John Woo: Difference between revisions
m Disambig The Wizard Of Oz. |
m Disambiguating links to Universal Studios (link changed to Universal Pictures; link changed to Universal Pictures) using DisamAssist. |
||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{short description|Hong Kong filmmaker (born 1946)}} |
|||
[[fr:John Woo]] |
|||
{{other people}} |
|||
{{Distinguish|Johnny Woo (comics)|John Yoo|John Ng}} |
|||
{{family name hatnote|1=[[Wu (surname)|Woo (吳)]]|2=John Woo|3=Woo Yu-sen|lang=Hong Kong}} |
|||
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}} |
|||
{{infobox person |
|||
| honorific_prefix = |
|||
| name = John Woo |
|||
| honorific_suffix = [[Silver Bauhinia Star|SBS]] |
|||
| image = John Woo Cannes 2005.jpg |
|||
| alt = |
|||
| caption = Woo in 2005 |
|||
| native_name = {{linktext|吳|宇|森}} |
|||
| native_name_lang = zh |
|||
| pronunciation = |
|||
| birth_name = Wu Yu-seng |
|||
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1946|09|22}}<ref name="Rawnsley"/> |
|||
| birth_place = [[Guangzhou]], China |
|||
| death_date = <!-- {{Death date and age|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} (enter DEATH date then BIRTH date (e.g., ...|1908|31|8|1967|28|2}} use both this parameter and |birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> |
|||
| death_place = |
|||
| death_cause = |
|||
| body_discovered = |
|||
| resting_place = |
|||
| resting_place_coordinates = <!-- {{coord|LAT|LONG|type:landmark|display=inline}} --> |
|||
| burial_place = <!-- may be used instead of resting_place and resting_place_coordinates (displays "Burial place" as label) --> |
|||
| burial_coordinates = <!-- {{coord|LAT|LONG|type:landmark|display=inline}} --> |
|||
| nationality = Hong Konger |
|||
| occupation = {{hlist|Film director|screenwriter|producer}} |
|||
| years_active = 1968–present |
|||
| spouse = {{marriage|Anne Chun-Lung Niu|1976}} |
|||
| children = 3 |
|||
| signature = John Woo Signature.svg |
|||
| module = {{Infobox Chinese | child = yes |
|||
|s={{linktext|吴|宇|森}} |
|||
|t={{linktext|吳|宇|森}} |
|||
|p=Wú Yǔsēn |
|||
|mi={{IPAc-cmn|wu|2|-|yu|3|s|en|1}} |
|||
|w=Wu<sup>2</sup> Yü<sup>3</sup>-sen<sup>1</sup> |
|||
|j=Ng4 Jyu5-sam1 |
|||
|y=Ǹgh Yúhsām |
|||
|ci={{IPAc-yue|ng0|4|-|j|yu|5|s|am|1}} |
|||
}} |
|||
}} |
|||
'''John Woo Yu-sen''' {{Post-nominals|country=HKG|SBS}} ({{zh|t={{linktext|吳|宇|森}}}}; born 22 September 1946)<ref name="Rawnsley"/> is a [[Hong Kong people|Hong Kong]] film director known as a highly influential figure in the [[action film]] genre.<ref>{{Cite web |title=John Woo |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/artist/id/4289098/link/jury.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101000000/http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/artist/id/4289098/link/jury.html |archive-date=1 November 2014 |access-date=10 January 2009}}</ref> The recipient of various accolades, including a [[Hong Kong Film Awards|Hong Kong Film Award]] for [[Hong Kong Film Awards|Best Picture]], [[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director|Best Director]], and [[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Film Editing|Best Editing]], as well as a [[Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards|Golden Horse Award]], an [[Asia Pacific Screen Awards|Asia Pacific Screen Award]] and a [[Saturn Awards|Saturn Award]], he is regarded as a pioneer of [[heroic bloodshed]] films and the [[gun fu]] genre in [[Hong Kong action cinema]]. He is known for his highly chaotic "bullet ballet"<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kehr |first=Dave |date=2002-07-14 |title=John Woo: Ballets full of bullets |url=http://www.theguardian.com/film/2002/jul/14/features.review1 |access-date=2022-10-29 |website=the Guardian |archive-date=29 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221029191651/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2002/jul/14/features.review1 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Weinraub |first=Bernard |date=1996-02-22 |title=ON LOCATION WITH: John Woo;Ballets With Bullets |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/02/22/garden/on-location-with-john-woo-ballets-with-bullets.html |access-date=2022-10-29 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=29 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221029191649/https://www.nytimes.com/1996/02/22/garden/on-location-with-john-woo-ballets-with-bullets.html |url-status=live }}</ref> action sequences, stylized imagery, [[Mexican standoff]]s, frequent use of [[slow motion]] and allusions to ''[[wuxia]]'', [[film noir]] and [[Western (genre)|Western]] cinema.<ref name="BBC"/> |
|||
Considered one of the major figures of [[Cinema of Hong Kong|Hong Kong cinema]], Woo has directed several notable [[Hong Kong action cinema|action films]]. He is known for his collaborations with actor [[Chow Yun-fat]] in five Hong Kong action films: ''[[A Better Tomorrow]]'' (1986), which made Chow a box-office superstar in Asia,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Chow-Yun-Fat#:~:text=The%20movie%20made%20Chow%20a,1992%3B%20Hard%2DBoiled) | title=Chow Yun-Fat | Biography, Movies, & Facts | Britannica }}</ref> ''[[A Better Tomorrow II]]'' (1987), ''[[The Killer (1989 film)|The Killer]]'' (1989), ''[[Once a Thief (1991 film)|Once a Thief]]'' (1991), and ''[[Hard Boiled]]'' (1992). He has also directed [[martial art film|martial arts films]] such as ''[[The Dragon Tamers]]'' (1975), ''[[Hand of Death (1976 film)|Hand of Death]]'' (1976), and ''[[Last Hurrah for Chivalry]]'' (1979), and action comedies such as ''[[Follow the Star]]'' (1978), ''[[From Riches to Rags]]'' (1980), ''[[Run, Tiger, Run]]'' (1984), and ''[[Once a Thief (1991 film)|Once a Thief]]'' (1991). |
|||
''[[Hard Target]]'' (1993), starring [[Jean-Claude Van Damme]], was his first American directorial debut, and the first major Hollywood film made by a Chinese director. His other Hollywood films include ''[[Broken Arrow (1996 film)|Broken Arrow]]'' (1996), ''[[Face/Off]]'' (1997) and ''[[Mission: Impossible 2]]'' (2000).<ref name="BBC"/> He made his Canadian debut with the action comedy film ''[[Once a Thief (1996 film)|Once a Thief]]'' (1996), which is a remake of Woo's 1991 film of the same name. He continued to be active in Hong Kong cinema, directing films such as the two-part historical epic ''[[The Crossing (2014 film)|The Crossing]]'' (2014). His first Chinese-language feature since ''Hard Boiled'' (1992) was the internationally co-produced ''[[Red Cliff (film)|Red Cliff]]'' (2008-2009),<ref name="BBC"/><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/artist/id/4289098/link/jury.html |title=WOO John - Festival de Cannes 2014 (International Film Festival) |access-date=10 January 2009 |archive-date=1 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101004651/http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/artist/id/4289098/link/jury.html |url-status=bot: unknown }}. [[Cannes Film Festival|Festival de Cannes]] fiche artiste (artist profile)</ref> which broke the [[List of highest-grossing films in China|Chinese box office record]] previously held by ''[[Titanic (1997 film)|Titanic]]'' in mainland China.<ref>{{cite web |script-title=zh:《赤壁》夺日票房冠军 大破《英雄》票房纪录 |trans-title=''Red Cliff'' wins the box office champion of the day and breaks the 'hero' box office record |date=2008-11-06 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all |language=zh |url=http://www.5y6s.net/ent/yszd/200811/22069.html |access-date=2009-03-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090831014235/http://www.5y6s.net/ent/yszd/200811/22069.html |archive-date=31 August 2009}}</ref> |
|||
'''John Woo''' ([[Chinese name]]: 吳宇森 in [[pinyin]]: Wú Yǔsēn, in [[Gwohngdongwaa pengyam]]: Ng4 Yue5-sam1) (born [[May 1]], [[1946]]) is a [[Chinese]] [[film director]] known especially for the [[ballet]]-like [[violence]] in his [[movie]]s. |
|||
Woo is the creator of the comic series ''[[Seven Brothers (comics)|Seven Brothers]]'', published by [[Virgin Comics]]. He is the founder and chairman of the production company ''Lion Rock Productions''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/exec/john-woo|title=John Woo|website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=7 November 2013|access-date=11 December 2017|archive-date=23 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223220413/https://variety.com/exec/john-woo/|url-status=live}}</ref> |
|||
== |
==Early life== |
||
Woo was born as Wu Yu-seng (Ng Yu-sum in Cantonese) on 22 September 1946, in [[Guangzhou]], China, amidst the chaotic [[Chinese Civil War]]. Due to school age restrictions, his mother changed his birth date to 22 September 1948, which is what remains on his passport. The Woo family, who were [[Protestantism|Protestant Christians]], faced persecution during [[Mao Zedong]]'s early anti-bourgeois purges after the [[Chinese Revolution (1949)|communist revolution in China]], and fled to [[Hong Kong]] when he was five.<ref name="Rawnsley">[[Rawnsley, Gary D.]] [[Rawnsley, Ming-Yeh T.]] (2003). ''Political Communications in Greater China: construction and reflection identity''. Routledge; {{ISBN|0-7007-1734-X}}.{{page needed|date=January 2012}}</ref><ref name="Elder">{{Cite book|last=Woo|first=John|editor=Elder, Robert K.|year=2005|title=John Woo:Interviews;Conversations with Filmmakers Series|publisher=University Press of Mississippi|isbn=978-1-57806-776-3|title-link=Conversations with Filmmakers Series}}</ref>{{Rp|xv, 3}} |
|||
Impoverished, the Woo family lived in the slums at [[Shek Kip Mei]]. His father was a teacher, though rendered unable to work by [[tuberculosis]], and his mother was a manual laborer on construction sites.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/60130147.html?dids=60130147:60130147&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jan+03%2C+1993&author=JOE+LEYDON&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=COVER+STORY+New+Gun+in+Town+John+Woo%2C+Hong+Kong%27s+legendary+action+director%2C+teams+with+Jean-Claude+Van+Damme+for+his+first+American+thriller%2C+%60Hard+Target%27|title=COVER STORY New Gun in Town John Woo, Hong Kong's legendary action director, teams with Jean-Claude Van Damme for his first American thriller, 'Hard Target'|first=Joe|last=Leydon|date=3 January 1993}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> The family was rendered homeless by the [[Shek Kip Mei Fire]] of 1953.<ref name="Elder"/> Charitable donations from disaster relief efforts enabled the family to relocate; however, violent crime had by then become commonplace in Hong Kong housing projects. At age three he was diagnosed with a serious medical condition. Following surgery on his spine, he was unable to walk correctly until eight years old, and as a result his right leg is shorter than his left leg.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tampagov.net/dept_mayor/mayors_alliance/famous_persons/people_S_thru_Z.asp|title=Famous Persons with Disabilities|publisher=Tampagov.net|access-date=19 October 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008040558/http://www.tampagov.net/dept_mayor/mayors_alliance/famous_persons/people_S_thru_Z.asp|archive-date=8 October 2012}}</ref> |
