A Better Tomorrow (1986)

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Directed by John Woo.

Starring Leslie Cheung, Chow Yun-Fat, Ti Lung, Young Pao I.

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John Woo established himself as one of Hong Kong's premiere action directors with this ultra-hip, ultra-violent action classic. The film centers around the complex relationship between two brothers: Sung Tse-kit (Leslie Cheung) is a recent graduate of the police academy while Tse-ho (Ti Lung) runs a massive counterfeiting ring along with his gangland associate, Mark Lee (Chow Yun-Fat). Tension between the two brothers comes to a head when their father is murdered after a crime deal goes sour and Tse-ho lands in jail after being double-crossed. In perhaps the most influential scene in Hong Kong cinema in the 1980s, Mark avenges his friend by staging a dinner table assassination. As Mark tries to shoot his way out of the restaurant, pulling a series of hidden pistols from potted plants and alcoves, he gets horribly injured. With both founding members of the counterfeiting syndicate incapacitated, the operation falls into the hands of Shing (Waise Lee Chi-hung), Tse-ho's former underling who has little of his boss' élan or experience. When Tse-ho gets out of jail, he reunites with his now-crippled comrade, Mark, to take out Shing and to protect Tse-kit whose life is in danger for investigating their former subordinate. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

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Reviews and discussions

Tokyo Drifter
by tallquasimodo in tallquasimodo Blog

liked it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. [What do you think?]
"I really wanted to be impressed by this movie, and I was, in a sense. The color is fantastic, and the cinematography is nothing to sneeze at either. It even had what must have been some very cool gunfights for its time. Unfortunately the narrative itself was too hard to follow. Call me racist, but I had trouble differentiating the various bosses from each other due to the similarity of their names to my western ear. This left the majority of dialogue fairly difficult to comprehend. I wish I had seen this movie before being exposed to some of the better handgun-based action movies made since, such as A Better Tomorrow, A Better Tomorrow II, The Killer, Hard Boiled, Desperado, etc. Even The Wild Bunch could be included in that category. " [More]

movie year countdown #21 - 1986 ...
by Risselada in Risselada Blog

liked it.

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"This blog entry is part of my “movie year countdown”. To read more about that check out my first Spout filmblog entry.Ying hung boon sik (A Better Tomorrow)I'm kind of fascinated by John Woo. I haven't even seen many of his movies, but I feel like I have a strong impressions. It seems like he was a master of action when he was working in the Hong Kong film industry. But then he started working in Hollywood, bringing all of his same techniques over in ways that just seem all the more silly and don't fit.Movies like Paycheck seem like he saw the story as just surroundings for his action sequences. When the action sequences had absolutely no relevance to the actual story which could have been interested if the director would have seemed to know what was going on or was invested.And then there is the fact that at the climax of nearly every single one of his movies there are shots of doves flying off. It's an interesting calling card, and the fact that ... " [More]

Movie year countdown viewing pr ...
by Risselada in Risselada Blog

liked it.

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"Here’s the dilemma. I have a list of well over three thousand movies I want to see saved on IMDB. I have a subscription to Netflix and recently every time I return a DVD it has been an extremely arduous task to make the decision as to which movie I should see next. In an effort to narrow down my choices and make the process of choosing slightly less overwhelming I have devised a system, almost a bit of a game for me. Here’s how it goes.For my first film selection, I have narrowed the options down to only films that were released in the year 2006. Then after I have watched that movie, my next selection would have to be a film released in 2005. Then I would see a film from 2004, then 2003, etc. The process of deciding is still laborious, but actually quite a bit more exciting. (I'm going by IMDB as my source for release years)I have already been making a list and have also already begun watching the films. I decided this might be a good time to start fooling ... " [More]

Review by All Movie Guide

All Movie Guide

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The film that launched a thousand action spectaculars, A Better Tomorrow established John Woo as Hong Kong's preeminent action director and started the Hong Kong gangster flick boom of the 1980s. Reworking themes of loyalty and self-sacrifice found in Italian spaghetti westerns, Jean-Pierre Melville films, and early martial arts movies, Woo envisions a criminal world where violence is the only way of life and honor and brotherhood means everything. Woo's flamboyant style and sheer bravura earned him acclaim from both the press and the public. His elegant tracking shots, staccato edits, and slow-motion pyrotechnics introduced a new level of emotional resonance and visual beauty to the action sequence, as his baroque visual style and intense emphasis on brotherhood elevated the film's drama to almost Wagnerian proportions. In addition to its two eventual sequels, A Better Tomorrow greatly influenced such American directors as Quentin Tarantino and established Chow Yun Fat as one of Asia's leading stars, as the image of Chow as a trench-coat-and-sunglasses-sporting-lone-hitman became an icon of Hong Kong cinema. A Better Tomorrow is a dazzling spectacular full of tear-jerking melodrama and jaw-dropping action sequences -- a cinematic feast. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

Tags: loyalty , eastern , badjohnwoomoviethemesongs , chowyunfat , gunfest
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