Red Cliff II Poster

Red Cliff II (2009)

Action | History 
Rayting:   7.6/10 23.1K votes
Country: China | Hong Kong
Language: Mandarin
Release date: 8 January 2009

Second and final part of an epic tale about a legendary ancient battle that changed the course of China history.

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DICK STEEL 9 January 2009

It's been a six month wait for the second and final half to John Woo's magnum opus Red Cliff, and for those familiar with the classic but have not watched the first installment, the director doesn't waste time in bringing you up to speed with an excellent summary, so much so that the transitional technique used was carried over to the main movie proper. And for those who complained about the pigeon soaring over the sky overseeing a football game at the Cao Cao (Zhang Fengyi) camp, there're perfect explanations for those too.

Yes, just when you think it was frivolous of Woo to have added his signature pigeon shots just for the heck of it, you'll be more than pleased to know that the feathered friends do serve a valid purpose here, as does the football match which introduces a sub plot which again I suspect will give way in the truncated version meant for Western markets. We continue where we last left off, and get to see Vicky Zhao's Sun ShangXiang in an expanded role which is crucial to the overall plotting and strategizing of the finale battle, knocking a bit of the shine off the well known characters of Tony Leung's Zhou Yu and Takeshi Kaneshiro's Zhuge Liang.

But don't fret, as there's still ample and well known episodes where the two men get to show off their cunningness and shrewdness in getting their respective one-ups against their common rival. But alas Zhuge Liang gets to become a clear second fiddle here, since he's all brains but absolutely no brawn, and get left out of fisticuffs, putting his firm grasp of mother nature to the test, that the elements also play a fair bit of tipping advantage. Fans of the character though will smile at recognizable anecdotes presented that have given rise to Chinese proverbs.

By now, one would already know that Zhou Yu is the primary focus of the show (I think Chow Yun-Fat is regretting), given that he's a well rounded man blessed with brains and brawn, and a beautiful wife to boot too. He's honour and duty bound to protect the southern territory of Sun Quan (Zhang Chen), but this becomes something more personal when Xiao Qiao (Lin Chiling) takes it into her own hands to buy the defenders some time by crossing over to Cao Cao and to play the proverbial beauty capable of mesmerizing the prime minister. And her performance in this film was a lot more effective than the last. In fact, the two female characters get meatier roles to play, and for someone like John Woo, I can't remember the last time where he had strong female characters in his films, so this was a treat.

Somehow, Red Cliff 2 ended with a whimper unfortunately, which is a pity. The build up is excellent par none, prepping the audience for the big showdown. Those who had lamented the lack of big battle sequences in the first film, well, you can continue to lament as this one only had ONE which takes up almost the last hour. It's execution, pure and simple, putting into motion what has been planned, and the relentless clockwork that every plan had to follow. While the first film had provided for the famed generals of Liu Bei to each have their individual show pieces to highlight their fighting prowess, this one had none as most of the lead characters0 got relegated to support status, except for Zhao Yun (Hu Jun) whom John Woo has an affinity for.

Fans of Woo's style will see his signature stamped in a lot of action sequences here, which were muted somewhat in the first installment. With Zhao Yun and Zhou Yu, one can tell Woo

i_have_a_m16 15 March 2009

Fmovies: First of all, the cinematic in both Chi Bi I and II are amazing. Colors and sceneries are stunning. Battle scenes from the ships burning to blood spilling off of the cold steel of Zhao Yun's lance are unprecedented in Chinese films. Also, the computer graphics in the movie is a big step up from Chen Kaige's Wu Ji (The Promise 2005).

Other than the visual component of the movie, everything else is unfortunately a failure. I have been been anticipating the movies since late 2007. There had been a trend of Chinese movies trying to mimic Hollywood and impress westerners. I was hoping that Chi Bi would turn out to be an eastern epic of its own since it is based on one of the greatest battles within 4500 years of Chinese history. Yet after being very unsatisfied with the first movie, Chi Bi II: Jue Zhan Tian Xia was even more disappointing. Here are 4 reasons why it was a failure:

1)Characters: Other than Zhuge and Zhou Yu who were depicted in details, most other characters were very one-dimensional. For example, Cao Cao was portrayed as an arrogant, ambitious, and brutal man who makes his own decisions. In the movie, he became the all powerful villain that everyone feared. However, Cao Cao in the story was supposed to be very intelligent, benevolent at times and Charismatic, with many brilliant advisors he often took suggestions from. Not only did Cao Cao give me the impression of Xerxes in 300, it erased other sides of his personalities which made him interesting. Furthermore, John Woo failed to portray Liu Bei as a powerful man who would rise to be the ruler of one of the three kingdoms. In Chi Bi II, he delivered the impression of man who feared death who even had trouble inspiring his own men.

