Red Cliff Page #3

Synopsis: In 208 A.D., in the final days of the Han Dynasty, shrewd Prime Minster 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.
Director(s): John Woo
Production: Magnolia Pictures
  13 wins & 43 nominations.
 
IMDB:
7.4
Metacritic:
73
Rotten Tomatoes:
90%
R
Year:
2008
148 min
$526,841
Website
1,044 Views


Step forward

I have a way to find them

Since the buffalo was stolen in the rice fields,

then there must be mud on the shoes of the looters

Am I correct?

Yes!

Attention, Gan Xing Company!

Everyone,

run to that tree,

around and back

Go!

Quickly! Follow up!

I did not drag those people out today

because I want to give them a second chance

The Wu army does not tolerate looting!

What we really need

is to stick together

I have failed

to train my soldiers

I beg your forgiveness

I dare not!

I dare not!

These soldiers are difficult to train

Yet, these soldiers, have great potential

Things like this happen because of our shortage of supplies

You gave us half of your wealth to help build this army

Now, supplies are short again

So how about giving up the other half?

Whatever you say is fine by me

Then it's settled

Your Honor!

Your Honor!

Bad news!

I told you

this friend is difficult to deal with

It's a breech birth!

It's a breech birth!

Hold this

Luoyue,

hang in there

My Lady! The pony still hasn't...

Be quiet

She can't give birth with you being so loud

It's coming

Xiao Qiao, what's happening?

A breech birth

It will come out soon

Your Honor, for horses...

Be quiet!

Breech births are very rare

The pony has not come out for two days

What is happening?

Why is there only one leg?

He can't come out

What should we do?

The other leg is stuck

Simply dragging it out will not work

He is...?

He is Zhu...

He is Zhu-ge Liang, a friend of mine

Step back a little

You are knowledgeable in this too?

A little

I helped cows giving birth

Horses should be much the same

Excuse me, let me try

The two front hooves need to come out together

for a natural birth

The pony does not have a name yet

He was born in the Southland,

so he should have a Southern name

How about Meng Meng?

Meng Meng?

Meng Meng, stand up!

He can't stand up!

Stand up!

Come on!

Stand up!

I hope we can watch him grow each day

I want you to promise me,

when he is grown,

not to make him a warhorse

Viceroy,

Xiao Qiao looks like

she's the proud new mother herself

Viceroy, time is of the essence

War or surrender?

Lu Su,

today we are celebrating. Let's not discuss affairs of state

Alright,

Since Mr Zhu-ge is learned in music,

why don't we play a tune together?

I know only... a little

You know a great deal

You are only hiding it

If you two gentlemen can work together,

then that will be a perfect match

Please

Thank you, madam

Thank you, Mr. Zhu-ge

My husband has not played his qin for a long time

I, too, have not been so enervated for a long time

We still haven't discussed the war

How can we leave?

His answer is within his music

He will fight this war

I think you two can be great partners

His music tells me,

that he needs friends

Your music tells me

that you need to fight this war

Prime Minister,

desire and obsession

can also cause of headaches

Have you not heard that desire makes one young!

This painting must be by Your Highness

Her name is Xiao Qiao

When I was young,

her father thought very highly of me

I saw her only once

Now, she is the most beautiful woman in the world

and married to Zhou Yu

After I pacify Wu,

she will be mine

Gentlemen, you are all here

Yes, Your Highness!

General Cai, your ships are well built!

Thank you, Your Highness

I have guarded Jingzhou for many years

With the strength and power of our current navy,

we will surely defeat Wu

Great!

What? The two generals are saying,

that our ground troops are just for show?

General Xia-hou, while we Northerners are great on horseback,

the Southerners are experts on the water

To destroy Wu,

we will need the hard work of General Cai and his navy!

Thank you, Your Highness!

General Cai,

What...

is the best food in the South?

River fish is the best food in the South

Then...

what is the worst thing about the South?

The weather is the worst

This is the windy season

The wind can often be unpredictable

Victory

Six dragons lead my chariot

I will ride the wind with the greatest speed

With all of the feudal lords under my command,

to rule the world with one name

On land and sea, with forces numbering eight hundred thousand,

I wish to meet Your Highness at the hunt for Wu

This Cao Cao

really has some nerve

What does he mean by a hunt for Wu?

Brother

Smile!

We will get through this

They all want you to smile too

When father was nineteen,

he was known as the Tiger of the Southland

When my late brother was twenty-six,

he conquered the Southland

I am now twenty-six,

yet I have done nothing!

It seems that my achievements

will never be able to be compared to theirs

No matter how hard I try,

those old advisors call me worthless

Brother?

You came at the right time...

He will not listen or even smile

My Lord,

what is it?

Cao Cao requests our surrender. See for yourself

You have not used this for a long time

Let's go

He is cunning

Do you see him?

This beast is watching us

He is sinister, playing with his prey

Is he not like Cao Cao?

Though Cao Cao is Prime Minister, he is the real traitor,

always ambushing from the darkness

In the entire world, not one person likes him

Brother, what are you afraid of?

There!

To be honest,

I was prepared for war with Cao Cao three years ago

Cao Cao claims to have an army of eight hundred thousand,

yet many are surrendered troops he cannot trust

He can actually use only one hundred thousand of them at most

Our troops have high morale

We have knowledge of the Yangtze and greater naval expertise

Moreover, Cao Cao has no justifiable reason for his war

But those senior advisors!

They are only concerned about protecting themselves

You need not listen to them

Your late brother once told you

that you are a better administrator,

but that he is a better commander

That made you lose confidence

But he only said that to make you strive to surpass him

Tiger!

Help them!

Go quickly

Get out of here

Can you walk?

Are you alright?

The beast is over there!

Go

Do not hesitate anymore

My decision to fight Cao Cao is final

If anyone dares mention surrender,

he will end up like this table

Zhou Yu!

Cheng Pu!

Lu Su!

Ay!

I hereby appoint

Zhou Yu as the Viceroy in Chief,

Cheng Pu the Lieutenant Viceroy,

and Lu Su as the Consulting Commander

We will form an alliance with Liu Bei,

to stop Cao Cao's invasion

Understood!

It seems that war is inevitable

We cannot stop Cao Cao's invasion

But maybe this one will prevent future wars

Just as long as there are no more wars

Isn't this one just like yours?

You sure know how to replicate my handwriting

Do you know why I wrote so many 'Ping An's?

'Ping An' means peace!

So... why so many peaces?

"Ping An" is

a name...

Come,

what do you hear?

Listen carefully

I have heard rumours

that all the families are leaving Red Cliff

When...

When will I leave?

I won't let you leave

I want you to remain by my side

One more time!

Hurry!

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John Woo

John Woo SBS (Ng Yu-Sum; born 1 May 1946) is a Chinese-born Hong Kong film director, writer, and producer. He is considered a major influence on the action genre, known for his highly chaotic action sequences, Mexican standoffs, and frequent use of slow motion. Woo has directed several notable Hong Kong action films, among them, A Better Tomorrow (1986), The Killer (1989), Hard Boiled (1992), and Red Cliff (2008/2009). more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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