The movie is the first chapter of a two-part story centered on a battle fought in China's Three Kingdoms period (220-280 A.D.) when the emperor of the Han Dynasty allows General Cao Cao to declare war against the rebellious southern provinces, with the intention of unifying the entire country.
A formidable prelude to an epic battle with resplendent effects and action spectacles.
Capital Times (Madison, WI)
March 12, 2010
It's like the most complicated game of Stratego ever. Still, if you used to while away Saturday afternoons watching martial arts epics on cable, you'll have a good time.
Woo has re-embraced his Chinese roots with brutal commitment.
Orlando Sentinel
December 10, 2009
Flaws and all, you can't watch a frame of it without feeling that it has been generations since Hollywood tackled anything on this scale.
Austin Chronicle
January 22, 2010
You may have the biggest flat-screen DLP monitor in the city, but Red Cliff will never look half as spectacular as it will on the big -- and I mean really big -- screen.