13-1-09 LOOKING BACK FROM ‘RED CLIFF’

prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" / Thoughts on Woo and me… (part two)

I reconnected with John and Terence when I attended the American Film Market in LA, a couple of years back. Red Cliff was then in its planning stages. One evening, I went to visit the prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /US offices of Lion Rock. The videogame sequel to Hard Boiled, Stranglehold, had just been finished, and I got to demo it. (I don’t know if Chow Yun-fat did motion capture for the character of Tequila, but he certainly recorded his own dialogue.)

Terence showed me some wonderful Panavision sized examples of pre-production artwork. They looked like you could hang them in a gallery, and I still have them to this day. I especially remember the image of an armada of ships burning. At the time, Chow was cast as Zhou Yu, Tony Leung as the master tactician Zhuge Liang. There was even a rumour that Andy Lau would play Zhao Zhiling in both Daniel Lee’s Three Kingdoms and John Woo’s Red Cliff! In the end, the role was played, in the latter, by Mainland Chinese Hu Jun (though the same scene, Zhao Ziling’s rescue of the young prince, is depicted in both films.)

As I recall, the ‘other’ Three Kingdoms project was already wrapped by the time Red Cliff was mounted and in full pre-production mode. It should be noted that the original book is so massive, it could form the basis for ten films or more! It’s this sheer scale and complexity that had earlier deterred Chinese film-makers from attempting such a challenge. Previously, Three Kingdoms had inspired a hugely successful Chinese TV series (released in 1995) and a videogame (popular across Asia).

When I visited the Beijing production offices of Red Cliff, Chow Yun-fat was set to play the lead, and in training elsewhere in the city. The latest news was that Tony Leung had left the project, citing insufficient prep time. Terence Chang showed me some costumes designs that still showed Tony as Zhuge Liang. By this time, I had read the script, and suggested that I felt the most interesting character in the film was the erstwhile villain, Cao Cao. (He inspired a Chinese saying used to this day, ‘Mention Cao Cao and he will come’, kind of like ‘Speak of the Devil’…) Terence concurred, and it was interested to note that, when the films were finally released, several western reviewers, most notably my old friend Derek Elley in Variety, made the same observation.

After production was underway, I was invited to visit the production. (I wrote an earlier blog about the trip on  the Dragon Dynasty site, but, as the film hadn’t been released yet, didn’t give every detail of the trip.) Among others, I was accompanied by my Beijing contact, producer, actress and, in this case, translator Lily Ma.

The first location we visited was the army camp where we first meet Zhou Yu in Red Cliff 1. (By this time, Chow Yun-fat had left, Tony Leung had replaced him and Takeshi Kaneshiro inherited the Zhuge Liang role.) Shidou Nakamura (Fearless) was on the set, and very affable. Takeshi was also there, and not talking to anyone (except, perhaps, himself…)

You may remember a scene in that film where the theft of an ox becomes a major issue. I remember sitting in the ‘mess tent’ with the animal’s owner and the kid playing his grandson, little realizing that they’d get such a prominent role in the film. I demonstrated my famous ‘one armed lift’ on the kid, a move I perfected on my own sons. (I lift a small child by the sternum and balance him above my head. Don’t try this at home…) Of course, my boys were much younger and smaller, so I almost put my back out doing it, repeatedly…

We later repaired to the river, and the site of the (cinematic) Battle of Red Cliff. The sheer scale of the fortress overlooking the water was staggering, as was the degree of detail on the warships anchored at the shore. Of course, these are supplemented in the finished film by a CGI flotilla of vessels, but the actors got to work with settings and props that helped them return to “those thrilling days of yesteryear”. Certainly, it felt like stepping back in time for me, especially when Lily and I got to explore the boats before the crew and equipment arrived.

We watched the preparations for a night shoot, and, having now seen both films, I realize that this was sequence for Red Cliff 2, where our heroes storm the beach. The production actually worked its way through two action directors, first Dion Lam, later Corey Yuen. These films are really a celebration of martial strategy ( more than martial arts ( ).

I finally saw the 2 nd Red Cliff at its Hong Kong premiere, and congratulated John on his achievement. This was his dream project and, despite huge challenges, he succeeded in doing justice to it. This wonderful film-maker is an inspiration to us all.

Striking poses with Lily Ma on the Red Cliff locations!