Introduction
An interesting point that most historians can agree on is that few people can recognize turning points in history as they happen. It is only after years of reflection that one can pinpoint a seminal moment that grabbed the wheel and spun things on to a new course. Pop culture followers can point to 1986 as a defining year, when a movie was released that would catapult two cult icons to international superstardom, inspire a generation of filmmakers and affect the way action stories are told to this day. It was in 1986 that "A Better Tomorrow" was released starring Chow Yun Fat and directed by John Woo. This is the film that changed action cinema, that started the "heroic bloodshed" movie craze and brought both John Woo and Chow Yun Fat to the attention of action fans starved for a new hero. Featuring extraordinary stylized action scenes and taking the use of slow-motion and gun battles to an entirely new level, "A Better Tomorrow" kick-started the Hong Kong "Blood Opera" genre. The team of John Woo and Chow Yun Fat followed up "A Better Tomorrow" with similar action films, but "The Killer" in 1989 and "Hard Boiled" in 1992 are the ones that stand out to this day. With such groundbreaking work being done in Hong Kong, it was not long until Western audiences took notice and the Hong Kong influence was felt in Hollywood's movies.
Chow Yun-Fat and Danny Lee in "The Killer"
The siren song of Hollywood is difficult to resist, and when Woo heard the call, he answered. Unfortunately, the introduction of Hollywood studio politics and interference with the creative process was enough to take the wind out of Woo's sails, and his U.S. releases were sub-par if not downright terrible in comparison to his early work. While 1997's "Face/Off" and 2000's "Mission Impossible II" were box office hits, they failed to generate the critical acclaim that his Hong Kong films achieved. Woo's other Hollywood films - "Hard Target," "Broken Arrow," "Windtalkers" and "Paycheck" were forgettable duds. Meanwhile, John Woo's style was imitated and ripped off to the point of parody so much so that even when Woo himself pulled his own tricks they felt over-used. It seemed that Hollywood had stolen the John Woo product from the man and made all of us sick of it. But it wouldn't been long before Woo's "balletic violence" was resurrected in another media.
Join our discussion on this topic
