Directed by John Woo • 1984 • Hong Kong
Starring Eddy Ko, Lam Ching-ying, Ma Ying-chun
In this explosive precursor to his breakout film A BETTER TOMORROW, director John Woo displays the genesis of his trademark hyperkinetic style. Chan Chung (Eddy Ko) is the leader of an elite Chinese commando force enlisted by the Thai government to capture General Samton, a powerful drug lord from the Golden Triangle. After a successful raid on the general’s headquarters, the mercenaries cross into Vietnam and encounter a barbaric colonel (Lam Ching-ying) who is determined to stop them at any cost. Now pursued by both Samton’s henchmen and the colonel’s troops, the heroes flee for the Thai border, outmanned and outgunned by their enemies.
Up Next in Hong Kong Action Classics
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Bullet in the Head
Directed by John Woo • 1990 • Hong Kong
Starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Jacky Cheung, Simon YamOne of director John Woo’s most ambitious and emotionally charged films, this intense action epic follows the fates of three friends—gangsters Ben (Tony Leung Chiu-wai), Frank (Jacky Cheung), and Paul (...
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Once a Thief
Directed by John Woo • 1991 • Hong Kong
Starring Chow Yun-fat, Leslie Cheung, Cherie ChungHaving established himself as Hong Kong cinema’s master of the heroic bloodshed genre, director John Woo took a detour into lighter territory with this rollicking, typically stylish comic caper, which cast...
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Dreadnaught
Directed by Yuen Woo-ping • 1981 • Hong Kong
Starring Yuen Biao, Bryan Leung Kar-yan, Kwan Tak-hingEverything that made 1980s Hong Kong action cinema such a blast—the furious fights, bursts of wild comedy, and larger-than-life performances—is cranked up to eleven in this audacious cult classic...
