Mainland actress Vicki Zhao Wei may not share as much screen time as co-stars Tony Leung Chiu-wai or Lin Chi-ling in John Woo Yu-sum's epic Red Cliff II, but when her character does appear on screen, she knows how to grab attention.
The Red Cliff films focus on the alliance between the kingdoms of Xu and East Wu to defeat Cao Cao, the prime minister allied with Emperor Han in AD208. Zhao plays Sun Shangxiang, the younger sister of East Wu leader Sun Quan (Chang Chen) and also a brave warrior in her own right.
In one scene, Sun Shangxiang crosses a river, disguises herself as a male soldier to spy on Cao Cao's army, and steals an enemy map. When she returns to her camp, she takes off her clothes to show others the map she's hidden. When someone suggests she cover herself, she declines, saying innocently: 'I'm not cold.'
Zhao said that scene was included mostly out of commercial considerations. 'At the end of the day, it is a commercial film. The director needs scenes that are fun and unexpected in order to keep the audience's attention,' she said. 'If my character had simply taken out the map, it would have been dull,' the 32-year-old actress said.
Zhao said the scene also speaks to the character's fearlessness. 'It seems like there is nothing that will scare this girl away.'
The actress has much in common with her character. 'If I want to pursue something, I will go after it bravely. But I still think that Sun's character is a bit unrealistically strong. I appreciate her frankness, but I would want to retain some of my feminine and softer side.'
