Hard Boiled
 

Director: John Woo
Year: 1992
Rating: 9.5

Hard Boiled along with The Killer and Full Contact are the Holy Trinity of Heroic Bloodshed or Bullet Ballet of Hong Kong films. It was never done better though hundreds of films have tried. What makes them special is that all three had great characters and good plots in which to display all the frenetic action. You truly care about the characters and what happens to them. This came after the huge success of The Killer when John Woo and Chow Yun Fat tried to come up with something even bigger and more explosive. It is again a story of two men – initially on opposite sides of the law who eventually bond in a very deep almost mystical way – to fight for what is right. Again the themes of honor and loyalty are explored within the framework of the film.



 

Both films have their fans who debate which is the better film. Like picking your favorite child for me. I would say that Hard Boiled is technically a much better film than The Killer, but it does not have the heart, the sentiment that made that film so special. Woo seems to have been preparing himself for Hollywood by making a very westernized film. It is nevertheless still a great film. It is like a runaway train that never slows down. The plot is simple and yet pulls you deeply into it. Chow Yun Fat plays a cop. Tony Leung is an undercover cop who has infiltrated a triad. Anthony Wong is the vicious gun smuggling triad head that CYF and Tony attempt to bring down. Around this plot, Woo weaves a film with complex characters and three action set pieces that progressively get more over the top. Two of them are absolutely brilliant in their execution.



 
The first takes place in a tea house and Woo’s use of quick edits – from CYF to the fluttering birds to the bad guys and so forth – creates a sense of tension that explodes in total chaos and bloodshed when the action starts. A number of CYF’s trademark moves – shooting on his back, shooting while jumping, and shooting while sliding down the bannister – are employed to great effect. The final moment with CYF covered in flour and blood as if he is the revengeful ghost of his dead comrade is stunning.




And then there is of course the hospital killing ground. Perhaps the best and most intricate twenty minutes of choreographed action ever filmed. It is an amazing set piece. It never lags or becomes mindlessly numbing. Woo creates so many small vignettes that the experience of watching it is mesmerizing and personal. Within this set piece are a number of classic moments such as the duel between Mad Dog (the great Phillip Kwok of Shaw fame who also does the choreography) and Tony and the saving of the babies.



  
The character of Tony Leung’s is really the heart and soul of this film. He is one of the most interesting characters that Woo has ever created. His tortured, angst ridden, confused portrayal is terrific. At one point he says "I am so busy being a gangster that I don’t know which is the real me". There are lots of fine performances from the side characters – Teresa Mo, Phillip Chan, Stephen Tung and of course the psychotic Anthony Wong. This film will take your breath away.