A classic Chinese kingdom epic. Set in the time of emperor Han, the northern warlords have all been subdued by the warrior Cao Cao. With domination on his mind, Cao Cao convinces the emperor to endorse his attack on the southern tribes. The southern tribes ally (under the encouragement of war strategiest Kongming) and put together a plan for defense of their lands while a sub-plot surrounding Zhou Yu's wife and Cao Cao becomes integral to the battle development. This is all pretty standard, with sweeping views of majestic landscapes and formations of tens of thousands of warriors in choreographed battle. What I like about this film is consistent with most Chinese war films (of which Hero is my favorite). The war is not about domination and destruction, although that is a by-product of any war. Instead, life is about balance (planning for war by listening to music or the wind in the trees) and it is clear that integrity of person will result in the desired outcome. The development of the "action" takes a long time (150 minutes here) and along the way, we see some of the characteristics of that personal integrity in play. In the end, we always get recognition of the crap that war is. Here it comes in the form of a parting line "There is no victor here". If only warriors could have that recognition before the war.
4 stars (out of 5)
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