|||
Woo was born in 1946 in [[Guangzhou]], [[China]] to [[Christianity|Christian]] parents. Faced with persecution from the [[Cultural Revolution]], his family relocated to [[Hong Kong]] when he was five-years-old. During this time, the Woo family led a hard life in the slums since his father had [[tuberculosis]] and could not work. In [[1953]], the family was made [[homeless]] when their house was burned to the ground in a brush fire. It was only thanks to periodical donations from Christian [[charity|charities]] that Woo and his family found themselves another home. Unfortunately, by this time, a wave of crime and violence was beginning to infest Hong Kong's housing projects. One of Woo's most vivid childhood memories was of seeing a man being killed on his front steps. |
|||
His Christian upbringing shows influences in his films.<ref>June 2000 edition of ''Premiere'' magazine</ref> As a young boy, Woo had wanted to be a Christian minister. He later found a passion for movies influenced by the [[French New Wave]] especially [[Jean-Pierre Melville]]. Woo has said he was shy and had difficulty speaking, but found making movies a way to explore his feelings and thinking and would "use movies as a language".<ref name="BBC"/> |
|||
In order to escape his dismay surroundings, Woo would retreat to the local theater. It was through [[musical]]s like ''[[The Wizard of Oz (1939 movie)|The Wizard of Oz]]''—a film that still stands as his all-time favorite—that the young Woo came to realize that the world was not just filled with violence and suffering; it could be beautiful and happy as well. |
|||
Woo found respite in [[Bob Dylan]] and in American [[Western (genre)|Westerns]].<ref>{{cite web|author=amiamcable|title=John Woo|url=https://successfulpeeps.wordpress.com/2015/10/27/john-woo/|publisher=N/A|date=27 October 2015|access-date=1 March 2018|archive-date=1 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180301164331/https://successfulpeeps.wordpress.com/2015/10/27/john-woo/|url-status=live}}</ref> He has stated the final scene of ''[[Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid]]'' made a particular impression on him in his youth: the device of two comrades, each of whom fire pistols from each hand, is a recurrent spectacle later found in his own work.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e9C5VicIj2gC&pg=PA77|last=Szeto|first=Kin-Yan|publisher=SIU Press|isbn=978-0809330218|title=The Martial Arts Cinema of the Chinese Diaspora: Ang Lee, John Woo, & Jackie Chan in Hollywood|page=77|year=2011|access-date=19 September 2020|archive-date=5 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240305212036/https://books.google.com/books?id=e9C5VicIj2gC&pg=PA77#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> |
|||
Later on, with the support of the local [[church]], John Woo received the chance to go to [[school]]. Immensely grateful, he studied with the goal of pursuing his ambition: becoming a Christian [[minister]]. The turning point in young Woo's life came when his school ran a competition to design a poster for [[Easter Sunday]]. Filled with excited zeal, Woo worked hard at painting his masterpiece. When it was unveiled, Woo's teachers were stunned: the poster depicted a bleeding [[Jesus Christ]] wearing a grisly crown of thorns. When questioned, the young Woo innocently replied: "His pain has to be seen to be understood." It was clear from that moment on that the life of the ministry was much too restrictive for the free-spirited young man. |
|||
== Career == |
|||
With the doors of religion closed to him, Woo hooked up with a group of fellow students who shared a passion for film. They would screen [[Europe]]an art-house films, discuss what they had seen and begin creating their own films. |
|||
===1969–1985: Career beginnings in Hong Kong=== |
|||
In [[1969]], when he was 23, Woo got a job as a script supervisor at [[Cathay Studios]]. In [[1971]], he became assistant director in the famous [[Shaw Studios]], where the famous [[Chang Cheh]] took him under his wing. Woo directed his first film in [[1973]] called ''[[The Young Dragons]]''. Choreographed by the future [[Jackie Chan]], ''The Young Dragons'' was a kung-fu actioner that featured dynamic camera-work and elaborate action scenes. On the strength of this first effort, Woo moved onto [[Golden Harvest]] where he directed more martial arts films. He later became a comedy director with the success of ''[[The Pilferer's Progress]]'', a comedy that starred Hong Kong comedian [[Ricky Hui]]. |
|||
In 1969, Woo was hired as a script supervisor at [[Cathay Organisation|Cathay Studios]]. In 1971, he became an [[assistant director]] at [[Shaw Studios]].<ref name=":92">{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecTPwICYeBU |title=How Bruce Lee Changed the World |date=17 May 2009 |type=television documentary |publisher=[[History Channel]] / [[Discovery Channel]] |access-date=16 May 2022 |via=[[YouTube]] |archive-date=16 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516132750/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecTPwICYeBU&gl=US&hl=en |url-status=live }}</ref> The same year, he watched [[Bruce Lee]]'s ''[[The Big Boss]]'', which left a strong impression on him due to how different it was from earlier [[martial arts films]]. Lee's films inspired Woo to direct his own [[action films]].<ref name=":92"/> His directorial debut in 1974 was the feature film ''[[The Young Dragons]]'' (鐵漢柔情, ''Tiě hàn róu qíng'').<ref>{{Cite web|title=John Woo|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000247/|access-date=2021-06-24|website=IMDb|archive-date=18 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210718151918/https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000247/|url-status=live}}</ref> In the [[kung fu film]] genre, it was choreographed by [[Jackie Chan]].<ref name="Havis">{{cite news |last1=Havis |first1=Richard James |title=Being a stunt double for Bruce Lee made Jackie Chan want to be a star |url=https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3150677/revealed-martial-arts-star-jackie-chan-bruce-lee-everyone |access-date=19 March 2022 |work=[[South China Morning Post]] |date=3 October 2021 |archive-date=19 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319134532/https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3150677/revealed-martial-arts-star-jackie-chan-bruce-lee-everyone |url-status=live }}</ref> The film was picked up by [[Golden Harvest Studio]], where he went on to direct more martial arts films. He later had success as a comedy director with ''[[Money Crazy]]'' (發錢寒, ''Fā qián hàn'') (1977), starring Hong Kong comedian [[Ricky Hui]] and [[Richard Ng]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Andrew Saroch |title=Money Crazy (1977) - Review |url=https://www.fareastfilms.com/?review_post_type=money-crazy |access-date=2022-06-21 |website=Far East Films|archive-date=24 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524022144/https://www.fareastfilms.com/?review_post_type=money-crazy |url-status=live }}</ref> |
|||
===1986–1992: 'Heroic Bloodshed', breakthrough and international recognition=== |
|||
By the mid-[[1980s]], Woo suffered a [[burnout]]. His films were failures at the box office and he retreated to [[Taiwan]] in exile. John Woo - once called the new comedy king of Hong Kong - seemed to be on the way out. It was then that director/producer [[Tsui Hark]] provided the funding for Woo to helm a longtime pet project called ''[[A Better Tomorrow]]''. |
|||
By the mid-1980s, Woo was experiencing [[occupational burnout]]. Several of his films were commercial disappointments, and he felt a distinct lack of creative control. It was during this period of self-imposed exile that director/producer [[Tsui Hark]] provided the funding for Woo to film a longtime pet project, ''[[A Better Tomorrow]]'' (1986). The story of two brothers—one a law enforcement officer, the other a criminal—was a financial [[blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbuster]]. ''A Better Tomorrow'' became a defining achievement in [[Hong Kong action cinema]]<ref>{{IMDb name|247|section=bio}}</ref> |
|||
''John Woo: Interviews'' includes a 36-page interview with Woo by editor [[Robert K. Elder]], which documents the years 1968 to 1990. It includes Woo's early career in working on comedies, his work on kung fu films (during which time he gave [[Jackie Chan]] one of his first major film roles), and more recently, his gunpowder morality plays in Hong Kong.<ref>{{cite book |last=Elder |first=Robert |date=2005 |title=John Woo: Interviews |series=Conversations with filmmakers series |location=Jackson |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |isbn=978-1-57806-776-3}}</ref> |
|||
The story of two brothers—one a cop and another a criminal—''A Better Tomorrow'' became a sensational [[blockbuster]] and a staggering phenomenon. The film singularly redefined Hong Kong action cinema with its emotional drama, slow-motion gun-battles and gritty atmosphere. The film's trenchcoat/sunglasses fashion sense and art of using a gun in each hand was destined to be endlessly imitated by [[Hollywood]] filmmakers such as [[Quentin Tarantino]] and the [[Wachowski brothers]]. |
|||
===1993–2000: Move to the United States and international success=== |
|||
Together with leading man [[Chow Yun-Fat]], John Woo would make several more ''[[Heroic bloodshed|Heroic Bloodshed]]''-films in the late [[1980s]] and early [[1990s]]. His violent [[gangster]] [[thriller]]s typically focused on men who were steadfast in their honor and friendship, even though such values forced them to become outcasts in a rapidly-changing world that was more concerned with money and progress. In this respect, Woo's characters were modern-day knights who used guns instead of swords. |
|||
An émigré in 1993, the director experienced difficulty in cultural adjustment while contracted with [[Universal Pictures|Universal Studios]] to direct [[Jean-Claude Van Damme]] in ''[[Hard Target]]''. Like other foreign national film directors confronted with the Hollywood environment, Woo was unaccustomed to pervasive management concerns over matters such as limitations on violence and completion schedules. When initial cuts failed to yield an [[MPAA film rating system|"R" rated film]], the studio assumed control of the project and edited footage to produce a cut "suitable for American audiences". |
|||
A three-year hiatus saw Woo next direct [[John Travolta]] and [[Christian Slater]] in ''[[Broken Arrow (1996 film)|Broken Arrow]].'' A frenetic chase-themed film, the director once again found himself hampered by studio management and editorial concerns. Despite a larger budget than his previous ''[[Hard Target]],'' the final feature lacked the trademark Woo style. Public reception saw modest financial success. |
|||
The most famous of these movies would be ''[[Die xue shuang xiong|The Killer]]'', which brought Woo international recognition. Often called the best Hong Kong movie ever made, ''The Killer'' was the ultimate in sentimental action-pulp filmmaking with its tragic characters, masterful action sequences, passionate acting and beautiful cinematography. Widely praised by critics and adored by viewers, its status as the "perfect action film" was cemented. With ''The Killer'' becoming the first Asian film since [[Bruce Lee]]'s ''[[Enter the Dragon]]'' to be released in America, John Woo became a cult favorite. |
