutes, which could have been longer. The battle also shows the downfall of Cao Cao (Zhang Fengyi), which started with his fascination of Xiao Qiao, and seeing her in person. Readers of Three Kingdoms will know that the battle of Red Cliff will ended with the formation of three kingdoms. However, John Woo ends the story with the quote from Zhou Yu: 'no one won in the battle.' Thus, the story ends in a very simple presentation, with Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang bidding farewell to each others. What has happened to the rest? With the ending wraps with slight disappointment, fans of Three Kingdoms might expect more more. Nevertheless, John Woo has created one of the best historical war epic in the history of Hong Kong cinema. It is worth 5 hours your time, if Peter Jackson's big screen creation of J R R Tolken's The Lord of the Rings is your cup of tea.

Although historically far away from the facts, this movie is a feast for the eye with impressive battle scenes, great costumes, good acting and a few really good one-liners ! Not your typical martial arts movie, but a story worthwhile watching ! I would recommend to watch this on the big screen in a theater with good sound, otherwise a lot of the movie will get lost. Try to read some of the history that the movie is based upon, it will enable you to understand the plot quite a bit better. Some excellent lessons in ancient warfare are to be learned here. Although the end is more or less predictable, I enjoyed every minute of the movie.