So I finally got a chance to see the new John Woo film, Red Cliff.
All I can say is that John Woo has cemented himself as the master of all things action. My only criticism was that the western release has 2 hours cut to shortened then film to a single feature instead of the double release which was released in the East.
The Plot...Red Cliff is based on a legendary battle in which a force of just 50,000 defeated an army of nearly one million. In 208 AD in the final days of the Han Dynasty, shrewd Prime Minister Cao Cao convinced the fickle Emperor Han the only way to unite all of China was to declare war on the kingdoms of Xu in the west and East Wu in the south. Thus began a military campaign of unprecedented scale, led by the Prime Minister, himself. Left with no other hope for survival, the kingdoms of Xu and East Wu formed an unlikely alliance. Numerous battles of strength and wit ensued, both on land and on water, eventually culminating in the battle of Red Cliff. During the battle, two thousand ships were burned, and the course of Chinese history was changed forever.
I give this film a 5/5 as this basically ticked all my boxes and made 2 and a half hours viewing fly in.