|||
Reluctant to pursue projects which would necessarily entail front-office controls, the director cautiously rejected the script for ''[[Face/Off]]'' several times until it was rewritten to suit him. (The futuristic setting was changed to a contemporary one.) [[Paramount Pictures]] also offered the director significantly more freedom to exercise his speciality: emotional characterisation and elaborate action. A complex story of adversaries—each of whom surgically alters their identity—law enforcement agent [[John Travolta]] and terrorist [[Nicolas Cage]] play a cat-and-mouse game, trapped in each other's outward appearance. ''Face/Off'' opened in 1997 to critical acclaim and strong attendance. Grosses in the United States exceeded $100 million. ''Face/Off'' was also nominated for an [[Academy Award]] in the category [[Academy Award for Best Sound Editing|Sound Effects Editing]] ([[Mark Stoeckinger]]) at the [[70th Academy Awards]]. |
|||
It was only a matter of time before Hollywood took notice. By this time, John Woo had many American admirers, including the likes of [[Martin Scorsese]], [[Sam Raimi]] - who compared Woo's mastery of action to [[Alfred Hitchcock|Hitchcock]]'s mastery of suspense - and [[Quentin Tarantino]], who rebuffed a studio executive who said that John Woo had a talent in directing action by saying "Sure and [[Michelangelo]] can paint ceilings!" |
|||
Around this period, Woo would also produce and direct several film and TV projects. In 1996, Woo produced and directed ''[[Once a Thief (1996 film)|Once a Thief]]'', a Canadian [[made-for-television]] remake of Woo's 1991 caper film. The teleplay subsequently spawned a [[television series]] [[Once a Thief (TV series)|of the same name]], which Woo executive produced. In 1998, Woo directed ''[[Blackjack (1998 film)|Blackjack]]'', which featured [[Dolph Lundgren]] as a [[Chromophobia#Terminology|leukophobic]] bodyguard who hunts down an assassin. The film was intended as a [[backdoor pilot]] for a television series, but was not picked up. That same year, Woo served as executive producer and action choreographer on [[Antoine Fuqua]]'s directorial debut ''[[The Replacement Killers]]'', which featured [[Chow Yun-Fat]]'s first international starring role. |
|||
Enormously impressed with his work, American executives green-lighted a contract for Woo to come work in America. With the 1997 handover of Hong Kong fast approaching, Woo decided that it was indeed time to leave. |
|||
Later, Woo directed ''[[Mission: Impossible 2]]'', the second entry in the [[Tom Cruise]]-led [[Mission: Impossible (film series)|action film series]]. Despite receiving mixed reviews, ''Mission: Impossible 2'' grossed over $549 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2000,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?yr=2000&p=.htm|title=2000 Yearly Box Office Results|access-date=19 October 2012|archive-date=6 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006084133/http://boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?yr=2000&p=.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> as well as of Woo's career.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/person/154440401-John-Woo#tab=technical&all_technical_credits=od5|title=John Woo - Box Office|access-date=16 October 2023|archive-date=4 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231204041225/https://www.the-numbers.com/person/154440401-John-Woo#tab=technical&all_technical_credits=od5|url-status=live}}</ref> |
|||
John Woo's last gift to Hong Kong was the film ''[[Hard-Boiled]]''. Infinitely darker than his previous films, it featured a Hollywood-like spectacle in its second half with policemen and criminals waging war inside a hospital - while helpless patients are caught in the crossfire. The film climaxes with supercop [[Chow Yun-Fat]] singing a lullaby to a baby while gunning down incoming gangsters. It is a touching yet harrowing final message from Woo who urges Hong Kong to safeguard and educate its young people in the face of uncertain rule from [[Mainland China]]. |
|||
===2001–2007: Decline in Hollywood and other ventures=== |
|||
In [[1993]], John Woo found himself in a new land with a new culture. He was commissioned by [[Universal Studios]] to direct the [[Jean Claude van Damme]] film ''[[Hard Target]]''. What came out of it was quite possibly the most scandal-ridden Hollywood event in recent memory. While Woo was used to creative freedom in Hong Kong, he was forced to deal with an unfairly compressed production schedule. He also faced studio-imposed restrictions such as how many people could be killed in each scene, how many bullets Van Damme could pump into somebody, how Van Damme could behave and so on. When initial cuts failed to yield an [[MPAA film rating system|"R" rated film]], the studio rudely took the film from Woo's hands and pared it down themselves in order to produce a cut that was "suitable for American audiences". |
|||
Woo made two additional films in Hollywood: ''[[Windtalkers]]'' (2002) and ''[[Paycheck (film)|Paycheck]]'' (2003), both of which fared poorly at the box office and were summarily dismissed by critics. Also in 2003, Woo directed a television pilot entitled ''The Robinsons: Lost in Space'' for The WB Television Network, based on the 1960s television series ''[[Lost in Space]]''. The pilot was not purchased. |
|||
Woo also directed and produced the 2007 video game ''[[Stranglehold (video game)|Stranglehold]]'', which is a sequel to his 1992 film, ''[[Hard Boiled]]''. The game features Woo as a multiplayer playable character. That same year he produced the [[anime]] movie, ''[[Appleseed: Ex Machina]]'', the sequel to [[Shinji Aramaki]]'s [[2004 in film|2004 film]] ''[[Appleseed (2004 film)|Appleseed]]''.<ref>Kelly, Kevin (17 December 2007). [https://io9.gizmodo.com/io9-links-up-with-appleseed-ex-machina-director-33339587 "io9 Links Up With 'Appleseed: Ex Machina' Director"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190929225104/https://io9.gizmodo.com/io9-links-up-with-appleseed-ex-machina-director-33339587 |date=29 September 2019 }}. [[Gizmodo]].</ref> |
|||
It would be three long years before Woo made another American directorial attempt. Starring [[John Travolta]] and [[Christian Slater]], ''[[Broken_Arrow(film)|Broken Arrow]]'' was a frantic chase-picture with a bigger budget. Unfortunately, Woo once again found himself hampered by studio interference. He clashed fiercely with editors who did not seem to understand the aesthetics of his filming style. What resulted was a deeply disappointing film that lacked Woo's trademark style. Fortunately, ''Broken Arrow'' managed to take in a reasonable profit at the box-office and paved the way for John Woo to tackle his next project: ''[[Face/Off]]''. |
|||
=== 2008–2017: ''Red Cliff'' and return to Asian cinema === |
|||
Still smarting from his bitter experiences, Woo cautiously rejected the script for ''Face/Off'' several times until it was rewritten to suit him. With [[Paramount Studios]] offering him significantly more freedom this time around, Woo set out to craft a complex story of two enemies—a law enforcement agent played by [[John Travolta]] and a terrorist played by [[Nicolas Cage]]—who embark on a fantastical surgical procedure that allows them to switch faces. Trapped in each other's identities, they play a cat-and-mouse game that allowed Woo to do what he did best: emotional characterization and elaborate action. ''Face/Off'' opened in [[1997]] to wide-acclaim from critics and performed enormously well at the box office, grossing over $100 million in the [[United States]] alone. ''Face/Off'' was the perfect American vehicle for Woo, a feat that has not been repeated since. As a result, John Woo became the first Asian director to hit mainstream, paving the way for other Asian filmmakers to follow in his footsteps. |
|||
In 2008, Woo returned to Asian cinema with the completion of the two-part [[epic film|epic]] [[war film]] ''[[Red Cliff (film)|Red Cliff]]'', based on a historical battle from ''[[Records of the Three Kingdoms]]''. Produced on a grand scale, it is his first film in China since he emigrated from Hong Kong to the United States in 1993. Part 1 of the film was released throughout Asia in July 2008, to generally favourable reviews and strong attendance. Part 2 was released in China in January 2009. |
|||
John Woo was presented with a [[Golden Lion]] award for lifetime achievement at the [[Venice Film Festival]] in 2010.<ref>[https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jn8fqNXb3XIs_esDukLr47rR7IvgD9I0JDEO0 Woo awarded Golden Lion for lifetime achievement] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100907000509/https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jn8fqNXb3XIs_esDukLr47rR7IvgD9I0JDEO0 |date=7 September 2010 }}</ref> |
|||
At the time of writing, John Woo has made three additional Hollywood films: ''[[Mission: Impossible II]]'', ''[[Windtalkers]]'' and ''[[Paycheck]]''. While ''Mission: Impossible II'' was a huge hit in [[2000]], ''Windtalkers'' and ''Paycheck'' have been box office duds that were lambasted by critics. It is unclear whether Woo will be able to bounce back from such disastrous failures. While he may never again reach the dizzying heights of his Hong Kong halcyon days, he still has a formidable legacy as the most imitated action auteur of the last twenty years. |
|||
He followed ''Red Cliff'' with another two-part film, ''[[The Crossing (2014 film)|The Crossing]]'', in 2014 and 2015. Featuring an all-star cast, the four-hour epic tells the parallel stories of several characters who all ultimately find themselves passengers on the doomed [[Taiping (steamer)|Taiping]] steamer, which sank in 1949 en route from mainland China to Taiwan and has been described as "China's ''[[Titanic]]''". |
|||
When asked about the [[dove]]s that keep appearing in his films, Woo said: |
|||
Following the box-office disappointment of ''[[The Crossing (2014 film)|The Crossing]]'', Woo and producer [[Terence Chang]] disbanded [[Lion Rock Productions]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.screendaily.com/features/interviews/terence-chang-talks-china-market-challenges-and-new-ventures/5119574.article|publisher=[[Screen Daily]]|title=Terence Chang talks China market challenges and new ventures|date=30 June 2017|access-date=10 July 2017|last=Shackleton|first=Liz|archive-date=30 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170630174012/http://www.screendaily.com/features/interviews/terence-chang-talks-china-market-challenges-and-new-ventures/5119574.article|url-status=live}}</ref> |
|||
