Better Tomorrow, A (1986)
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Review: #1,354 |
THE SCOOP
Director: John Woo
Cast: Ti Lung, Leslie Cheung, Chow Yun-Fat
Plot: A reforming ex-gangster tries to reconcile with his estranged policeman brother, but the ties to his former gang are difficult to break.
Genre: Action / Crime
Awards: Won 4 Golden Horse Awards - Best Director, Best Leading Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Sound.
Runtime: 95min
Rating: NC16 for violence
Source: Fortune Star Media Limited
IN RETROSPECT (Spoilers: NO)
“Mark,
this is not our world anymore.”
A
Better Tomorrow has eluded me for the longest
time. So what better way to see it for
the first time than in digitally restored 4K, and in Cantonese no less. I would like to convey my heartfelt thanks to
the Asian Film Archive for the opportunity.
Directed by John Woo, one of Hong
Kong cinema's stalwarts, the film stars Chow Yun-Fat, Leslie Cheung and Ti Lung,
in what feels like a cheesy if outrageously violent comedy (as seen through the
lens of the 21st century), but in actual fact, it is a terrific
actioner that has been elevated to the highest echelons of Chinese cinema since
its fruitful release back in 1986.
A story about two brothers—one (Ti)
on a treacherous path as a counterfeiting criminal but longing to 'get out' and
seek redemption, the other (Cheung) an uncompromising cop who has no qualms
putting law over family, and whose career is continually blighted by his
brother's vice activities—A Better
Tomorrow also brings in Chow's character to make up the brotherhood
triangle, functioning as both comic relief and vicious hitman.
Woo's incisive development of these
three characters, backed by fine performances, and integrating them into the
larger narrative of good versus evil, virtuosity versus corruptibility, loyalty
versus betrayal, has largely inspired much of HK action cinema to follow suit
over the years.
Spawning the 'Heroic Bloodshed'
subgenre and making violence acceptable—or more accurately, tolerable—to the
mainstream, A Better Tomorrow sees
Woo coming into his own and finding a voice as an astute action craftsman. He would later make such brilliant action
films as The Killer (1989) and Hard Boiled (1992).
I think it’s fair to say that without
A Better Tomorrow, HK cinema would probably
have suffered the same fate as Taiwanese cinema in the '90s—struggling to find
an identity, a supportive home audience and sustainability.
The birth of a new star in Chow and
a talented director in Woo through the success of A Better Tomorrow shows that no matter the genre, when the time is
right and ripe, audiences will set the path for growth and progress.
Action cinema has long been
trivialized as insubstantial and inconsequential, but when you have Woo in his
A-game, action becomes choreographed art, and violence becomes a ballet of
carnage. To our good fortune, he would
get even better.
Verdict: You really can’t get any more ‘Hong Kong classic’ than
this masterful actioner by John Woo.
GRADE: A-
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