John Woo’s Action Classics Are Coming to American Theaters This Year
GKids may be best known for their work in reissuing and distributing Studio Ghibli’s films, but this year, they’re branching out into another facet of Asian cinema: the action-packed “heroic bloodshed” films of John Woo. In cooperation with Shout! Studios, GKids has announced that three of Woo’s classic Hong Kong films will be released into American theaters for limited runs.
Hard Boiled (1992)
Mobsters are smuggling guns into Hong Kong. The police orchestrate a raid at a teahouse where an ace detective loses his partner. Meanwhile, the two main gun smugglers are having a war over territory, and a young new gun is enlisted to wipe out informants and overcome barriers to growth. The detective, acting from inside sources, gets closer to the ring leaders and eventually must work with the inside man directly.
A Better Tomorrow (1986)
This story is the tale of two brothers: one a successful counterfeiter and the younger a fledgling graduate of the HK police academy. The plot revolves around the split when the younger brother learns the other is a criminal and the efforts of the criminal brother to reform. Along the way are plenty of heists, double-crosses, and shoot outs.
The Killer (1989)
A Hong Kong hitman accidentally blinds an innocent woman during a hit. He is determined to get her surgery to help her regain her sight but he needs to complete one more hit first. He completes the job but then is ambushed as he tries to escape: someone wants him dead. Meanwhile a resourceful, unorthodox police detective is hot on his trail.
All three films have been remastered — so you can see every single bloody squib in glorious detail — and will be shown in Cantonese with English subtitles. Needless to say, these screenings will be a real treat for Asian and action film aficionados, and I plan to attend all of them.