:"I love doves. I am a Christian. Doves represent the purity of love, beauty. They're spiritual. Also the dove is a messenger between [[people]] and [[God]]. When I was in [[high school]] and I used to draw posters for the [[church]], I would draw a picture of a dove. When I shot ''[[Die xue shuang xiong|The Killer]]'', these two men, the killer and the [[police|cop]], they work in different ways, but their souls are pure, because they do the right thing. In the church scene, I wanted to bring them together. I wanted to use a metaphor of the heart. I came up with doves - they're white. When the men die, I cut to the dove flying-it's the soul, rescued and safe, and also pure of heart. So the dove became one of my habits: I used it in ''[[Hard Boiled]]'', ''[[Face/Off]]'', and in ''[[Mission: Impossible II]]'', at the end of the movie." |
|||
Woo followed up ''The Crossing'' with ''[[Manhunt (2017 film)|Manhunt]]'', a remake of the 1976 Japanese crime thriller [[Kimi yo Fundo no Kawa o Watare|of the same name]]. Production started on ''Manhunt'' in June 2016 in [[Osaka]]<ref name="sd-manhunt">{{cite web|url=http://www.screendaily.com/territories/asia-pacific/john-woos-manhunt-starts-shooting-in-osaka/5106038.article|work=Screen Daily|publisher=[[Screen International]]|title=John Woo's 'Manhunt' starts shooting in Osaka|last=Shackleton|first=Liz|date=20 June 2016|accessdate=14 December 2016|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160709011006/http://www.screendaily.com/territories/asia-pacific/john-woos-manhunt-starts-shooting-in-osaka/5106038.article|archivedate=9 July 2016}}</ref> and later reported to be finished filming by the end of November.<ref name="sd-manhunt" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.screendaily.com/news/afm-media-asia-launches-love-off-the-cuff-sales/5111068.article|work=Screen Daily|publisher=[[Screen International]]|title=AFM: Media Asia launches 'Love Off The Cuff' sales|accessdate=14 December 2016|last=Shackleton|first=Liz|date=5 November 2016|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170122114837/http://www.screendaily.com/news/afm-media-asia-launches-love-off-the-cuff-sales/5111068.article?referrer=RSS|archivedate=22 January 2017}}</ref> The film, co-led by Chinese actor [[Zhang Hanyu]] and Japanese actor [[Masaharu Fukuyama]], features a large Japanese cast including [[Yasuaki Kurata]], [[Jun Kunimura]], [[Hiroyuki Ikeuchi]], [[Nanami Sakuraba]], [[Naoto Takenaka]] and [[Tao Okamoto]].<ref name="sd-manhunt" /> In addition, Chinese actress [[Qi Wei]], Korean actress [[Ha Ji-won]] and Woo's daughter Angeles were cast in key roles in the film.<ref name="sd-manhunt" /> The film was released in China on 24 November 2017.<ref name="Gewara">{{cite web |url= http://www.gewara.com/movie/307934735|title= 追捕 - Manhunt|accessdate= 6 September 2017|work=Gewara|language= zh|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170906223512/http://www.gewara.com/movie/307934735|archivedate=6 September 2017|publisher=Maoyan}}</ref><ref name="cn-ManhuntReboot">{{cite web|url=http://china.org.cn/arts/2017-01/16/content_40112858.htm|work=China.org.cn|publisher=[[China Internet Information Center]]|title=John Woo remakes 'Manhunt' for career reboot|accessdate=15 May 2017|first=Zhang|last=Rui|date=16 January 2017|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116180240/http://china.org.cn/arts/2017-01/16/content_40112858.htm|archivedate=16 January 2017}}</ref><ref name="sd-manhunt" /> |
|||
=== 2021–present: ''Silent Night'' and return to Hollywood === |
|||
Following another hiatus, Woo returned to Hollywood to direct the action thriller ''[[Silent Night (2023 film)|Silent Night]]'', where a normal father heads into the underworld to avenge his young son's death. Produced by [[Basil Iwanyk]], the film starred [[Joel Kinnaman]] and was told entirely without dialogue.<ref name="Deadline">{{cite news|last1=Fleming|first1=Mike Jr.|title=John Woo Returns To Direct Joel Kinnaman In No-Dialogue Action Film 'Silent Night' – AFM|url=https://deadline.com/2021/10/john-woo-hollywood-return-silent-night-joel-kinnaman-wordless-action-film-1234864994/|publisher=Deadline|date=29 Oct 2021|access-date=1 November 2021|archive-date=30 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211030235249/https://deadline.com/2021/10/john-woo-hollywood-return-silent-night-joel-kinnaman-wordless-action-film-1234864994/|url-status=live}}</ref> It was Woo's first American feature film since ''[[Paycheck (film)|Paycheck]]'' (2003).<ref>{{Cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=September 22, 2023 |title=John Woo's First American Pic In 20 Years, 'Silent Night', Sets December Release |url=https://deadline.com/2023/09/john-woo-silent-night-release-date-1235554142/ |access-date=October 16, 2023 |website=Deadline |archive-date=3 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231003093448/https://deadline.com/2023/09/john-woo-silent-night-release-date-1235554142/ |url-status=live }}</ref> |
|||
Woo commented in 2015 that he would remake ''The Killer'' for American audiences. Initially, actress [[Lupita Nyong'o]] had been cast for the lead role,<ref name="var2018">{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2018/film/news/john-woo-lupita-nyongo-the-killer-remake-universal-1202792353/|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|title=Lupita Nyong'o to Star in 'The Killer' Remake With John Woo Directing|date=30 April 2018|first=Dave|last=McNary|access-date=2 May 2018|archive-date=2 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180502134551/http://variety.com/2018/film/news/john-woo-lupita-nyongo-the-killer-remake-universal-1202792353/|url-status=live}}</ref> however by March 2023, [[Nathalie Emmanuel]] was cast instead,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2023/03/game-of-throness-nathalie-emmanuel-omar-sy-universal-pictures-the-killer-remake-peacock-1235298609/ |title='Game of Thrones' Nathalie Emmanuel to Co-Star Opposite Omar Sy in 'The Killer' for Universal, Peacock and John Woo |date=14 March 2023 |access-date=16 October 2023 |archive-date=7 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230607114409/https://deadline.com/2023/03/game-of-throness-nathalie-emmanuel-omar-sy-universal-pictures-the-killer-remake-peacock-1235298609/ |url-status=live }}</ref> with [[Omar Sy]] joining the film as the cop character.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://deadline.com/2022/08/lupins-omar-sy-to-lead-john-woos-reimagining-of-the-killer-for-peacock-1235085318/ | title='Lupin's Omar Sy to Lead John Woo's Reimagining of 'The Killer' for Peacock | date=4 August 2022 | access-date=16 October 2023 | archive-date=4 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231204050823/https://deadline.com/2022/08/lupins-omar-sy-to-lead-john-woos-reimagining-of-the-killer-for-peacock-1235085318/ | url-status=live }}</ref> The film was directed by Woo, produced by [[Universal Pictures|Universal Studios]] and released exclusively on [[Peacock (streaming service)|Peacock]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Petski |first=Denise |date=2022-05-02 |title=Original Films From LeBron James, Will Packer & John Woo To Premiere On Peacock In 2023 |url=https://deadline.com/2022/05/original-films-from-lebron-james-will-packer-john-woo-to-premiere-on-peacock-in-2023-1235014097/ |access-date=2022-06-07 |website=Deadline |archive-date=2 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220502165037/https://deadline.com/2022/05/original-films-from-lebron-james-will-packer-john-woo-to-premiere-on-peacock-in-2023-1235014097/ |url-status=live }}</ref> |
|||
In September 2024, Woo's official Instagram account and the social media accounts of the duo [[Sparks (band)|Sparks]] all posted a photo of Woo with members [[Ron Mael|Ron]] and [[Russell Mael]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sparks Twitter account |url=https://x.com/sparksofficial/status/1831736280407056767 |website=www.x.com}}</ref> strongly hinting at collaborating on a "new project" which would not be an action film.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sparks Instagram post |url=https://www.instagram.com/p/C_iu4MXtF8_/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== |access-date=2024-09-07 |website=www.instagram.com}}</ref> The hashtag #xcrucior points to a musical Sparks have been developing with [[Focus Features]] as their follow-up to ''[[Annette (film)|Annette]]'' and sought a director for. Woo has previously tried to get musical projects in production,<ref>{{Cite web |title=John Woo to Direct New "Killer"-Meets-"Cabaret" Action Moviemusical |url=https://playbill.com/article/films-john-woo-to-direct-new-killer-meets-cabaret-action-moviemusical-com-117125 |website=Playbill}}</ref> and shares a love of French cinema and [[Jacques Demy|Jaques Demy]]'s ''[[The Umbrellas of Cherbourg]]'' with the Mael brothers.<ref name=":1" /> He later confirmed it to be a "half-musical".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-09 |title=John Woo's Next Film Is 'A Half-Musical' With Sparks: 'My First Movie Where I Don't Need A Stuntman' |url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/john-woo-half-musical-sparks-exclusive/ |access-date=2024-09-09 |website=Empire |language=en}}</ref> |
|||
===Unrealized film projects=== |
|||
In May 2008, Woo announced in Cannes that his next movie would be ''1949'', an epic love story set between the end of World War II and [[Chinese Civil War]] to [[History of the People's Republic of China|the founding of the People's Republic of China]], the shooting of which would take place in China and Taiwan. Its production was due to begin by the end of 2008, with a theatrical release planned in December 2009. However, in early April 2009, the film was cancelled due to script right issues. Reports indicated that Woo might be working on another World War II film, this time about the [[American Volunteer Group]], or the [[Flying Tigers]]. The movie was tentatively titled "Flying Tiger Heroes" and Woo is reported as saying it will feature "The most spectacular aerial battle scenes ever seen in Chinese cinema." It was not clear whether Woo would not be directing the earlier war film, or whether it was put on the back burner. Woo has stated that Flying Tiger Heroes would be an "extremely important production" and will "emphasise US-Chinese friendship and the contributions of the Flying Tigers and the Yunnan people during the war of resistance."<ref name="thr">{{cite journal |
|||
| last = Foreman |
|||
| first = Liza |
|||
| title = Woo sets prod'n clock for '1949' |
|||
| journal = The Hollywood Reporter, the Daily from Cannes |
|||
| issue = 8 |
|||
| page = 22 |
|||
| date = 21 May 2008 |
|||
}}</ref> Woo has announced he will be using [[IMAX]] cameras to film the ''Flying Tigers'' project. "It has always been a dream of mine to explore shooting with IMAX cameras and to work in the IMAX format, and the strong visual element of this film is incredibly well-suited to the tastes of cinemagoers today [...] Using IMAX for Flying Tigers would create a new experience for the audience, and I think it would be another breakthrough for Chinese movies".<ref>{{cite web|title=Woo's Flying Tigers to be shot in IMAX format|publisher=ScreenDaily|date=30 October 2010|url=http://www.screendaily.com/territories/asia-pacific/woos-flying-tigers-to-be-shot-in-imax-format/5017532.article|access-date=11 March 2010|archive-date=6 September 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100906074035/http://www.screendaily.com/territories/asia-pacific/woos-flying-tigers-to-be-shot-in-imax-format/5017532.article|url-status=live}}</ref> |
