Chi bi (2008)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

John Woo

Writers:

John Woo (screenplay) &
Khan Chan (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

20 November 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | History | War

Plot:

Based on the events during the Three Kingdoms period in Ancient China in which specifically told in the title, The Battle of Red Cliffs.

Plot Keywords:

China | Chinese | Chinese History | Ancient China | Alliance

Awards:

11 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Tony Leung Chiu Wai	...	Zhou Yu
Takeshi Kaneshiro	...	Zhuge Liang
Fengyi Zhang	...	Cao Cao
Chen Chang	...	Sun Quan
Wei Zhao	...	Sun Shangxiang
Jun Hu	...	Zhao Yun
Chiling Lin	...	Xiao Qiao
Shido Nakamura	...	Gan Xing
Yong You	...	Liu Bei
Ba Sen Zha Bu	...	Guan Yu
Yong Hou	...	Lu Su
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Philip Hersh	...	Emperor Han (voice)
Tong Jiang	...	Li Tong
Jia Song	...	Li Ji
Chun Sun
Dawei Tong	...	Sun Shucai
Qingxiang Wang	...	Kong Rong
Jinsheng Zang	...	Zhang Fei

Also Known As:

Red Cliff (International: English title) (UK) (USA)
Chek bik (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
The Battle of Red Cliff (International: English title) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for sequences of epic warfare.

Runtime:

Singapore:150 min (PG version) | China:146 min | South Korea:134 min | UK:148 min

Country:

China

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Singapore:PG (edited version) | Malaysia:U | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Belgium:KT | UK:15 (cut) | Norway:15 | Ireland:15A | Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-15 | Netherlands:12 | USA:R (certificate #45613) | USA:R | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Beijing, China

Company:

Beijing Film Studio

Trivia:

Director Trademark: [John Woo] [Two Guns]One battle scene features Zhao Yun wielding two swords at once.

Quotes:

Liu Bei: Truth and illusion are often disguised as each other, Cao Cao likes to play this game, both with friends and foes.

Movie Connections:

Version of "San guo yan yi" (1995)

Red cliff!

To be honest, I don't really know about the Romance of the three kingdom so I will start my review about the movie with no reference to the Chinese history. I have watched Daniel Lee's Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon and it is just average. I have only seen one movie based on the Romance of the three kingdom. John Woo makes his comeback as a director after so many years. I think it is worth the wait for his highly anticipated movie.

The story: In Singapore, the movie is split into two parts. The second part will be shown next year. This movie is an introduction to the Romance of the three kingdom. The first war starts when the movie starts to hype up those craving to see some good war battles. After the first war, you will get introduction of the characters slowly. After the slightly slow pace, you are treated to another war. The acting is good with the humour. I think model Lin Chiling should be given some credit as she marks the first acting debut in a Chinese blockbuster.

Overall: It has both the talk and the action. I must say that it is one of the recently interesting war movies with extended war battle unlike the other recent war movies. It should be good to watch it in cinema. This movie is good for those who want to know about the Chinese history or those who want to see the Chinese history in action.