HARD BOILED (1992)
‘John Woo is… God,’ claims an old trailer for his final Hong Kong action movie. The quotes used almost manage to capture the madness that is Hard Boiled, a crime thriller from a master at the zenith of his powers, which is also described as ‘more exciting than a dozen Die Hards‘. But look again and you’ll find that this hyperbole is correct; the results are an exaggerated exercise in action cinema. After the caper Once a Thief Woo would return to the genre he helped create to give us his magnum opus. It would be the distillation of everything that had come before, showcasing his fascination with meticulously staged gun battles and brotherhood. Ideas of loyalty and corruption would be explored one more time, while giving the forces of law and order a chance to be the heroes.
