Hard Boiled

It's excellent, perhaps the best among all the films where John Woo and Chow Yun-Fat collaborated, but I can't help feeling that when you've seen one of their films, you've seen almost all of them. The gunshots are absolutely captivating; here, you really feel like human bodies are being torn apart. Especially at the end, it's a violent orgy. Otherwise, it's not a film that would make me orgasmic. It’s action-packed, but I might have expected a bit more from it. (02/13/2014)

A pioneer of the action genre, with amazing camera and editing work, revolutionary shooting sequences, long shots without cuts, breathtaking stunt work. Before all the modern Hunts, Bonds, Bournes, and Wicks, there was a detective with a cigarette in his mouth and two guns on his belt who set the direction for what action films would look like decades later. (02/13/2005)

If Killer has an action drive and narrative poetics that are hard to describe and put into words, there is simply no name in the known universe for the breakneck pace of Hard Boiled. I guess that if all those who couldn't shoot their way through the story and stay alive were Jews, this would have been by far Adolf Hitler's favourite film (if he had the chance to see it, of course) :D You just don't see this kind of disrespectful deprivation of life not only of hundreds of bad guys, but also of dozens of innocent civilians – almost untouchable in Hollywood conventions – anywhere else. Though I'm probably one of the few who didn't fully enjoy the nature of the final hospital shootout, which at times descended into heavy parody, the level of experience of the cinematic action with its grandiose visuals and cleverly upgraded "background" story remains as pure and intense as in few other action films of the 1990s and all the years since. (02/03/2017)

Neat action and cool lines. Both John Woo and Chow Yun-Fat are on their best form here. Technically almost perfect action scenes, ingenious and still surprises after all these years. I’m telling you, this movie suited me down to the ground. Tequila’s apt remarks were really to my taste. A classic that I plan on watching again soon. (01/25/2014)

As a film critic, watching Hard Boiled was a missing piece in my collection, especially since most viewers claim it’s the greatest classic in the action genre in cinema. And I must admit, in terms of this rating, it truly has no competition. John Woo created a revolutionary film where shootouts need to be both effective and visually striking; his depiction of these sequences is truly unparalleled—it’s a feast for the eyes, whether it’s the moments in the warehouse or the final half-hour showdown in the hospital (I wouldn’t even want to count how much ammunition was fired in total; that number would probably have a lot of zeros), which left my jaw on the floor. So, in this respect, the film is excellent. On the other hand, the story doesn’t offer a thrilling experience full of unexpected twists that will blow you away. It’s a template-like linear affair that moves along nicely (at least it avoids boredom). Yun-fat Chow is perfect. So, I definitely recommend watching the film; it’s worth it. I give it 80%. (08/23/2020)