Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Post
  • Reply
Moxie
Aug 2, 2003

Directed by: John Woo
Starring: Chow Yun-Fat, Danny Lee

A landmark action film, The Killer represents the best of John Woo's work to date. A hitman takes one last job to raise money to fix the eyes of a beautiful singer who he accidentally blinded. A dutybound cop is on his trail, but as the two meet each other they form a bond and then an alliance against the apparently infinite number of Triads celebrating "Get Killed in Spectacular Fashion Week". This storyline would usually just be an adequate backdrop for the jaw-dropping "balletic" gunfights, but something in the writing and the performances makes the relationships the killer forms with the cop, the singer, and his old partner almost as interesting.

I can't use enough adjectives to describe the action sequences. They're over the top and poetry at the same time. The two-fisted gun action in this movie resonates in almost every modern action sequence in cinema. From Reservoir Dogs to Max Payne, the visual style of this movie can be seen. It gets 5 stars from me, even though I have to admit that some people just aren't going to like it. I think that those people are dumb.

RATING: 5

PROS: Absolutely fantastic action sequences, pre-cliche John Woo direction, harmonica
CONS: Lack of realism which bothers some people

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097202/

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

EPS
Mar 19, 2003

READY... FIGHT!
John Woo movies are an acquired taste. His choreographed action scenes are not the chaotic all out brawls we're used to seeing, but are closer to something you would expect to see live on stage. I found the plot to be somewhat sappy, but who really watches these movies for a plot anyway?

4.5/5

Mr. Sleep
Aug 2, 2003

The first John Woo movie I saw was Hard Target with Jean-Claude Van Damme which was also Woo's first American movie. The problem with viewing his American releases first is that they have higher production values and thus highlight the production flaws found in his previous HK movies. As a result, it took me a little longer to appreciate his original work.

That being said, after a few viewings I could see how this is considered one of his greatest works. Yun-Fat is silent and charismatic as always, and the relationship he has both with the blind lounge singer and the detective pursuing him is heartwarming, to a degree where his death has that much of an effect on the viewer. The final shootout sequence in the chapel is the stuff action movies should be made of. The mediocre elements of the film were the plot and the dialogue, which have traditionally, never been Woo's strong points.

4.5

vertov
Jun 14, 2003

hello
I've watched this film a few times in the last week or so leading up to a discussion I'm supposed to lead about it, so I figured I'd take the chance to weigh in here as well (and also brag that I have the Criterion DVD, neener-neener).

The first time I saw this, maybe six or seven year ago, I really wasn't all that impressed with it. I think a lot of that reaction had to do with the horrible translation of the subtitles on the VHS I watched it on, but since then, I've gotten to see a more accurate version of the film, and my opinion of it has increased dramatically (which is also probably due to changes in my taste in film). This has become one of my favorite action films of all time, and not just for the stylized gunplay and choreography of the violence, but also for the integration of different genre codes and the prevailing philosophy of religion and spiritual redemption.

It's interesting that the film is framed by scenes that take place in Churches, beginning with two characters meeting to discuss a hit and ending in one of the most violent gunfights ever captured on film. Woo is pretty well known for being a devoted Christian, and his treatment of religion and spirituality in this film is very introspective. He asks questions about the possiblity of "religious violence" and tries to find a way to reconcile the relationship between death and spirituality. The fact that the main character, a hired killer, seems to have the strongest sense of humanity of anyone in the film is telling about Woo's interest in this conflict.

I found the use of music throughout the film to add a interesting touch of irony and humor. When Chow Yun-Fat and Danny Li face-off against one another in Jennie's apartment, guns pointing at one another's faces, the music is light, playful and even romantic. Jennie's love song is also repreated throughout the film a number of times, but usually as a prelude to scenes of bloodshed and violence.

Though this is certainly an unrealistic film, it isn't quite as close to approaching self-parody as Hard Boiled or Face-Off. It's still nice to see such a brutal film have a sense of humor though, and the artistic merits of the film raise it above the sea of imitators. Required viewing.

xian
Jan 21, 2001

Lipstick Apathy
The review button says it all.

This is simply one of the best movies I've ever seen.

5.5

Pipski
Apr 18, 2004

This film is great. Certainly a better film than Hard Boiled, though possibly less entertaining to watch (if that makes sense). Some of the dialogue (possibly thanks to translation) is toe-curlingly corny ("Tell me I am not a dog!" and all the "Dumbo!", "Mickey!" stuff for a start) but the action sequences (= gunfights) in this film are John Woo's best ever.