2)Hasty Modification of the Plot: In order to fit most of the key events leading up to the battle within a series of two films, many events were simplified or re-written. For example, Pang Tong - one of the most intelligent characters in the original book was cut out from movie. Instead of his phony surrender to Cao Cao and proposing the method of linking the ships together, it was simplified to a short dialog between Admiral Cai informing Cao Cao of his decision to link the ships. Also, Zhou Yu punishing his general Huang Gai with one hundred back lashes to deceive Cao Cao for the reason of Huang Gai's surrender was modified into Xiao Qiao's (Zhou Yu's Wife) decision of seducing Cao Cao to stall time. Furthermore, themes with Zhuge "borrowing the wind", Cao Cao's escape in Hua Rong Dao were reduced to a prolonged battle scene. With so many events holding great significance which contributes to the ultimate miracle at Chi Bi cut out, the plot of the movie became very predictable, unimpressive, and even confusing.

3)Very One Sided, Zhou Yu in Super Hero Mode: Zhou Yu was supposed to be the mastermind commander behind Sun Quan's army, but with average ability to combat. Yet, in the movie, Zhou Yu was chopping away in tens and thousands of soldiers like Achilles to save his wife. In fact, it was more like a gang of super heroes (Liu, Guan, Zhang, Zhao, Sun)unstoppable against Cao Cao's army. Ironically, none of them actually fought at Chi Bi, it was fought by their generals who were never mentioned. In the original story, Cao Cao also brought with him his best generals (Xiahou Yuan, Zhang Liao, Xu Chu, Xu Huang, Zhang He...etc) who were intelligent and were extremely skilled warriors. Neither were they mentioned. It made the battle seem less dramatic because Cao Cao's

helmutty 10 January 2009

The final battle is here! It continues from where it last stop. It also shows flashbacks to those who forget the story of part one. There is still John Woo's slow motion. There is a big epic battle, probably the biggest battle scene you have ever seen in a Chinese movie. But, somehow, I am slightly disappointed with it. I guess I would have expected more in the battle scene or at least, a better showdown with the two characters (I can't say who) at the last part. Despite the minor thing, it is still good as I am entertained with the intensity in it.

The story: It continues where the part one stops. As they are all getting ready for the last major war, you don't expect to see much characters' development. You get to expect to see cunning tricks played by both sides. As the first part, there is some humour in it. The battle scene is probably one of the best battle scenes I have seen. It is unlike other Chinese war movies and probably Hollywood ones too, the battle is extended and long. In other war movies, you just see cuts of the battle. Acting is still good with some of their humorous face expressions.

Overall: Everyone should give Red cliff a watch. It is unique, different from other war movies. Those, who watched the first part, obviously should watch this too. I will wait for the box set DVD featuring both movies in. The first movie DVD has no special features.

mmushrm 29 April 2011

Red Cliff II fmovies. Red Cliff 2 is a good action pic. Even though we already know the result the movie still manages to keep it exciting and suspenseful. Granted artistic license were probably taken with the story but who cares, its a movie not a historical documentary.

That being said there were a few parts of the movie that defied belief. The shu princess as a spy and how easily she manages to accomplish her mission. The final battle was also some what disappointing, too much CG explosions.

But the biggest thing for me is ........... its NOT a propaganda movie. Thank you John Woo for that. I was expecting a "we must stand together and sacrifices must be made for the country to be united and prosperous" message that we have been getting from most of the Chinese "historical" epics. There wasn't any :) Good movie, good visuals, good acting.

eva-verstraelen 10 January 2009

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.

cadillac20 25 November 2009

If the first part of the series was the set up, here is the pay off. I was disappointed at the end of the first part when big To Be Continued words filled the screen. But it was worth the wait. When it comes to Chinese epics, it gets no better than this. Mostly an incredibly long, epic battle, this second part pays off in spades. It's more exciting, smarter, and more edge of your seat. Every minute leaves you anticipating the next and the conclusion is very fitting. You almost don't want it to end, despite the huge running time. John Woo has succeeded in creating one of the grandest Asian epics ever made, and this series of films should cement him as one of the finest Asian filmmakers of all time.

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