Introduction
The Killer is one of my favorite Woo's, ultraviolent, melodramatic Hong Kong spectacle. Once again collaborating with actor Chow Yun Fat (his alter ego as he has many times declared), Woo returns to his specialty, the world of crime drama, or heroic bloodshed if you’d like. Rather than being exclusively about action and violence, The Killer prides itself in featuring drama, well fleshed out characters, and heart warming scenes. Still, in addition to classic Woo themes, The Killer features all of the famous Woo's trademarks: double-handed gunplay, mexican stand offs, off-balance shooting, doves, which Woo also used in his action sequences in Hard Boiled, Face/Off, Mission Impossible. Enjoyment of The Killer is also expanded by the knowledge of the fact that even killers have a code of honor.

Plot
Chow Yun Fat plays Jeffrey Chow. He is a professional killer with a heart and full of remorse. In the opening scene we find Jeff in a job at a night club (notice that his victim is played by the director John Woo). In the bullet ridden chaos that follows, he accidentally blinds the bar's singer, Jennie. Jeff befriends her in order to determine if she can identify him but he soon falls in love with her. Eventually, they learn that an expensive operation can save her eyes, so Jeffrey painfully decides to continue taking contracts in order get enough money for the operation. Meanwhile, a police inspector, Li played by actor Danny Lee, is pursuing the mysterious hitman, Jeff, though he doesn't know who he is yet. He assumes that the killer isn't a heartless one but has a code of honor, and after stalking Jennie, he comes across him and eventually finds out about Jeff's identity. After a memorable sequence featuring another one of Jeff's hit, and an inevitable speedboat chase Li helps Jeff save an injured kid and soon begins to understand Jeff the killer. To further complicate things, Jeff's mob boss betrays him and sets him up for a double cross on his next job. Jeff has to fight both the police and the mob, as well as risk revealing his true profession to Jennie. The film's finale takes place in a church where all hell breaks loose. This is the scene that I have associated John Woo with in my mind. John Woo decided to break all the rules in the ending but I'd rather not reveal more.

Chow Yun-Fat
Demonstrating once again there isn’t one line separating good and evil, director John Woo craves out two unlikely heroes from stoic killer Jeff and the good cop Li. On one hand, Jeff may seem like a heartless killer. Assassinating people for money is his way of life after all. However, deep inside, he is a tortured man carrying out a duty he cannot any longer ethically give reason for to himself. As usual, Chow Yun Fat makes a surprisingly appropriate protagonist as the suave, lovable, yet capably violent and efficient assassin.

Danny Lee
Danny Lee has played a police officer in Hong Kong films more times than I can remember. He fits in easily and makes a great foil for Yun Fat. He is a man of righteous honor who faces many difficulties while trying to carry out his duty as a police officer. Astonishingly portrayed in an early scene, Li and his partner convey their disgust over having to defend a VIP whom they consider a "bad guy" not worth living, therefore in a way justifying Jeff's motives.

Sally Yeh
Sally Yeh has played the role of the lead characters' love interest in plenty of Hong Kong movies. Her presence balances perfectly the action of the film, and makes up for the absence of female characters. The scene where she is singing a song in the beginning of the film is very moving, since that song foreshadows the plot of the movie. The whole song is beautifully blended with the on-going shoot out that Jeff is involved at the same time.

Not enough good things can really be said about the casting, which is one of the best aspects of the film. In my opinion The Killer is Woo's best movie so far. It isn't difficult to see why it has gathered such a huge cult audience and is worshiped by it, as it has some of the most breath-taking action sequences that only another Woo film could possibly rival. As usual, John Woo, takes you in a ride full of mayhem, carnage and drama. Right from the beginning in the shootout in the nightclub, Woo is excellently blending action with drama. The high point of the whole movie is the admirable and much talked about church sequence shoot-out (not to mention the suspenseful ending that follows). Like every other John Woo picture, The Killer showcases some of the best shoot-outs I have ever seen, typical of Woo's wild style. Those shoot-outs do not overwhelm the general theme (as in most Hollywood movies),which is the love interest between Jeff and Jenie, and Jeff redemption, though. The plot has incredible depth, rarely seen in action films. It could be argued that the central love story between Jeffrey is somewhat sappy, but then again the subplots involving Jeff's relationship with Li as well as his mob ties more than make up for that. I really hope that someday we will see Woo and Yun Fat team up once again. If that ever happens, I am certain that action cinema as we know it will change.

DVD FeaturesThe DVD was somewhat lacking. I am easy to satisfy with DVDs. I don’t expect much, just some scene access, English Subtitles (since I am greek and I prefer to be able to read the dialogue as well) and a director’s commentary. However, The Killer DVD only had Scene Access and Interactive Menus. Also the DVD transfer could have been better. I am not an expert on DVD formats, but the colours seemed to me a bit washed out.

Random Info/Production Notes
The Killer was made in 1989. It helped put John Woo, Chow Yun Fat and Hong Kong cinema on the world map. The Killer won John Woo cult-status worldwide and even caught Hollywood's attention, becoming the first Hong Kong movie since Bruce Lee's Enter The Dragon to be exported to the States. I have been hearing about a Hollywood remake waiting to happen, but, god willing, it will never happen.



Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good for Groups
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older