← Back to Reviews
in
A Better Tomorrow follows two brothers – Ho (Ti Lung) and Kit (Leslie Cheung) – that have followed "different paths". Kit aims to join the police, while Ho is one of the top members of a powerful Hong Kong triad, along with Mark Lee (Chow Yun-fat). Ho is planning to leave his life of crime, but he ends up being set up and sent to prison, while Mark ends up injured in a shootout which leaves him disabled and disgraced.
This is my first venture into John Woo's Hong Kong filmography, and it was quite a thing. Before this, my experience was limited to most of his 90's American efforts which I wasn't that crazy about, other than Face/Off. A Better Tomorrow feels like the birth of that, as he gives us lead characters with conflicts between them trying to get through them via over-stylized ultra-violence (and I mean that in a good way).
One of my main gripes is that Ti Lung, who is arguably the lead actor, is a bit bland and is easily over-staged by Cheung, and especially Chow Yun-fat. Cheung provides a strong emotional performance and feels like the one to root for, but the script keeps him a bit on the sidelines. Chow Yun-fat, on the other hand, owns every scene he's in. Part of it is because of his charisma, but a huge part of it is the way that Woo shoots him, jumping in the air, two guns in hand, cool as fu¢k.
That's the main strength of this film, and apparently most of Woo's films. The action setpieces are well staged and choreographed, and yes, kickass. The story in between those, however, feels a bit melodramatic, with a sappy score and some weak supporting performances. That doesn't include Waise Lee, who gives one of those great, "slimy" and villainous portrayals as Shing, the triad lackey that ends up rising to the top after Ho and Mark are out.
A Better Tomorrow might not be as polished as other action films or even some of Woo's later films (at least based on what little I've seen), but it is still a worthy action film and a great introduction to Hong Kong crime cinema.
Grade:
A BETTER TOMORROW
(1986, Woo)
(1986, Woo)
"I'm the cop, he's the thief. In the eyes of the law, we're on different paths."
A Better Tomorrow follows two brothers – Ho (Ti Lung) and Kit (Leslie Cheung) – that have followed "different paths". Kit aims to join the police, while Ho is one of the top members of a powerful Hong Kong triad, along with Mark Lee (Chow Yun-fat). Ho is planning to leave his life of crime, but he ends up being set up and sent to prison, while Mark ends up injured in a shootout which leaves him disabled and disgraced.
This is my first venture into John Woo's Hong Kong filmography, and it was quite a thing. Before this, my experience was limited to most of his 90's American efforts which I wasn't that crazy about, other than Face/Off. A Better Tomorrow feels like the birth of that, as he gives us lead characters with conflicts between them trying to get through them via over-stylized ultra-violence (and I mean that in a good way).
One of my main gripes is that Ti Lung, who is arguably the lead actor, is a bit bland and is easily over-staged by Cheung, and especially Chow Yun-fat. Cheung provides a strong emotional performance and feels like the one to root for, but the script keeps him a bit on the sidelines. Chow Yun-fat, on the other hand, owns every scene he's in. Part of it is because of his charisma, but a huge part of it is the way that Woo shoots him, jumping in the air, two guns in hand, cool as fu¢k.
That's the main strength of this film, and apparently most of Woo's films. The action setpieces are well staged and choreographed, and yes, kickass. The story in between those, however, feels a bit melodramatic, with a sappy score and some weak supporting performances. That doesn't include Waise Lee, who gives one of those great, "slimy" and villainous portrayals as Shing, the triad lackey that ends up rising to the top after Ho and Mark are out.
A Better Tomorrow might not be as polished as other action films or even some of Woo's later films (at least based on what little I've seen), but it is still a worthy action film and a great introduction to Hong Kong crime cinema.
Grade: