Hard Boiled (1992)
When I first saw the trailer for this it was love at first sight. Never seen anything liked it and when I got the DVD i was dumbfounded that such a thing could even exist. Which led me to explore more of John Woo’s back catalogue, and especially A Better Tomorrow and The Killer has a different emotional melancholy to them that is a different quality, but obviously there is nothing that comes remotely close to the level of action spectacle of Hard Boiled. It goes beyond impressive action, transcends into almost magical surrealism and - well - the gun ballet term that has often been used is apt. Woo definitely left Hong Kong with a statement. Initially I was thinking that The Killer has more emotional depth, but it is really just more restrained and internal. Every character occupies a defeatist attitude towards their current role. Cop and criminal actions become almost indistinguishable, both losing any grasp at moral grounding. And like the eurocrimes and Dirty Harry trend of the 70s, the film depicts how institutions are losing their credibility and trustworthiness. The final hospital scene is more than over the top spectacle, as it is turned into a literal warzone becomes a clear symbol of the inability of institutions to protect people.
Rating: 5