The Rough Cut
Written by Kevin Terpstra
International Review of Red Cliff Parts I & II
(Original International Version)
Country of origin: China
Red Cliff is the story of the great battle fought on the Yangzte River between the northern army under the command of Prime Minister Cao Cao and the alliance between righteous Han supporter Liu Bei and southern upstart Sun Quan. The film is based on events as portrayed in the historical novel, Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong.
Although called a novel, it is the (somewhat) true story of the period during the fall of the Han Dynasty in the year 208 A.D. The film focuses on perhaps the single most important battle of the Three Kingdoms era. It was this battle that truly split China into a warring state divided between the three warlords (Cao, Liu, and Sun) all vying for ultimate control.
Red Cliff, directed by legendary director John Woo, does history proud with one of the most intense, endearing, and psychological war movies ever. The battle scenes are beautifully done and the scenes of dialogue are crafted in a manner that keeps the intensity alive throughout.
The film itself is broken into two parts, both well over 2 hours long. The first part focuses on Cao Cao’s march south and his attempt to subjugate Liu Bei early on. The second film focuses more on the alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan, but more in depth, the combined geniuses of Liu Bei’s strategist Zhuge Liang and Sun Quan’s, Zhou Yu.
Woo does a magnificent job of combining the influences of his native China with the influences he has received working in Hollywood. It is common of Far Eastern art to focus on the world and emphasizing how small man is compared to nature, as opposed to western ideology, which puts the focus on individuals. He combines shots of China’s mountain ranges and backcountry with shots of Cao Cao’s army (800,000 strong) sailing down the Yangzte.
Music also plays a large factor in the film. One scene is given over to a duet on the ancient Chinese harp between Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang. The music acts as a dialogue between the two men of genius. Composer Taro Iwashiro also draws on his western influences to craft a score that is comparable to most Hans Zimmer or John Williams scores.
This fantastical combination of directing, cinematography, and musical score creates a film that can only be described as one of those rare cinematic experiences that comes along once every couple of years. In fact, aside from the few historical inaccuracies that are present, the film is near perfect.
Based on a five star scale, I am awarding Red Cliff five out of five stars.
Red Cliff – 5/5 stars
Official Rough Cut International Review