|||
==Personal life== |
|||
Woo has been married to Annie Woo Ngau Chun-lung since 1976. They have two daughters, Kimberley Woo, Angeles Woo, and a son Frank Woo.<ref name="Elder"/> He is a [[Christians|Christian]] and told [[BBC]] in an interview that he believes in God and has utmost admiration for [[Jesus]], whom he calls a "great philosopher".<ref name="BBC">{{cite news|last1=Pierce|first1=Nev|title=Calling The Shots: John Woo|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/films/callingtheshots/john_woo.shtml|publisher=BBC|date=24 September 2014|access-date=22 December 2019|archive-date=29 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200129231922/http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/callingtheshots/john_woo.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref> |
|||
His three favorite films are [[David Lean]]'s ''[[Lawrence of Arabia (film)|Lawrence of Arabia]]'', [[Akira Kurosawa]]'s ''[[Seven Samurai]]'' and [[Jean-Pierre Melville]]'s ''[[Le Samouraï]]''.<ref name="BBC" /> A complete list of his 48 inspirational films was published in May 2018.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=John Woo's list |url=https://www.lacinetek.com/fr-en/director-list/john-woo |access-date=2024-07-01 |website=LaCinetek |language=en-US}}</ref> As of July 2024, Woo is the only filmmaker who has listed ''[[The Bridge on the River Kwai]]'' by [[David Lean]] and ''[[Zorba the Greek (film)|Zorba the Greek]]'' by [[Michael Cacoyannis]] as favorites on LaCinetek, a French website that collects and publishes lists from film directors.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Vincentelli |first=Elisabeth |date=2020-07-29 |title=The World's Greatest Directors Have Their Own Streaming Lists |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/29/movies/la-cinetek-streaming.html |access-date=2024-07-01 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> |
|||
==Filmography== |
==Filmography== |
||
===Film=== |
|||
*''[[Paycheck]]'' ([[2003]]) |
|||
{| class="wikitable" |
|||
*''[[Windtalkers]]'' ([[2001]]) |
|||
|- |
|||
*''[[Mission: Impossible II]]'' ([[2000]]) |
|||
! Year |
|||
*''[[Hong Kong Face-Off]]'' ([[1998]]) |
|||
! Title |
|||
*''[[Blackjack (movie)|Blackjack]]'' ([[1998]]) (TV) |
|||
! width="65"| [[Film director|Director]] |
|||
*''[[Face/Off]]'' ([[1997]]) |
|||
! width="65"| [[Screenwriter|Writer]] |
|||
*''[[Once a Thief: Brother Against Brother]]'' ([[1996]]) (TV) |
|||
! width="65"| [[Film producer|Producer]] |
|||
*''[[Broken Arrow]]'' ([[1996]]) |
|||
! Notes |
|||
*''[[Hard Target]]'' ([[1993]]) |
|||
|- |
|||
*''[[Lashou shentan]]'' ([[1992]]) ''Hard-boiled'' |
|||
| rowspan="2"|1968 |
|||
*''[[Zong sheng si hai]]'' ([[1990]]) ''Once a Thief'' |
|||
| 死結 ''Sijie'' (''Dead Knot'') |
|||
*''[[Die xue jie tou]]'' ([[1990]]) ''Bullet in the Head'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
*''[[Die xue shuang xiong]]'' ([[1989]]) ''The Killer'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
*''[[Yi dan qun ying]]'' ([[1987]]) ''Tragic Heroes'' |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
*''[[Yinghung bunsik II]]'' ([[1987]]) ''A Better Tomorrow II'' |
|||
| Short film, co-directed with [[Sek Kei]] |
|||
*''Ying huang boon sik'' ([[1986]]) ''[[A Better Tomorrow]]'' |
|||
|- |
|||
*''Ying xiong wei lei'' ([[1986]]) ''Heroes Shed No Tears'' |
|||
| ''Ouran'' (''Accidentally'') |
|||
*''Liang zhi lao hu'' ([[1985]]) ''Run Tiger Run'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
*''Xiao jiang'' ([[1984]]) ''The time you need a friend'' |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
*''Ba cai Lin Ya Zhen'' ([[1982]]) ''Plain Jane to the Rescue'' |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
*''Hua ji shi dai'' ([[1981]]) ''Laughing Times'' |
|||
| Short film |
|||
*''Mo deng tian shi'' ([[1981]]) ''To Hell with the Devil'' |
|||
|- |
|||
*''Ha luo, ye gui ren'' ([[1978]]) ''Hello, Late Homecomers'' |
|||
| 1974 |
|||
*''Hao xia'' ([[1978]]) ''Last Hurrah for Chivalry'' |
|||
| ''[[The Young Dragons]]'' |
|||
*''Da sha xing yu xiao mei tou'' ([[1977]]) ''Follow the Star'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
*''Fa qian han'' ([[1977]]) ''Money Crazy'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
*''Qian zuo guai'' ([[1977]]) ''From Riches to Rags'' |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
*''Din?hua'' ([[1975]]) (as Yusen Wu) ''Princess Chang Ping'' |
|||
| |
|||
*''Shao Lin men'' ([[1975]]) ''Hand of Death'' |
|||
|- |
|||
*''Tie han rou qing'' ([[1975]]) ''Ninja Kids'' |
|||
| 1975 |
|||
*''Nu zi tai quan qun ying hui'' ([[1974]]) ''Belles of Taekwondo'' |
|||
| ''[[The Dragon Tamers]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2"|1976 |
|||
| ''[[Princess Chang Ping (film)|Princess Chang Ping]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| ''[[Hand of Death (1976 film)|Hand of Death]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| Also actor (as Scholar Cheng) |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1977 |
|||
| ''[[Money Crazy]]''<ref name=":0" /> |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| rowspan="2"|1978 |
|||
| ''[[Hello, Late Homecomers]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| ''[[Follow the Star]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| Also actor (as Mr. Chen) |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1979 |
|||
| ''[[Last Hurrah for Chivalry]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2"|1980 |
|||
| ''[[From Riches to Rags]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{Yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| ''[[Laughing Times]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2"|1982 |
|||
| ''[[To Hell with the Devil (film)|To Hell with the Devil]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| ''[[Plain Jane to the Rescue]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| Cameo (as a director playing God) |
|||
|- |
|||
| rowspan="2"|1984 |
|||
| ''[[The Time You Need a Friend]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| ''[[Heroes Shed No Tears (1986 film)|Heroes Shed No Tears]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1984 |
|||
| ''[[Run, Tiger, Run]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1986 |
|||
| ''[[A Better Tomorrow]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| Also actor (as Inspector Wu) |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1987 |
|||
| ''[[A Better Tomorrow II]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| rowspan="2"|1989 |
|||
| ''[[The Killer (1989 film)|The Killer]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| ''[[Just Heroes]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1990 |
|||
| ''[[Bullet in the Head]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| Also actor (as Police Inspector) |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1991 |
|||
| ''[[Once a Thief (1991 film)|Once a Thief]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1992 |
|||
| ''[[Hard Boiled]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| Also actor (as Bartender) |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1993 |
|||
| ''[[Hard Target]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1996 |
|||
| ''[[Broken Arrow (1996 film)|Broken Arrow]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1997 |
|||
| ''[[Face/Off]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2000 |
|||
| ''[[Mission: Impossible 2]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2002 |
|||
| ''[[Windtalkers]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2003 |
|||
| ''[[Paycheck (film)|Paycheck]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2005 |
|||
| ''[[All the Invisible Children]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| Segment "Song Song and Little Cat" |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2008 |
|||
| ''[[Red Cliff (film)|Red Cliff: Part I]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2009 |
|||
| ''[[Red Cliff (film)|Red Cliff: Part II]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2010 |
|||
| ''[[Reign of Assassins]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| Co-directed with Su Chao-pin |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2014 |
|||
| ''[[The Crossing (2014 film)|The Crossing: Part I]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2015 |
|||
| ''[[The Crossing (2014 film)|The Crossing: Part II]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2017 |
|||
| ''[[Manhunt (2017 film)|Manhunt]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2023 |
|||
| ''[[Silent Night (2023 film)|Silent Night]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2024 |
|||
| ''[[The Killer (2024 film)|The Killer]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|} |
|||
===Television=== |
|||
''See also:'' [[Cinema of China]] |
|||
{| class="wikitable" |
|||
|- |
|||
! Year |
|||
! Title |
|||
! width="65"| [[Television director|Director]] |
|||
! width="65"| [[Executive Producer]] |
|||
! Notes |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1996 |
|||
| ''[[Once a Thief (1996 film)|Once a Thief]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| TV movie |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1997–98 |
|||
| ''[[Once a Thief (TV series)|Once a Thief]]'' |
|||
| {{no}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1998 |
|||
| ''[[Blackjack (1998 film)|Blackjack]]'' |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| {{yes}} |
|||
| TV movie |
|||
|} |
|||
'''Producer only''' |
|||
{| class="wikitable" |
|||
|- |
|||
! Year |
|||
! Title |
|||
!Director |
|||
! Notes |
|||
|- |
|||
|1989 |
|||
|''[[A Better Tomorrow III: Love & Death in Saigon]]'' |
|||
|[[Tsui Hark]] |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
|1995 |
|||
| [[Peace Hotel (film)|''Peace Hotel'']] |
|||
|[[Wai Ka-fai]] |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
|1996 |
|||
|''[[Somebody Up There Likes Me (1996 film)|Somebody Up There Likes Me]]'' |
|||
|Patrick Leung |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
| rowspan="2" |1998 |
|||
|''[[The Replacement Killers]]'' |
|||
|[[Antoine Fuqua]] |
|||
|Woo also choreographed the action sequences |
|||
|- |
|||
|''[[The Big Hit]]'' |
|||
|[[Kirk Wong]] |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
|2003 |
|||
|''[[Bulletproof Monk]]'' |
|||
|[[Paul Hunter (director)|Paul Hunter]] |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|''The Glass Beads'' |
|||
|Angeles Woo |
|||
|Short film |
|||
|- |
|||
| rowspan="2" |2007 |
|||
|''[[Blood Brothers (2007 action film)|Blood Brothers]]'' |
|||
|Alexi Tan |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
|''[[Appleseed Ex Machina|Appleseed Saga: Ex Machina]]'' |
|||
|[[Shinji Aramaki]] |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
|2009 |
|||
|''My Fair Gentleman'' |
|||
|Li Ju-Yuan |
|||
| |
|||
|- |
|||
|2010 |
|||
|[[A Better Tomorrow (2010 film)|''A Better Tomorrow'']] |
|||
|[[Song Hae-sung]] |
|||
|Also writer |
|||
|- |
|||
|2011 |
|||
|''[[Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale|Seediq Bale]]'' |
