Chinese epics are all about spectacle, and John Woo’s Red Cliff is no exception. It’s just in this case it’s a John Woo kind of spectacle, i.e. less emphasis on gorgeously crafted settings and lovingly choreographed fight scenes that approach the calibre of brilliant ballets, and far more emphasis on explosions and the arbitrary saving of babies. Red Cliff is a welcome treat for anyone who misses the likes of John Woo’s earlier work; it’s a high octane, slightly cheesy, good humoured, exciting action film and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else.

Set in the latter period of the Han dynasty, the Battle of Red Cliff represented a pivotal moment in China’s history in which Prime Minister Cao Cao was defeated by Sun Quan and Liu Bei, ending his campaign to conquer the kingdoms of East Wu and Xu. Here in the West, we’ve been given a reduced version of the original two-part epic released in Asia, the first part of which defeating Titanic as being the highest grossing film upon release in cinematic history, raking in a hefty US$124 million.

Whilst you and I may only cream ourselves over what that must have been like, this version is still worthy of sharing its Asian counterpart’s success (although it probably won’t). The majority of the film is made up of ever more impressive battle sequences that showcase a characteristically visceral kind of fight scene along with grand displays of tactical excellence and wit which never cease to excite or impress. What’s interesting about these sequences is that they’re very much ensemble pieces in nature. Although focus isn’t taken away from old John Woo favourite Tony Leung as Xu General Zhou Yu and Takeshi Kaneshiro’s Zhuge Liang, Woo still gives an appropriate amount of screen time to each of the films principal arse kickers, of which there are many. The result is a varied and fast paced experience, and even in this watered down version of the original release, you’re never left with the sense that Leung and Kaneshiro’s characters haven’t come off as fully realised.

In between battles and political manoeuvring, a number of slightly cheesy romantic sequences between Zhou Yu and his wife ensue; all sentimental scores and fade shots. A cynical viewer might regard this as out of place in relation to the rest of the film, but I can’t help but think they add to its charm. This film is fun, and rarely forgets that brief. More than once I saw Red Cliff arouse laughter and heartfelt applause from its audience.

Efficiently edited, thrilling and surprisingly funny, Red Cliff has been one of the most enjoyable cinema experiences I’ve been subjected to in a long time.