Red Cliff
From Zanecorpwiki
Good.
Summary
The acting, cinematography, and story are all well done. The small scale action is good, but this is a war movie, and the large scale action, the set piece battles, are pretty lame. I think the idea is to shift the focus to the strategy, the formations and such, but the actual translation is pretty lame. You end up with ridiculously elaborate formations. The rebel soldiers are worthless for anything but a living barricade, and all the action is handled by a handful of heroes.
Another thing that really bothered me: the horses get really beat up. I was constantly cringing.
Still, the lush sets and stories make it all worthwhile. The sheet expanse of the sets and the multitude of extras is just great. Reminds me of Hollywood golden age films. CGI may be photo-realistic, but it's still not movie-realistic. You really need hundreds and hundreds of people, vast expanses, and giant sets to pull off the big scenes, so that's great to see.
In the end (and partially due to the length) I wouldn't recommend the film unless you were into early 21st Chinese cinema. For a more personal tale, and overall more successful movie dealing with many of the same themes and set in the same general historical era, try Jackie Chan's excellent Little Big Soldier.[notes 1]
Notes
- ↑ I haven't actually looked to check that they're close in time, but the dress, feel, tech, and external forces are all very similar. The dates might not match up, but everything else does.