|||
|[[Wei Te-sheng]] |
|||
| |
|||
|} |
|||
===Other works=== |
|||
*''Airport '98'' ([[Nike, Inc.|Nike]] commercial) (1998)<ref>{{Cite journal | last=Lang | first=Mark | title=Creative: Best Spots – April | journal=[[Adweek]] | date=11 May 1998 | url=http://www.adweek.com/aw/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=530947 }}</ref> |
|||
*''[[The Hire#Hostage|Hostage]]'' ([[branded content]] short film for [[BMW]]) (2002) |
|||
*''[[Seven Brothers (comics)|7 Brothers]]'' (graphic novel) (2006–2007) |
|||
*''[[Stranglehold (video game)|Stranglehold]]'' (video game) (2007) |
|||
*''Bloodstroke'' ([[iOS]] and [[Android (operating system)|Android]] videogame) (2014) |
|||
*''{{Interlanguage link|Asahi Super Dry|2=ja|3=アサヒスーパードライ|preserve=1}}'' ([[Asahi Breweries]] commercial) (2013) |
|||
*''[[The Men of Atalissa]]'' (New York Times short documentary) (2014)<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2014/03/07/pbss-pov-new-york-times-pact-on-digital-documentary-series/|title=PBS's POV, New York Times Pact on Digital Documentary Series|date=2014|author=Todd Spangler|access-date=2 June 2024|archive-date=2 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240602062444/https://www.chicagotribune.com/2014/03/07/pbss-pov-new-york-times-pact-on-digital-documentary-series/|url-status=live}}</ref> |
|||
==Accolades== |
|||
[[File:John_Woo_graumans.jpg|alt=A hand and shoe print reading "John Woo" at the top, the Chinese name "吳宇森" in the middle, and "5/21/2002" at the bottom.|thumb|Woo's hand and shoe prints in front of [[Grauman's Chinese Theatre]] in Hollywood]] |
|||
*2022 — Career Achievement Award at 26th [[Fantasia International Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.deccanherald.com/entertainment/entertainment-news/fantasia-2022-round-up-1134603.html |title= Fantasia 2022 round-up |first= Harish |last= Mallya |website= Deccan Herald |date= 9 August 2022 |access-date= 10 August 2022 |archive-date= 10 August 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220810072905/https://www.deccanherald.com/entertainment/entertainment-news/fantasia-2022-round-up-1134603.html |url-status= live }}</ref> |
|||
{| class="wikitable" |
|||
|- |
|||
! Year |
|||
! Title |
|||
! Award/Nomination |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1986 |
|||
| ''[[A Better Tomorrow]]'' |
|||
| [[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Film]]<br>Nominated–[[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director]]<br>Nominated–[[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Screenplay]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1989 |
|||
| ''[[The Killer (1989 film)|The Killer]]'' |
|||
| [[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director]]<br>Nominated–[[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Screenplay]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1990 |
|||
| ''[[Bullet in the Head]]'' |
|||
| Nominated–[[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1991 |
|||
| ''[[Once a Thief (1991 film)|Once a Thief]]'' |
|||
| Nominated–[[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1993 |
|||
| ''[[Hard Target]]'' |
|||
| Nominated–[[Saturn Award for Best Director]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| 1997 |
|||
| ''[[Face/Off]]'' |
|||
| [[Saturn Award for Best Director]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2008 |
|||
| ''[[Red Cliff (film)|Red Cliff: Part I]]'' |
|||
| Nominated–[[3rd Asian Film Awards|Asian Film Award for Best Director]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| 2009 |
|||
| ''[[Red Cliff (film)|Red Cliff: Part II]]'' |
|||
| Nominated–[[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Film]]<br>Nominated–[[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director]] |
|||
|} |
|||
==See also== |
|||
*[[Cinema of China]] |
|||
*[[Cinema of Hong Kong]] |
|||
==References== |
|||
{{Reflist}} |
|||
==Further reading== |
|||
===In English=== |
|||
* Bliss, Michael. ''Between the Bullets: The Spiritual Cinema of John Woo''. Filmmakers series, no. 92. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2002. {{ISBN|0-8108-4110-X}}. |
|||
* Brown, Andrew M. J. ''Directing Hong Kong: The Political Cinema of John Woo and Wong Kar-Wai''. Political Communications in Greater China: the Construction and Reflection of Identity. London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2001. {{ISBN|0-7007-1734-X}}. |
|||
* Crawford, Kevin R. "Mixing violence and religion in 'The Reckoning' : The Scripting of a Postmodern Action Thriller inside the John Woo-film noir Paradigm". Digital Dissertation/Theses, 2007. [http://sunzi1.lib.hku.hk/ER/detail/hkul/4082576] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612123221/http://sunzi1.lib.hku.hk/ER/detail/hkul/4082576 |date=12 June 2011 }}. |
|||
* Fang, Karen Y. ''John Woo's A Better Tomorrow''. The New Hong Kong Cinema. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2004. {{ISBN|962-209-652-2}}. |
|||
* Hall, Kenneth E. ''John Woo: The Films''. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 1999. {{ISBN|0-7864-0619-4}}. |
|||
* Heard, Christopher. ''Ten Thousand Bullets: The Cinematic Journey of John Woo''. Los Angeles: Lone Eagle Publishing Co., 2000. {{ISBN|1-58065-021-X}}. |
|||
* {{Cite book|last=Woo|first=John|editor=Elder, Robert K.|year=2005|title=John Woo:Interviews;Conversations with Filmmakers Series|publisher=University Press of Mississippi|isbn=978-1-57806-776-3|title-link=Conversations with Filmmakers Series}} |
|||
===Other languages=== |
|||
* Berruezo, Pedro J. ''John Woo y el cine de acción de Hong Kong''. Biblioteca Dr. Vértigo, 23. [Barcelona]: Ediciones Glénat, 2000. {{ISBN|84-8449-043-2}}. {{in lang|es}} |
|||
* Bertolino, Marco, and Ettore Ridola. ''John Woo: la violenza come redenzione''. Recco, Genova: Le mani, 1998. {{ISBN|88-8012-098-0}}. {{in lang|it}} |
|||
* Gaschler, Thomas, and Ralph Umard. ''Woo Leben und Werk''. München: Belleville, 2005. {{ISBN|3-933510-48-1}}. {{in lang|de}} |
|||
* [[Giona A. Nazzaro|Nazzaro, Giona A.]], and Andrea Tagliacozzo. ''John Woo: la nuova leggenda del cinema d'azione''. Contatti, 199. Roma: Castelvecchi, 2000. {{ISBN|88-8210-203-3}}. {{in lang|it}} |
|||
* Spanu, Massimiliano. ''John Woo''. Il castoro cinema, 203. Milano: Castoro, 2001. {{ISBN|88-8033-192-2}}. {{in lang|it}} |
|||
* Vié-Toussaint, Caroline. ''John Woo''. Paris: Dark star, 2001. {{ISBN|2-914680-01-5}}. {{in lang|fr}} |
|||
==External links== |
==External links== |
||
{{Commons category}} |
|||
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000247/ The IMDb entry on Woo] |
|||
*{{IMDb name|0000247}} |
|||
* [http://www.mediacircus.net/johnwoo.html Article on Woo and reviews of his films] |
|||
*[http://www.mediacircus.net/johnwoo.html A John Woo Retrospective] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191121180351/http://www.mediacircus.net/johnwoo.html |date=21 November 2019 }} |
|||
*[http://www.justpressplay.net/articles/2795-ten-hard-boiled-moments---the-best-of-john-woo.html Ten HARD BOILED Moments – The Best of John Woo] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191223055559/http://www.justpressplay.net/articles/2795-ten-hard-boiled-moments---the-best-of-john-woo.html |date=23 December 2019 }} |
|||
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20150511145112/http://coast.library.csulb.edu/record=b2286487%7ES7 Allegory and symbolism in John Woo's cinematic arts : themes and aesthetics] |
|||
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100612203217/http://undergroundrepublik.com/blog/2009/11/john-woo-interview |date=12 June 2010 |title=John Woo interview with ''Underground Republik'' }} |
|||
* [http://asiapacificarts.usc.edu/article@apa?apa_interview_with_john_woo_1899.aspx Interview by Aynne Kokas] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170826041954/http://asiapacificarts.usc.edu/article@apa?apa_interview_with_john_woo_1899.aspx |date=26 August 2017 }} Asia Pacific Arts, 19 November 2009 |
|||
{{John Woo}} |
|||
{{Navboxes |
|||
|title = Awards for John Woo |
|||
|list = |
|||
{{Golden Horse Award for Best Director}} |
|||
{{Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement}} |
|||
{{Best Director HKFA}} |
|||
{{Saturn Award for Best Director}} |
|||
{{MTV Movie Award for Best Action Sequence}} |
|||
}} |
|||
{{Authority control}} |
|||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woo, John}} |
|||
[[Category:1946 births]] |
|||
[[Category:Living people]] |
|||
[[Category:Action film directors]] |
|||
[[Category:Hong Kong film producers]] |
|||
[[Category:Hong Kong screenwriters]] |
|||
[[Category:Hong Kong expatriates in the United States]] |
|||
[[Category:Hong Kong people with disabilities]] |
|||
[[Category:Hong Kong Protestants]] |
|||
[[Category:Hong Kong film directors]] |
|||
[[Category:Artists from Guangzhou]] |
|||
[[Category:Writers from Guangzhou]] |
|||
[[Category:Chinese Civil War refugees]] |
|||
[[Category:Recipients of the Silver Bauhinia Star]] |
|||
[[Category:Screenwriters from Guangdong]] |
|||
[[Category:Film directors from Guangdong]] |
|||
[[Category:Writers with disabilities]] |
|||
[[Category:Artists with disabilities]] |
|||
[[Category:Film directors with disabilities]] |
|||
[[Category:Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement recipients]] |
Revision as of 03:42, 23 November 2024
John Woo | |||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Born | Wu Yu-seng 22 September 1946[1] Guangzhou, China | ||||||||||||||||||
Nationality | Hong Konger | ||||||||||||||||||
Occupations |
| ||||||||||||||||||
Years active | 1968–present | ||||||||||||||||||
Spouse |
Anne Chun-Lung Niu (m. 1976) | ||||||||||||||||||
Children | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 吳宇森 | ||||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 吴宇森 | ||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
Signature | |||||||||||||||||||
John Woo Yu-sen SBS (Chinese: 吳宇森; born 22 September 1946)[1] is a Hong Kong film director known as a highly influential figure in the action film genre.[2] The recipient of various accolades, including a Hong Kong Film Award for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Editing, as well as a Golden Horse Award, an Asia Pacific Screen Award and a Saturn Award, he is regarded as a pioneer of heroic bloodshed films and the gun fu genre in Hong Kong action cinema. He is known for his highly chaotic "bullet ballet"[3][4] action sequences, stylized imagery, Mexican standoffs, frequent use of slow motion and allusions to wuxia, film noir and Western cinema.[5]
Considered one of the major figures of Hong Kong cinema, Woo has directed several notable action films. He is known for his collaborations with actor Chow Yun-fat in five Hong Kong action films: A Better Tomorrow (1986), which made Chow a box-office superstar in Asia,[6] A Better Tomorrow II (1987), The Killer (1989), Once a Thief (1991), and Hard Boiled (1992). He has also directed martial arts films such as The Dragon Tamers (1975), Hand of Death (1976), and Last Hurrah for Chivalry (1979), and action comedies such as Follow the Star (1978), From Riches to Rags (1980), Run, Tiger, Run (1984), and Once a Thief (1991).
