''A Battle of Wits'' (also known as ''Battle of the Warriors'') is a 2006

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

based on the Japanese historical novel (

Rōmaji The romanization of Japanese is the use of Latin script to write the Japanese language. This method of writing is sometimes referred to in Japanese as . Japanese is normally written in a combination of logographic characters borrowed from Ch ...

title: '' Bokkō'' or ''Bokukō''; lit. " Mohist Attack") by Ken'ichi Sakemi, as well as the manga series '' Bokko'' by Hideki Mori. Directed by Jacob Cheung, the film starred

Andy Lau Andy Lau Tak-wah (; born 27 September 1961) is a Hong Kong actor, singer-songwriter and film producer. He has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maint ...

Ahn Sung-ki Ahn Sung-ki (born January 1, 1952) is a South Korean actor. One of the country's most respected actors, he has appeared in more than 130 films during his career of over 60 years. Career A native of Seoul, Ahn was the son of a veteran filmmaker ...

, Wang Zhiwen,

Fan Bingbing Fan Bingbing (, born 16 September 1981) is a Chinese actress. From 2013 to 2017, she was included as the highest-paid celebrity in the ''Forbes'' China Celebrity 100 list after ranking in the top 10 every year since 2006. She appeared on ''Time ...

, Nicky Wu and Choi Siwon. This was a joint-production between mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea.

Plot

The film is set in China in 370 BC during the

Warring States period The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...

. A massive army from the Zhao state is on its way to attack the

Yan state Yan (; Old Chinese pronunciation: ''*'') was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty. Its capital was Ji (later known as Yanjing and now Beijing). During the Warring States period, the court was also moved to another capital at Xiadu ...

. Liang, a

city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...

on the Zhao–Yan border, is in peril of being conquered by the Zhao army. Ge Li, a Mohist, comes to Liang to help defend the city. Although the King of Liang has already planned for peace talks with the invaders, Ge Li manages to convince him and the people of Liang to put up resistance by warning them of the consequences of surrendering. He also promises the King that the invaders will give up on Liang if they fail to conquer it within a month, because their main target is actually the Yan state. The King has doubts about Ge Li's idea but still puts Ge in command of his army. Ge Li creates a bulwark and various traps to halt the Zhao army's advance. When he insists that Zituan lead the archers, Liang Shi (the Liang prince) is angered because he sees Zituan's archery skill as inferior to his. Even though Zituan later proves to be a better archer, Ge Li's style of working puts him at odds with Liang Shi and the other Liang generals. Ge Li also briefly meets Xiang Yanzhong, the commander-in-chief of the Zhao army, for a board game outside the city to understand each other better. During the first Zhao attack, Ge Li's defence tactics worked well—a Zhao general was killed and the invaders were forced to retreat—but the Liang forces also suffered losses from a skirmish with Zhao infiltrators inside the city. Ge Li's success earns him the support of the people and he becomes a highly revered hero. Yiyue, a female cavalry commander, falls in love with Ge Li. However, Ge Li is reluctant to accept her feelings for him and tries to draw boundaries between them. One night, Ge Li and Yiyue scout the Zhao camp and discover that the enemy is digging tunnels to bypass their city's defences. Ge Li used that to his advantage by luring the Zhao soldiers into an ambush and then sealing the tunnel exits. The Liang general Niu Zizhang massacres the captured Zhao soldiers even though they were promised that their lives would be spared if they laid down their weapons. In the meantime, the King feels threatened when he sees Ge Li's growing popularity, so he plots to have Ge stripped off his post and executed on false charges. At the same time, the Liang forces receive news that the Zhao army has retreated. Ge Li plans to leave Liang since his mission is complete. He goes out to check that the Zhao army is indeed retreating. When he returns, he is stopped outside the gates and is accused of starting a war under false pretences and plotting to seize the throne. Just as the Liang soldiers are about to kill Ge Li, Liang Shi shows up, pretends to fight with Ge, and secretly tells Ge to take him hostage in order to buy time for Ge to escape. Ge Li manages to escape but Liang Shi is killed by a rain of arrows meant for Ge Li. Meanwhile, Ge Li's supporters, including Yiyue, are falsely accused of plotting a rebellion against the King and are arrested and tortured. Yiyue denounces the King and is sentenced to death. The King also has her rendered mute to prevent her from speaking up against him. Zituan refuses to turn against Ge Li, so he cuts off his right arm and leaves the Liang army. One night, just as Yiyue is about to be executed, the Zhao army launches a surprise attack and completely catches the Liang defenders off guard. She is taken back to the prison. Instead of focusing on fighting the invaders, the King orders his soldiers to kill those who try to escape from the city. Liang eventually falls to the Zhao army, and the King and his people are captured. Zituan and his archers manage to escape from Liang, and they join Ge Li outside the city. Xiang Yanzhong sends a message to Ge Li, in which he threatens to kill the people of Liang if Ge does not return to Liang to meet him. Ge Li returns to Liang alone and agrees to play the board game again with Xiang Yanzhong inside a tower. They agree that only the winner can leave the tower. Meanwhile, Zituan and his men flood the areas guarded by Zhao forces and launch an attack. Seeing that reinforcements have arrived, the people of Liang rise up against the Zhao invaders and succeed in defeating them and driving them out of the city. Xiang Yanzhong refuses to leave the tower because he feels that he has lost. After the battle, the King passes by the tower, sees Xiang Yanzhong, and orders Xiang to be killed. While the people of Liang rejoice in their victory, Ge Li rushes to the flooded prison to find Yiyue but arrives too late because she was unable to call out to him for help and has already drowned. Before the film ends, Ge Li leaves with some orphans to promote peace among the various warring states. The King of Liang meets his downfall five years later: The people can no longer stand his cruelty so they overthrow and execute him. Eventually, the

Qin state Qin () was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty. Traditionally dated to 897 BC, it took its origin in a reconquest of western lands previously lost to the Rong; its position at the western edge of Chinese civilization permitted ex ...

conquers all the other states and unites China under the

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), ...

Cast

as Ge Li, the Mohist who leads the defence of Liang. *

as Yiyue, a Liang cavalry commander. * Wang Zhiwen as the King of Liang * Nicky Wu as Zituan, the chief of Liang's archers. * Choi Siwon as Liang Shi, the Prince of Liang. *

as Xiang Yanzhong, the commander-in-chief of the Zhao army. *

Wu Ma Fung Wang-yuen (22 September 1942 – 4 February 2014), better known by his stage name Wu Ma, was a Hong Kong actor, director, producer and writer. Wu Ma made his screen debut in 1963, and with over 240 appearances to his name (plus 49 directoria ...

as the Royal Tutor of Liang * Yu Chenghui as Dongbo, a Liang general. * Chin Siu-ho as Niu Zizhang, a Liang general. * Xu Xiangdong as Wei Xiang, a Zhao general.

References

External links

* * 2006 films 2006 martial arts films 2006 action films 2000s action war films 2000s action drama films Hong Kong action films Hong Kong martial arts films Japanese action films Japanese martial arts films South Korean action films South Korean martial arts films Live-action films based on manga Films set in the Warring States period Films set in the Zhou dynasty Films scored by Kenji Kawai Chinese martial arts films Chinese war drama films Chinese historical action films Films directed by Jacob Cheung 2006 drama films 2000s historical action films 2000s Mandarin-language films 2000s Hong Kong films 2000s Chinese films 2000s Japanese films 2000s South Korean films CJ Entertainment films Shochiku films Huayi Brothers films

Plot

Cast

See also

References

External links