Customer Reviews

A Better Tomorrow/A Better Tomorrow II

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

These two movies together stand as a milestone achievement of not only Hong Kong cinema but movies in general. John Woo is a god and Chow Yun Fat is justly celebrated for these performances. People who don't like subtitles need to get past their hang-up and view these two landmarks of action moviemaking. All the signature moves now common in action films in the past decade (yes i mean you Keanu Reeves) were copyrighted in these two movies by director John Woo, who has to be the most imitated director since Hitchcock.

One of Chou's and Woo's famous movies. It combined with romance and violence, along with some humorous. Although it is not best one compare to today's action movies, it was great back to old days. It is one of mile stone of Hong Kong action movies in late 80's and early 90's.

This double pack is a must have for John Woo fans or anyone with a craving for foreign style action from the 80's. Yes it looks extremely dated and the dvd transfer is horrible but don't let that stop you from experiencing some graphically violent set pieces that at the time were unheard of in cinema. John Woo had an ability to make the violence look incredibly realistic, yet over the top and artistic at the same time. His direction at the time was innovative featuring slow motion shots that american directors would later copy and unfortunately become a cliche in movies. A Better Tomorrow's plot is much more cohesive than the sequel's but it features less action and violence. The story of the sequel is a mess though. I've read that the director John Woo and the producer had creative differences on the sequel so the plot is just all over the place. It really is a disaster story wise. The sequel however has an awesome, tension filled 15 minute finale. It's literally a non stop bloodbath. It's pretty violent for an 80's film and it holds up well today. I still show the finale of A Better Tomorrow II off to friends and even they are speechless when watching it. Although Woo's later films would look sharper and tighter(Hard Boiled, The Killer), A Better Tomorrow 1 and 2 are perfect introductions into what made Woo a great action director. It's kind of sad that his american films wouldn't contain the humor, stories, violence and energy of his hong kong films with the lone exception being Face-Off featuring John Travolta and Nicholas Cage.

This review is for the box set of dvd's, NOT the movies. I bought these for my boyfriend, a movie zealot. At first he was overjoyed, but then a fellow movie collector alerted him to the digitally remastered region zero trilogy available FOR THE SAME PRICE!. He said to look around the internet & you will find it easily from reputable dealers. His words, "The video transfer on this edition is very poor, the subtitles are craptastic. Watchable, but just".
"As for the movies themselves, classic John Woo, outstanding action flicks!!! Hard boiled is my ultimate favorite, but it is closely followed by these two. (Never seen #3). So, while i do heartily recommend these movies, i do not recommend this particular transfer."

The price is right for this terrific set. I rate these two film's equally because they flow together flawlessly as a satisfying epic. The beauty of these film's are that they do not sacrifice characterization for the sake of pyrotechnics. The connecting thread of the films is the complex relationship between two brothers, one an upright Hong Kong police detective(Leslie Cheung) and the other a criminal with principles(Ti Lung). The one thing they share is a distaste for the more unsavory elements of the Hong Kong crime syndicate but part as to the method in which to bring them down. The selling point of these film's is the presence of Chow Yun Fat who is essentially a supporting player in these films. That said, whenever he appears on screen the wattage of his charisma lights up the screen as good as any actor on the world stage. Both film's feature dynamite climactic showdowns as staged by John Woo that surpass anything concocted by Western filmmakers(send a thank you note, Quentin). I would have rated these films five stars but I felt that some of the more melodramatic elements in the scripts bogged down the precedings.

I have to say, Better Tomorrow I&II are Chow Yun-Fat's best work. His acting is extraordinary in these two movies. He really portraited his role with great amount of passions. I strongl recommend these two movies!

these two movies are awesome,
especially when watched with subtitles. some of the best action ever- especially the climax to ABT2. breathtaking.
Woo is a genius. I have 1 on DVD but have yet to watch 2, i cant wait.