Hard Target (1993), starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, was his first American directorial debut, and the first major Hollywood film made by a Chinese director. His other Hollywood films include Broken Arrow (1996), Face/Off (1997) and Mission: Impossible 2 (2000).[5] He made his Canadian debut with the action comedy film Once a Thief (1996), which is a remake of Woo's 1991 film of the same name. He continued to be active in Hong Kong cinema, directing films such as the two-part historical epic The Crossing (2014). His first Chinese-language feature since Hard Boiled (1992) was the internationally co-produced Red Cliff (2008-2009),[5][7] which broke the Chinese box office record previously held by Titanic in mainland China.[8]
Woo is the creator of the comic series Seven Brothers, published by Virgin Comics. He is the founder and chairman of the production company Lion Rock Productions.[9]
Early life
Woo was born as Wu Yu-seng (Ng Yu-sum in Cantonese) on 22 September 1946, in Guangzhou, China, amidst the chaotic Chinese Civil War. Due to school age restrictions, his mother changed his birth date to 22 September 1948, which is what remains on his passport. The Woo family, who were Protestant Christians, faced persecution during Mao Zedong's early anti-bourgeois purges after the communist revolution in China, and fled to Hong Kong when he was five.[1][10]: xv, 3
Impoverished, the Woo family lived in the slums at Shek Kip Mei. His father was a teacher, though rendered unable to work by tuberculosis, and his mother was a manual laborer on construction sites.[11] The family was rendered homeless by the Shek Kip Mei Fire of 1953.[10] Charitable donations from disaster relief efforts enabled the family to relocate; however, violent crime had by then become commonplace in Hong Kong housing projects. At age three he was diagnosed with a serious medical condition. Following surgery on his spine, he was unable to walk correctly until eight years old, and as a result his right leg is shorter than his left leg.[12]
His Christian upbringing shows influences in his films.[13] As a young boy, Woo had wanted to be a Christian minister. He later found a passion for movies influenced by the French New Wave especially Jean-Pierre Melville. Woo has said he was shy and had difficulty speaking, but found making movies a way to explore his feelings and thinking and would "use movies as a language".[5]
Woo found respite in Bob Dylan and in American Westerns.[14] He has stated the final scene of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid made a particular impression on him in his youth: the device of two comrades, each of whom fire pistols from each hand, is a recurrent spectacle later found in his own work.[15]
Career
1969–1985: Career beginnings in Hong Kong
In 1969, Woo was hired as a script supervisor at Cathay Studios. In 1971, he became an assistant director at Shaw Studios.[16] The same year, he watched Bruce Lee's The Big Boss, which left a strong impression on him due to how different it was from earlier martial arts films. Lee's films inspired Woo to direct his own action films.[16] His directorial debut in 1974 was the feature film The Young Dragons (鐵漢柔情, Tiě hàn róu qíng).[17] In the kung fu film genre, it was choreographed by Jackie Chan.[18] The film was picked up by Golden Harvest Studio, where he went on to direct more martial arts films. He later had success as a comedy director with Money Crazy (發錢寒, Fā qián hàn) (1977), starring Hong Kong comedian Ricky Hui and Richard Ng.[19]
1986–1992: 'Heroic Bloodshed', breakthrough and international recognition
By the mid-1980s, Woo was experiencing occupational burnout. Several of his films were commercial disappointments, and he felt a distinct lack of creative control. It was during this period of self-imposed exile that director/producer Tsui Hark provided the funding for Woo to film a longtime pet project, A Better Tomorrow (1986). The story of two brothers—one a law enforcement officer, the other a criminal—was a financial blockbuster. A Better Tomorrow became a defining achievement in Hong Kong action cinema[20]
John Woo: Interviews includes a 36-page interview with Woo by editor Robert K. Elder, which documents the years 1968 to 1990. It includes Woo's early career in working on comedies, his work on kung fu films (during which time he gave Jackie Chan one of his first major film roles), and more recently, his gunpowder morality plays in Hong Kong.[21]
1993–2000: Move to the United States and international success
An émigré in 1993, the director experienced difficulty in cultural adjustment while contracted with Universal Studios to direct Jean-Claude Van Damme in Hard Target. Like other foreign national film directors confronted with the Hollywood environment, Woo was unaccustomed to pervasive management concerns over matters such as limitations on violence and completion schedules. When initial cuts failed to yield an "R" rated film, the studio assumed control of the project and edited footage to produce a cut "suitable for American audiences".
A three-year hiatus saw Woo next direct John Travolta and Christian Slater in Broken Arrow. A frenetic chase-themed film, the director once again found himself hampered by studio management and editorial concerns. Despite a larger budget than his previous Hard Target, the final feature lacked the trademark Woo style. Public reception saw modest financial success.
Reluctant to pursue projects which would necessarily entail front-office controls, the director cautiously rejected the script for Face/Off several times until it was rewritten to suit him. (The futuristic setting was changed to a contemporary one.) Paramount Pictures also offered the director significantly more freedom to exercise his speciality: emotional characterisation and elaborate action. A complex story of adversaries—each of whom surgically alters their identity—law enforcement agent John Travolta and terrorist Nicolas Cage play a cat-and-mouse game, trapped in each other's outward appearance. Face/Off opened in 1997 to critical acclaim and strong attendance. Grosses in the United States exceeded $100 million. Face/Off was also nominated for an Academy Award in the category Sound Effects Editing (Mark Stoeckinger) at the 70th Academy Awards.
Around this period, Woo would also produce and direct several film and TV projects. In 1996, Woo produced and directed Once a Thief, a Canadian made-for-television remake of Woo's 1991 caper film. The teleplay subsequently spawned a television series of the same name, which Woo executive produced. In 1998, Woo directed Blackjack, which featured Dolph Lundgren as a leukophobic bodyguard who hunts down an assassin. The film was intended as a backdoor pilot for a television series, but was not picked up. That same year, Woo served as executive producer and action choreographer on Antoine Fuqua's directorial debut The Replacement Killers, which featured Chow Yun-Fat's first international starring role.
Later, Woo directed Mission: Impossible 2, the second entry in the Tom Cruise-led action film series. Despite receiving mixed reviews, Mission: Impossible 2 grossed over $549 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2000,[22] as well as of Woo's career.[23]
2001–2007: Decline in Hollywood and other ventures
Woo made two additional films in Hollywood: Windtalkers (2002) and Paycheck (2003), both of which fared poorly at the box office and were summarily dismissed by critics. Also in 2003, Woo directed a television pilot entitled The Robinsons: Lost in Space for The WB Television Network, based on the 1960s television series Lost in Space. The pilot was not purchased.
Woo also directed and produced the 2007 video game Stranglehold, which is a sequel to his 1992 film, Hard Boiled. The game features Woo as a multiplayer playable character. That same year he produced the anime movie, Appleseed: Ex Machina, the sequel to Shinji Aramaki's 2004 film Appleseed.[24]
2008–2017: Red Cliff and return to Asian cinema
In 2008, Woo returned to Asian cinema with the completion of the two-part epic war film Red Cliff, based on a historical battle from Records of the Three Kingdoms. Produced on a grand scale, it is his first film in China since he emigrated from Hong Kong to the United States in 1993. Part 1 of the film was released throughout Asia in July 2008, to generally favourable reviews and strong attendance. Part 2 was released in China in January 2009.
John Woo was presented with a Golden Lion award for lifetime achievement at the Venice Film Festival in 2010.[25]
He followed Red Cliff with another two-part film, The Crossing, in 2014 and 2015. Featuring an all-star cast, the four-hour epic tells the parallel stories of several characters who all ultimately find themselves passengers on the doomed Taiping steamer, which sank in 1949 en route from mainland China to Taiwan and has been described as "China's Titanic".
Following the box-office disappointment of The Crossing, Woo and producer Terence Chang disbanded Lion Rock Productions.[26]
Woo followed up The Crossing with Manhunt, a remake of the 1976 Japanese crime thriller of the same name. Production started on Manhunt in June 2016 in Osaka[27] and later reported to be finished filming by the end of November.[27][28] The film, co-led by Chinese actor Zhang Hanyu and Japanese actor Masaharu Fukuyama, features a large Japanese cast including Yasuaki Kurata, Jun Kunimura, Hiroyuki Ikeuchi, Nanami Sakuraba, Naoto Takenaka and Tao Okamoto.[27] In addition, Chinese actress Qi Wei, Korean actress Ha Ji-won and Woo's daughter Angeles were cast in key roles in the film.[27] The film was released in China on 24 November 2017.[29][30][27]
2021–present: Silent Night and return to Hollywood
Following another hiatus, Woo returned to Hollywood to direct the action thriller Silent Night, where a normal father heads into the underworld to avenge his young son's death. Produced by Basil Iwanyk, the film starred Joel Kinnaman and was told entirely without dialogue.[31] It was Woo's first American feature film since Paycheck (2003).[32]
Woo commented in 2015 that he would remake The Killer for American audiences. Initially, actress Lupita Nyong'o had been cast for the lead role,[33] however by March 2023, Nathalie Emmanuel was cast instead,[34] with Omar Sy joining the film as the cop character.[35] The film was directed by Woo, produced by Universal Studios and released exclusively on Peacock.[36]
In September 2024, Woo's official Instagram account and the social media accounts of the duo Sparks all posted a photo of Woo with members Ron and Russell Mael,[37] strongly hinting at collaborating on a "new project" which would not be an action film.[38] The hashtag #xcrucior points to a musical Sparks have been developing with Focus Features as their follow-up to Annette and sought a director for. Woo has previously tried to get musical projects in production,[39] and shares a love of French cinema and Jaques Demy's The Umbrellas of Cherbourg with the Mael brothers.[40] He later confirmed it to be a "half-musical".[41]
Unrealized film projects
In May 2008, Woo announced in Cannes that his next movie would be 1949, an epic love story set between the end of World War II and Chinese Civil War to the founding of the People's Republic of China, the shooting of which would take place in China and Taiwan. Its production was due to begin by the end of 2008, with a theatrical release planned in December 2009. However, in early April 2009, the film was cancelled due to script right issues. Reports indicated that Woo might be working on another World War II film, this time about the American Volunteer Group, or the Flying Tigers. The movie was tentatively titled "Flying Tiger Heroes" and Woo is reported as saying it will feature "The most spectacular aerial battle scenes ever seen in Chinese cinema." It was not clear whether Woo would not be directing the earlier war film, or whether it was put on the back burner. Woo has stated that Flying Tiger Heroes would be an "extremely important production" and will "emphasise US-Chinese friendship and the contributions of the Flying Tigers and the Yunnan people during the war of resistance."[42] Woo has announced he will be using IMAX cameras to film the Flying Tigers project. "It has always been a dream of mine to explore shooting with IMAX cameras and to work in the IMAX format, and the strong visual element of this film is incredibly well-suited to the tastes of cinemagoers today [...] Using IMAX for Flying Tigers would create a new experience for the audience, and I think it would be another breakthrough for Chinese movies".[43]
