Reviewed by Toby Weidmann
Stars Andy Lau, Sammo Hung, Maggie Q, Andy On, Vanessa Wu, Damian Lau | Written by Ho Leung Lau & Daniel Lee
UK cert 15 | UK RRP £17.99 DVD; £24.99 Blu-ray | DVD region 2 | Runtime 98 minutes | Directed by Daniel Lee
Once upon a time in China, there were few film stars bigger than Sammo Hung, both figuratively and literally. As both a martial arts performer and action director, he produced some of Hong Kong’s most thrilling features in the 80s and 90s (most famously with Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao) before going on to become a hit in the west with TV series Martial Law.
This century, his output has been largely ignored overseas due to a lack of distribution (and several duds), but his name still attracts attention among fans of Hong Kong movies. For his presence alone, Three Kingdoms: Resurrection Of The Dragon is worthy of note, despite playing more of a supporting role.
The film takes its lead from Guanzhong Luo’s semi-fictional stories, collectively known as Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, which chronicle the tumultuous events that affected early mainland China between 190AD-280AD, from the collapse of the Han Empire to the rebirth of the country under the Jin Dynasty, and is about as famous a book as you will find in China (having inspired films, TV series and videogames). With Luo’s sweeping epic almost impossible to capture in a single film, director Daniel Lee’s interpretation instead focuses on one of the key figures in the century long saga, General Zhao Zilong (aka Zhao Yun), played by Infernal Affair’s Andy Lau, and his attempt to unite the three kingdoms under one ruler, Liu Bei, by leading a brutal campaign against the duplicitous warlord Cao Cao (Damian Lau), and later his granddaughter Cao Ying (Maggie Q). His life, from humble country boy to fearsome warrior, are depicted through the eyes of Ping-an (Hung), Zhao’s one time army mentor who slowly becomes twisted with envy at his friend’s increasing fame.
Lee’s film certainly isn’t short on style and boasts an incredible amount of period detail (although the historical facts are typically romantacised with artistic license), while Lau makes a charismatic lead, hopelessly torn between his feelings of duty to his country and a desire to be with his beloved (Vanessa Wu). The story of his rise and fall in the ranks of Lui Bei’s army is certainly the stuff of legend and Lau is suitably talismanic as both the warrior, including some stunning fight scenes (choreographed by Hung), and the humble man beneath the armour. Hung is equally good as the downbeat sidekick, taking more of a backseat in the fight scenes than usual (he is well into his 50s now) and providing much of the film’s humour and pathos.
However, it’s apparent that the film lacks the same level of financial support as John Woo’s recent stunning five-hour plus interpretation of Luo’s novel, Red Cliff. CGI has become the savior and bane of many war epics: done well they can be breathtaking, done badly and they can irreparably flaw a movie. Three Kingdoms falls somewhere in-between, at times it’s truly stunning, at others the CG is so palpable it can’t help but detract attention away from the action. The storyline too could have done with more polish – while it might work for an audience already familiar with the story, those who don’t know their ancient Chinese history may struggle to follow all the twists in the tale, possibly a result of truncating the legend to just over an hour and a half.
Woo’s Red Cliff will certainly garner more critical attention (it’s already being mooted for an Oscar nod), but Three Kingdoms makes an intriguing companion piece, albeit one with a different emphasis. Those, too, who remember Sammo Hung in his pomp should enjoy his grumbling drunk and it’s great to see his work receive a showcase outside of his homeland once more.
EXTRAS *** The disc comes with some nice extras, the best of which are the interviews with Andy Lau, Maggie Q, Sammo Hung and director Daniel Lee. There’s a Making Of… on here too and some trailers for good measure.