RED CLIFF NOTES : On location for John Woo’s magnum opus.
The term ‘epic’ is used too liberally to describe historical war films, but is definitely appropriate in terms of the size and scale of John Woo’s Red Cliff. Based on the classic novel Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, the behind the scenes story of the film’s production seems as dramatic as anything in the script. The massive script has spawned two films where once there was one. Leading man Chow Yun-fat left on the first day of production, to be replaced by Tony Leung Chiu-wai, who had previously been cast in a different role, before he, too, had left the film. Period ships have sailed, mountains have been moved and many millions have been spent, but, as he sits down for lunch in his command tent, John Woo seems as calm and benign a presence as I remembered.
I first met John in Hong Kong, years ago, when I interviewed him at his office and visited the set of his last Hong Kong gunplay epic Hard-Boiled (out now on Dragon Dynasty). I also met him in London, where I interviewed him on the stage of the Prince Charles theatre. Our latest encounter saw me up at first light to share a van to the Red Cliff locations, situated 2 hours or so from Beijing. Travelling with me are Ruby Yang and Thomas Lennon, who jointly directed and produced the Oscar winning documentary The Blood Of Yingzhou District, Ruby’s cinematographer husband Lambert Yam and the irrepressible Lily Ma, writer, producer and doyen of www.lilyma.com. “I licked your website,” she informs me, cheerfully, as I climb aboard. After a moment’s baffled silence, we realize that, disappointingly, she means ‘linked’.
The journey takes an hour longer than anticipated, given that the driver takes us to the production offices rather than to the set. Once we arrive at the riverside tents, set beneath a rough cliff face, I sense a feeling of déjà vu, and realize that this is where several scenes from the Michelle Yeoh kung fu flick Wing Chun were shot. Seeing as this is an international production, there’s something approaching craft services, with a buffet lunch laid out. John’s producing partner and friend, Terence Chang, is on hand, affable as ever, as is his assistant, Tyler Stokes. Tyler turns out to be the son of author and Asian cinema expert Lisa Stokes, who I’ve known so long that I initially suspect that I might be Tyler’s father… (Especially considering that he’s even more of an Asiaphile and film geek than I am, if that’s even possible.)
Despite the pressures of this huge production, John seems relaxed and happy to see us. He’s delighted to hear that our Hard-Boiled DVD shipped well, and reports that his
daughter was unable to find a copy, as it had sold out! (Given her father’s passion for swordplay dramas, it’s hardly surprising she is currently trying out for China’s Olympic fencing team in Shanghai.) Though it has been Woo’s lifelong dream to make a film based on this section of the massive Three Kingdoms, he doesn’t seem awed by the enormity of the undertaking, and maintains an equal focus between the big picture (the construction of the vast wooden fortress sets) to the small (the minutiae of Tim Yip’s period designs). With this film, he suggests, he doesn’t want to just show audiences the battle of Red Cliff, but rather physically transport them to this key conflict from Chinese history.
After lunch, we take a (mercifully) brief van ride to the location. We pass horses on the rough track, and I wonder, absently, if a hoof can pierce a windshield. Within the confines of a Cliffside fortress, Tony Leung, in full period regalia, addresses the troops. As is common on Mainland produced period dramas, the army is made up of real PLA soldiers in period dress. I guess if there was a sudden emergency, they would have to charge off to war dressed for the Battle of Red Cliff. Also on hand for the scene are Takeshi Kaneshiro (who inherited the role Tony Leung was originally cast in) and Japanese star Shido Nakamura (of Fearless and Letters From Iwo Jima fame.) Beneath the blazing sun, all incidental ailments are treated by a production nurse who is dressed, oddly enough, as though she just escaped the set of a BBC historical drama. Woo sits Buddha still behind his monitor, and, a few feet back, a more animated Terence Chang sits behind his.
After watching the scene shot from various angles, and exploring the remote corners of the vast set, we set off again with our dauntless driver, a man with the directional skills of a stoned carrier pigeon, to visit a second location. Along the way, we are held up for almost an hour by a tank battalion crossing the road. (I take some photos of the tanks, and a guard attempts to execute me on the spot for stealing state secrets. I am only saved by the fact that all his friends are working on Red Cliff and, from the sign on our van, he presumes that I must be as well.)
We reach a wonderful stretch of water, with another ornate fortress towering above it. Red Cliff itself was actually a naval battle, and an armada of period ships has been constructed. Most have been sailed to another location, but a few remain, including the flagship, and we are allowed to explore them. Within these shadowy wooden hulls, it feels like Woo’s impossible mission is accomplished, that we have slipped back in time to this age undreamed of. As I emerge blinking in the daylight, I notice the broken arrows scattered across the ground, remnants of an earlier hard fought battle to bring the past alive.
Comments
- George, LA | 2007-09-01 10:43:42
- lilyma, BJ | 2007-09-01 04:35:57
- Esco, Connecticut | 2007-08-30 17:17:42