4

Kro-Bar
Jul 24, 2004
USPOL May
Great movie, and loving sad at that. My favorite John Woo movie, and I love John Woo movies (well... not all of them)


5/5

Mr. Stingly
Sep 1, 2001

Satanic cop-killing henchman with a heart of gold
One of my least favorite Woo movies. It felt too "arty" to me. And the reason I love John Woo movies, the gunfights, were blah compared to the standard of Hard-Boiled.

The church fight was just a blob. It's just guns firing and people running in and dying like a shooting gallery. Nothing spectacular. Kind of boring actually, which is a travesty for a John Woo movie.

3.0

Dr. Gojo Shioji
Apr 22, 2004

I am an enormous John Woo fan and this ranks at the top of the list for me. It's just 100% absolute brilliance distilled onto celluloid.

There are a couple of things that make this masterpiece slightly better than some of John Woo's other works (namely Hard Boiled). First and foremost are the characters. Ah-Jong (or John, or Joe, or Jeff) is easily the deepest Chow Yun-Fat character in a John Woo movie and you can really see him shine alongside the excellent supporting cast. The friendship between him and Danny Lee is genuine and you can see that clearly throughout the film. It's also interesting to see him in such a romantic role, at least inside an action movie (remember, CYF acted in practically nothing but romantic comedies before A Better Tomorrow). It really shows off Yun-Fat's ability to go from ultra-movie-badass one minute to caring, compassionate lover the next. Sally Yeh's casting opposite Chow couldn't have worked better in this regard.

The other thing that steps it up above Woo's other works are the gunfights and eye candy. While some say that Hard Boiled has The Killer beat, I believe The Killer has the upper hand with finesse. The gunfights are extremely well choreographed and almost appear as dances. Woo's other films were more heavy on the "go for broke" action sequences, which, while good, aren't as majestic as the ones featured in The Killer.

Basically The Killer just takes all of the greatest things about John Woo's early pictures and enhances them into a single movie. Even the code of honor that Woo worked into so many of his films was played up beautifully between Ah-Jong and Sydney, if not a little rehashed from A Better Tomorrow. This isn't to say that The Killer isn't a great movie on its own. It is. It's just that when talking about John Woo movies it's hard not to compare one to the other in various terms.

I absolutely could not love this movie more than I do and I recommend it to anyone and everyone. This film epitomizes the fantastic collaboration between Chow Yun-Fat and John Woo and was also one of the earlier Asian films to become a cult hit and open up the Asian cinema market to the US. Everything about this movie is phenominal and if you haven't seen it you owe it to yourself to watch it sometime.

5.5/5

Dr. Gojo Shioji fucked around with this message at 06:54 on Nov 10, 2004

Mike_V
Jul 31, 2004

3/18/2023: Day of the Dorks
I think this was the first Woo movie I had seen, so I was pretty impressed. It's really sad to see how crappy his Hollywood movies are. Anyways, this movie was pretty awesome, even if the film quality was kind of bad. The intro was quite awesome and I was digging the church theme because of the juxtaposition of violence and religion (I always like it, now that I think about it).

The plot was tightly constructed and the characters were interesting. Late 80s/early 90s China has always fascinated me and this adds to the greatness of The Killer. Some of the freeze frame shots had me wondering, but eventually I came to like them. While some may lament that the frequent gunfights were just a crutch that Woo used, I quite enjoyed them. Maybe it's because I'm a guy. Anyways, the characters really worked well together on screen and the film was most enjoyable. It's a shame Criterion discontinued the DVD.

9/10

yersi
Dec 21, 2004

by Fistgrrl
You could watch this on the lowest quality mpg ripped by a retarded grade-schooler with no sound and it'd still be amazing.

5.5/5

Kerpal
Jul 20, 2003

Well that's weird.
Definitely a 5, one of my most favorite Action movies.

sean10mm
Jun 29, 2005

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, MAD-2R World
Somehwat sappy plot, excellent action. Chow Yun Fat is an excellent badass, of course.

However, I have to say that I think Hard Boiled is a better action movie. I don't think any of John Woo's Hong Kong action flicks are exactly what you'd call landmarks in storytelling; their entertainment value comes mainly from their imaginative (not obvious in 2005 now that he's been ripped off so much...) HOLY poo poo action scenes and the bad-assery of the characters. And in this area Hard Boiled beats The Killer, and arguably everything else for that matter, even though the story is sillier.

I give it a 3.5/5. An above average action flick.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

DanSTC
Aug 6, 2002

by Fistgrrl
If violence is a visual language, this film is a masterwork of poetry.

5/5

  • Post
  • Reply