Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1488 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-02-07
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 154 minutes

Synopsis
When a tough police officer's (Chow Yun-Fat) partner is brutally murdered, he joins forces with another loose-cannon cop (Tony Leung) to exact his own bloody revenge on the gun-smuggling gangsters responsible for his friend's death. A lot of action, guns, and violence, all masterfully rendered by action maestro John Woo (THE KILLER, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 2). This is the last film the director made in his native Hong Kong before emigrating to the United States.

Customer Reviews

Ok Crazy
This film has good points and bad points like most films. I will not go into plot or things such as that as other reviewers have done that, all I will say that it is decent enough but not exactly gripping.

The negative and posotive points are relatively balanced in the film therefore this led me to give it 3 stars. I feel this film is very over hyped which may lead some people to be dissapointed.

Some negative points include the dubbing of the film which for one is done badly, I personally don't mind something of this nature but some people may; the fact of the bad dubbing, along with terrible 'voice acting' which is no fault of the actual actors in the film make the film feel cheap and it may have been better filming in Cantonese and giving it subtitles (Although as for the dubbing it may have been in Cantonese)

The film in my opinion seems a little long (and I like a long film) it just seemed a few scenes were added in to extend the action, which is, no matter how you look at it,is insane action - seriously! The action is what this film is all about, and if thats' all you're after then buy it now. The amount of bullets fired and deaths is so fast it is not possible to keeps count, the body count alone must be triple figures. I feel that this is the redeeming feature of this film although there are problems with continuity.

So that is the film in a nutshell, people may read more into it but what you are getting is outlined above. It may seem I have focused more on the negatives, but I feel that these are things which may bother people. As an action film alone this delivers, although not as good as some more modern actions such as Die Hard 4 and ohers in a similar vane.

Trademark John Woo
Director John Woo has a powerful and explosive style that will leave you breathless after watching this extremely violent action flick.The camera is everywhere flying from place to place.And there are people everywhere.All of them firing a gun or two.I have never seen such energy before.The violence in "Hardboiled" is very brutal and well directed.The last half hour of this film,which take place in the hospital is full of inventive action sequences.Chow Yun-Fat is really good as a tough policeman and it's also very nice to see Anthony Wong-what a great performance!
I also love the scene where Chow Yun Fat is saved from burning by the baby peeing on him. I like Hong Kong-action films by John Woo.Anyway, if you're tired of Hollywood's action trash,then this one is a must-see.Recommended!

Let me catch my breath!
Set in the violent Hong Kong underworld, Hard Boiled tells the story of a gun-happy detective (Yun-Fat Chow) who prefers shooting than confronting and arresting. While confronting smugglers illegally bringing guns into Hong Kong his partner is unjustly murdered by an undercover cop (Tony Leung Chiu Wai). After some persuasion the two of the team up to take down the mob and saves the lives of hundreds of civilians.

You might think this sounds all too familiar to be interesting, but don't be put off. The storyline takes a back-seat in this film. The violent half hour gun fights take centre stage. It's all about the gun fights, if you feel like watching and action packed movie, no thinking required you can not go far wrong with this. The action is so mind blowing you need a couple of minutes to catch your breath after each 'massacre' of Hong Kong gang members. Believability is not a factor in this film, no one reloads, non of the "good guys" are ever killed but that is not the point of this film.

It is near impossible to rate the acting in this film, most characters are dead before you get a chance to see their face. Of course the main actors do what their job nicely. Directed by the legendary action director John Woo, all his trademarks are here, chaotic gun fights, fast dialogue and graphic violence, if you enjoyed any of his Hollywood movies, I gurantee this will blow your mind.

I couldn't find much wrong with the DVD itself, one of its biggest downfalls is the dubbing. As usual the dubbing is quite laughable and no option to watch it in its original language is a bit disappointing. Although it will not ruin your enjoyment of the movie, as I said before, the story line takes a back-seat in this film. The only subtitles available are English.

All in all this film is enjoyable if you're looking for an easy film to watch, definitely a great film for any fans of action movies. Do not expect a complex storyline or outstanding acting. Just enjoy this movie for what it is and not for what it isn't.

Sam