Red Cliff Page #4

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
1,089 Views


General Zhao

Chief Strategist, you are back!

This is Wu's Viceroy in Chief, Zhou Yu

Guan! Guan! the ospreys cried

from the sandy river side

Lovely maiden, modest and fair

makes a fine match for the gentleman

We have no food, what good is reading a book?

When you grow up, you will find out

that reading now will give you food later

Well, let us read one more time

Great Calligraphy!

Damn!

What do you think you are doing!

I have always admired General Zhang's famous roar

To defeat Cao Cao, we need men with your temper

This way please, Viceroy

My Lord, they are here

Your journey has been hard

This is Viceroy Zhou Yu,

Lieutenant Viceroy Cheng Pu,

Consulting Commander Lu Su,

and Veteran General Huang Gai

Greetings, Lord Mayor Liu

Gentlemen,

the Duke has helped all of us by sending these troops

I am sincerely thankful

An alliance is a friendship

Friends, need not be so formal

Dare I ask, Your Honor,

how many soldiers do you have under your command?

Thirty-thousand

Thirty-thousand,

thirty-thousand men, are too few

Our men are too few?

Your army was defeated by just one blow!

What battles have you won?

Speak up. I only worry we might laugh ourselves to death

So what?

What's worse than a defeated army?

What is wrong with defeat?

Better to be a loser than a coward

What are you saying?

I dare you

Brother, stop

Brother!

We are not building an alliance

We are making enemies

Viceroy Zhou,

what is your opinion?

At this time of crisis,

you can still weave straw sandals?

This has been a habit of mine for years

We have walked a long way wearing these shoes

Whenever our shoes are worn out,

Big Brother weaves new ones with his own hands

Exactly

It really is strong

I am surprised that such weak strands of grass,

can become so strong after you weave them together

You have a noble Lord,

and brave generals

Generals Guan, Zhang and Zhao are

all invincible warriors on the battlefield

An army high in spirits can fight an enemy ten times its size

We sons of Wu, must protect our homeland

We will also do our best

I have only one dream

A dream for all;

that is for all of us to unite!

United, no one can pull us apart!

I'm here!

Why are you here?

To go to war!

War?

War is no joking matter!

You think that I'm here to joke around?

A woman should share the responsibility

for the rise and fall of the Kingdom

So should a horse!

Don't go! Come back!

Don't be like my brother!

Talk to me!

She is?

Our Princess, Sun Shang Xiang

Princess,

have you ever been to war?

There is a first time for everything!

After I fought my first war,

I never wished for a second

I think, if she encounters any Cao troops,

her hands will tremble with fear, as if she were waving

Princess,

I see you better off at home, making your flower weavings

She seem a very ambitious young lady

She is a tomboy. She likes fighting

Her maids are all fully armed

Who would dare marry her?

What are you doing?

What did you say to my horse!

I told him that his rider

is a scoundrel!

Get up!

Don't pull so hard!

Hey!

Hey!

You are drunk... drunk

Turn towards me

Prime Minister!

Prime Minister,

a messenger from Wu has arrived!

Bring him forth!

Yes sir!

This way please

Did Sun Quan receive my letter?

He did

What is his reply?

This page is blank. What is the meaning of this?

They intend to fight,

so they did not bother to write a reply

Have him

beheaded!

Prime Minister,

Liu Bei must have already formed an alliance with Wu,

brazenly opposing the empire

Who will command their alliance?

Prime Minister,

I guess it will be... Zhou Yu

Zhou Yu is known not for his military

abilities, but his musical talent

How can such a man lead an army?

Prime Minister,

for years,

Zhou Yu has remained our toughest opponent

Indeed, he is a skilled musician,

but he is an even better naval commander

We have suffered considerable losses against him

Please do not underestimate him

You sure do

give him a lot of credit!

Prime Minister,

there is one other man we cannot underestimate!

Who is it?

That is

Zhu-ge Liang

To the first hero who sacrificed his life for Wu

In the battle of Guandu,

Cao Cao cut off the noses of a thousand prisoners of war

He boxed and returned those noses,

instantly crushing his opponent's morale

Today,

he beheaded a man of Wu

to crush our morale!

But, we men of Wu are not cowards,

and we are not afraid

I have been waiting for this day!

I'm here!

What a commotion!

I won't miss tomorrow's battle

Zilong,

have there been any problems with the allied training?

The two armies have different codes of conduct,

so at the start, there were a few minor conflicts

But, rest assured, I am training them well

Zhou Yu likes naval battles?

Generals Cai Mao and Zhang Yun,

I know you cannot wait any longer!

Very well,

you two are to command our navy to set sail down south

Cai Mao leads a strong navy

The water current and wind are all to their advantage

So, we can launch our naval invasion

Prime Minister, when shall we set out?

Tomorrow, before dawn

He cannot wait. He will launch the attack tonight

No,

make it tonight!

Would he take action so hastily?

There is only one word to describe his military tactics

'Speed'!

In the battle of Xinye, Cao Cao's elite cavalries

rushed one hundred and fifty miles in just three days

We had no chance to prepare

He places surrendered troops on the frontline,

while his own trusted army remains in the back

Cao Hong,

Zhang Liao

You are to lead the naval forces on the second front

Xia-hou Jun and Wei Ben,

you are to lead the cavalry west

to provide cover for the navy!

If the navy is so powerful,

why would they need us for cover?

Where will their main target be?

Right here!

That is the reason why you camped in Red Cliff

You have foreseen this

Yet someone said that my formations are outdated

I have an even more outdated one

Yinyang formation

It is indeed outdated

But when used appropriately, it will be very effective

What are you all talking about?

How can this Yinyang formation be used on water?

Once you drop, it sinks!

If they think I will use the navy,

then Zhou Yu and Zhu-ge Liang really are stupid

General Cai, your navy is only a diversion

Understood!

Xia-hou Jun and Wei Ben

Take two thousand cavalries by land

and catch them off-guard

The majority of the Cao force is land infantry

Would Cao Cao attack by water?

What are you thinking of?

Cao Cao never speaks of his true intentions,

even to his own followers

Truth and illusion are often disguised as each other

Cao Cao likes to play this game,

both with friends and with foes

What are you doing! Putting that land tortoise in water?

Halt!

Reporting!

No signs of the Wu army, within eight miles of the rear hill!

Nor any trace of civilians!

All have fled, except for a tortoise in its shell!

Charge!

There may be an ambush

Am I afraid of a few young girls?

Shoot!

Shoot!

The enemy has entered the trap

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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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