Red Cliff (The Special Edition) [DVD] [2008]

Red Cliff is Jon Woo’s masterpiece. An epic in every sense of the word. At almost five hours in length its a blessing that this film is really a two parter over the two disks. Taken over a few nights viewing its perfectly palatable so don’t worry about the length.Red Cliff is set in ancient China. The young inexperienced Emporer allows his ambitious and dangerous general to declare war on the rebellious southern provinces. The general’s attacks are ruthless and devastating so the southern warlords form an alliance to repel the attacks. Using some brilliant strategy and excellent leadership they muster every trick in the book to save their provinces.This film blends some excellent drama and characterisation with huge battles. I’m not a massive fan of lengthy films, in fact anything over two hours I tend to think is too long. But at no point is Red Cliff ever dull, its gripping from start to finish. Its aided by some excellent actors, particularly Takeshi Kaneshiro’s calm strategist and Zhang Fengyi’s evil General Cao Cao.To me this film may even be up their with Kurasawa’s own big epic’s like Ran or Kagemusha. Its just so very very good. If you like asian cinema then this is an absolute must.

This movie is over 4 hours long in two parts on two blu-ray discs. Beautifully made with stunning outdoor shoots and two main battles. Acting is 1st rate, although dialog comes thick and fast, so sometimes hard to keep up reading the subtitles. Also nice interview with the director with how he wanted to make this film in China for years, after being well respected in Hollywood.

Very good entertainment movie. I am a fan of Zhan Yimou movies, and this is the first John Woo that I have seen. Spectacular battle scenes, great special effects, not bad chinese acting, and a reasonable plot line. 5.5 hours is a long time, but two discs spread over two weeks, its enjoyable. If you want good value for money, great battle scenes, and pure escapism during lockdown, this is great.

Red Cliff - I bought this in the US from Amazon and it was such a big disappointment. It was literally butchered into a mostly pointless sad thing.I had originally seen it on the big screen and the full version not the chopped down version I purchased.BUT this FULL UNCUT version of the movie is just one of the most exciting, historically accurate Chinese history movies made. Can't say enough for this full version. I know, it is LONG. But be patient, your sitting at home in comfort, take a break, get a drink and snacks and just enjoy the ride.So well worth seeing the incredible battle scenes and feel the high drama of the personalities involved. Guess you have my number, I like it a lot. :)Take a chance, see the whole epic and I just bet you will understand my enthusiasm.

A long and very involved film that deserves all the accolades heaped on it. If you just want a slash-em-up samurai film, forget it. If, on the other hand, you want complex plots, double cross, conniving, devious twists, supported by fantastic camera work and brilliant battle scenes, then this is the film for you. Don't be put off by the TV showings of this film, they have been hacked to hell and back to fit the schedules. This two disc set includes all the bits that make the film make sense. At just over four and a half hours it's a long film but I do strongly recommend that it is seen all in one go to get the best out of the experience. So get the popcorn ready, plenty of fizzy drink and turn off the mobile. Happy viewing.

Without repeating other reviews here I can only say words like, amazing, beautifully shot, great characters, historical in-depthness etc. etc. etc.You must get the 5 hour film otherwise as one review here has already said, it just won`t make sense. My wife did comment that she thought it went on a bit in certain places, but that really is the whole idea of a 5 hr film in the first place, to explore the ` nitty grittys` of characters and events leading upto the main battle of `Red Cliff`.Buy the blu ray it`s just amazing and worth every penny! Just make sure you`ve got a whole night to appreciate it, because It`s like a full English breakfast with two of everything on the plate, it takes ages to eat and digest!!!

Red Cliff (The Special Edition) [DVD] [2008 ] This is the ultimate Chinese movie. An absolute masterpiece in every way! I would whole heartedly recommend this over Crouching Tiger or House of Flying Dragons (and I LOVE those movies). I would class this movie as an epic... its 6 hours long, however, it's like watching a high quality TV series... it builds and builds and builds. I can't recommend this enough, if there is one movie for you to buy, this is it!

This film is enjoyable for the cinematography alone, but the rest is equally engaging. I bought the epic four hour version and was engaged throughout. The two citicisms I have are not of the film itself:Small subtitles are difficult to read. They should have been placed below the picture to improve contrast. However, moving closer to the screen did the trick. A shame some other reviewers never thought of this before rubbishing the film on this account. Incidentally, I would rather have this than a film dubbed in English, which is for the culturally-challenged only.Could not skip the adverts at the beginning but it was possible to increase playback speed to reduce the tedium. A shame some other reviewers never thought of this before rubbishing the film. Again.