Personal life
Woo has been married to Annie Woo Ngau Chun-lung since 1976. They have two daughters, Kimberley Woo, Angeles Woo, and a son Frank Woo.[10] He is a Christian and told BBC in an interview that he believes in God and has utmost admiration for Jesus, whom he calls a "great philosopher".[5]
His three favorite films are David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia, Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai and Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Samouraï.[5] A complete list of his 48 inspirational films was published in May 2018.[40] As of July 2024, Woo is the only filmmaker who has listed The Bridge on the River Kwai by David Lean and Zorba the Greek by Michael Cacoyannis as favorites on LaCinetek, a French website that collects and publishes lists from film directors.[44]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1968 | 死結 Sijie (Dead Knot) | Yes | Yes | No | Short film, co-directed with Sek Kei |
Ouran (Accidentally) | Yes | No | No | Short film | |
1974 | The Young Dragons | Yes | Yes | No | |
1975 | The Dragon Tamers | Yes | Yes | No | |
1976 | Princess Chang Ping | Yes | Yes | No | |
Hand of Death | Yes | Yes | No | Also actor (as Scholar Cheng) | |
1977 | Money Crazy[19] | Yes | Yes | No | |
1978 | Hello, Late Homecomers | Yes | Yes | No | |
Follow the Star | Yes | No | No | Also actor (as Mr. Chen) | |
1979 | Last Hurrah for Chivalry | Yes | Yes | No | |
1980 | From Riches to Rags | Yes | Yes | No | |
Laughing Times | Yes | Yes | No | ||
1982 | To Hell with the Devil | Yes | Yes | No | |
Plain Jane to the Rescue | Yes | No | No | Cameo (as a director playing God) | |
1984 | The Time You Need a Friend | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Heroes Shed No Tears | Yes | Yes | No | ||
1984 | Run, Tiger, Run | Yes | No | Yes | |
1986 | A Better Tomorrow | Yes | Yes | Yes | Also actor (as Inspector Wu) |
1987 | A Better Tomorrow II | Yes | Yes | No | |
1989 | The Killer | Yes | Yes | No | |
Just Heroes | Yes | No | No | ||
1990 | Bullet in the Head | Yes | Yes | Yes | Also actor (as Police Inspector) |
1991 | Once a Thief | Yes | Yes | No | |
1992 | Hard Boiled | Yes | Yes | No | Also actor (as Bartender) |
1993 | Hard Target | Yes | No | No | |
1996 | Broken Arrow | Yes | No | No | |
1997 | Face/Off | Yes | No | No | |
2000 | Mission: Impossible 2 | Yes | No | No | |
2002 | Windtalkers | Yes | No | Yes | |
2003 | Paycheck | Yes | No | Yes | |
2005 | All the Invisible Children | Yes | No | No | Segment "Song Song and Little Cat" |
2008 | Red Cliff: Part I | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
2009 | Red Cliff: Part II | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
2010 | Reign of Assassins | Yes | No | Yes | Co-directed with Su Chao-pin |
2014 | The Crossing: Part I | Yes | No | Yes | |
2015 | The Crossing: Part II | Yes | No | Yes | |
2017 | Manhunt | Yes | No | No | |
2023 | Silent Night | Yes | No | Yes | |
2024 | The Killer | Yes | No | Yes |
Television
Year | Title | Director | Executive Producer | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1996 | Once a Thief | Yes | Yes | TV movie |
1997–98 | Once a Thief | No | Yes | |
1998 | Blackjack | Yes | Yes | TV movie |
Producer only
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1989 | A Better Tomorrow III: Love & Death in Saigon | Tsui Hark | |
1995 | Peace Hotel | Wai Ka-fai | |
1996 | Somebody Up There Likes Me | Patrick Leung | |
1998 | The Replacement Killers | Antoine Fuqua | Woo also choreographed the action sequences |
The Big Hit | Kirk Wong | ||
2003 | Bulletproof Monk | Paul Hunter | |
2005 | The Glass Beads | Angeles Woo | Short film |
2007 | Blood Brothers | Alexi Tan | |
Appleseed Saga: Ex Machina | Shinji Aramaki | ||
2009 | My Fair Gentleman | Li Ju-Yuan | |
2010 | A Better Tomorrow | Song Hae-sung | Also writer |
2011 | Seediq Bale | Wei Te-sheng |
Other works
- Airport '98 (Nike commercial) (1998)[45]
- Hostage (branded content short film for BMW) (2002)
- 7 Brothers (graphic novel) (2006–2007)
- Stranglehold (video game) (2007)
- Bloodstroke (iOS and Android videogame) (2014)
- Asahi Super Dry (Asahi Breweries commercial) (2013)
- The Men of Atalissa (New York Times short documentary) (2014)[46]
Accolades
- 2022 — Career Achievement Award at 26th Fantasia International Film Festival.[47]
Year | Title | Award/Nomination |
---|---|---|
1986 | A Better Tomorrow | Hong Kong Film Award for Best Film Nominated–Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director Nominated–Hong Kong Film Award for Best Screenplay |
1989 | The Killer | Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director Nominated–Hong Kong Film Award for Best Screenplay |
1990 | Bullet in the Head | Nominated–Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director |
1991 | Once a Thief | Nominated–Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director |
1993 | Hard Target | Nominated–Saturn Award for Best Director |
1997 | Face/Off | Saturn Award for Best Director |
2008 | Red Cliff: Part I | Nominated–Asian Film Award for Best Director |
2009 | Red Cliff: Part II | Nominated–Hong Kong Film Award for Best Film Nominated–Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director |
See also
References
- ^ a b c Rawnsley, Gary D. Rawnsley, Ming-Yeh T. (2003). Political Communications in Greater China: construction and reflection identity. Routledge; ISBN 0-7007-1734-X.[page needed]
- ^ "John Woo". Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
- ^ Kehr, Dave (14 July 2002). "John Woo: Ballets full of bullets". the Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 October 2022. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
- ^ Weinraub, Bernard (22 February 1996). "ON LOCATION WITH: John Woo;Ballets With Bullets". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 29 October 2022. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f Pierce, Nev (24 September 2014). "Calling The Shots: John Woo". BBC. Archived from the original on 29 January 2020. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
- ^ "Chow Yun-Fat | Biography, Movies, & Facts | Britannica".
- ^ "WOO John - Festival de Cannes 2014 (International Film Festival)". Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Festival de Cannes fiche artiste (artist profile) - ^ 《赤壁》夺日票房冠军 大破《英雄》票房纪录 [Red Cliff wins the box office champion of the day and breaks the 'hero' box office record] (in Chinese). 6 November 2008. Archived from the original on 31 August 2009. Retrieved 2 March 2009.
- ^ "John Woo". Variety. 7 November 2013. Archived from the original on 23 December 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
- ^ a b c Woo, John (2005). Elder, Robert K. (ed.). John Woo:Interviews;Conversations with Filmmakers Series. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-57806-776-3.
- ^ Leydon, Joe (3 January 1993). "COVER STORY New Gun in Town John Woo, Hong Kong's legendary action director, teams with Jean-Claude Van Damme for his first American thriller, 'Hard Target'".[dead link ]
- ^ "Famous Persons with Disabilities". Tampagov.net. Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
- ^ June 2000 edition of Premiere magazine
- ^ amiamcable (27 October 2015). "John Woo". N/A. Archived from the original on 1 March 2018. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
- ^ Szeto, Kin-Yan (2011). The Martial Arts Cinema of the Chinese Diaspora: Ang Lee, John Woo, & Jackie Chan in Hollywood. SIU Press. p. 77. ISBN 978-0809330218. Archived from the original on 5 March 2024. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
- ^ a b How Bruce Lee Changed the World (television documentary). History Channel / Discovery Channel. 17 May 2009. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 16 May 2022 – via YouTube.
- ^ "John Woo". IMDb. Archived from the original on 18 July 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
- ^ Havis, Richard James (3 October 2021). "Being a stunt double for Bruce Lee made Jackie Chan want to be a star". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 19 March 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
- ^ a b Andrew Saroch. "Money Crazy (1977) - Review". Far East Films. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
- ^ Biography for John Woo at IMDb
- ^ Elder, Robert (2005). John Woo: Interviews. Conversations with filmmakers series. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-57806-776-3.
- ^ "2000 Yearly Box Office Results". Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
- ^ "John Woo - Box Office". Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ Kelly, Kevin (17 December 2007). "io9 Links Up With 'Appleseed: Ex Machina' Director" Archived 29 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Gizmodo.
- ^ Woo awarded Golden Lion for lifetime achievement Archived 7 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Shackleton, Liz (30 June 2017). "Terence Chang talks China market challenges and new ventures". Screen Daily. Archived from the original on 30 June 2017. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
- ^ a b c d e Shackleton, Liz (20 June 2016). "John Woo's 'Manhunt' starts shooting in Osaka". Screen Daily. Screen International. Archived from the original on 9 July 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
- ^ Shackleton, Liz (5 November 2016). "AFM: Media Asia launches 'Love Off The Cuff' sales". Screen Daily. Screen International. Archived from the original on 22 January 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
- ^ "追捕 - Manhunt". Gewara (in Chinese). Maoyan. Archived from the original on 6 September 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
- ^ Rui, Zhang (16 January 2017). "John Woo remakes 'Manhunt' for career reboot". China.org.cn. China Internet Information Center. Archived from the original on 16 January 2017. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
- ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (29 October 2021). "John Woo Returns To Direct Joel Kinnaman In No-Dialogue Action Film 'Silent Night' – AFM". Deadline. Archived from the original on 30 October 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (22 September 2023). "John Woo's First American Pic In 20 Years, 'Silent Night', Sets December Release". Deadline. Archived from the original on 3 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ McNary, Dave (30 April 2018). "Lupita Nyong'o to Star in 'The Killer' Remake With John Woo Directing". Variety. Archived from the original on 2 May 2018. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
- ^ "'Game of Thrones' Nathalie Emmanuel to Co-Star Opposite Omar Sy in 'The Killer' for Universal, Peacock and John Woo". 14 March 2023. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ "'Lupin's Omar Sy to Lead John Woo's Reimagining of 'The Killer' for Peacock". 4 August 2022. Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ Petski, Denise (2 May 2022). "Original Films From LeBron James, Will Packer & John Woo To Premiere On Peacock In 2023". Deadline. Archived from the original on 2 May 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
- ^ "Sparks Twitter account". www.x.com.
- ^ "Sparks Instagram post". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
- ^ "John Woo to Direct New "Killer"-Meets-"Cabaret" Action Moviemusical". Playbill.
- ^ a b "John Woo's list". LaCinetek. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
- ^ "John Woo's Next Film Is 'A Half-Musical' With Sparks: 'My First Movie Where I Don't Need A Stuntman'". Empire. 9 September 2024. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
- ^ Foreman, Liza (21 May 2008). "Woo sets prod'n clock for '1949'". The Hollywood Reporter, the Daily from Cannes (8): 22.
- ^ "Woo's Flying Tigers to be shot in IMAX format". ScreenDaily. 30 October 2010. Archived from the original on 6 September 2010. Retrieved 11 March 2010.
- ^ Vincentelli, Elisabeth (29 July 2020). "The World's Greatest Directors Have Their Own Streaming Lists". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
- ^ Lang, Mark (11 May 1998). "Creative: Best Spots – April". Adweek.
- ^ Todd Spangler (2014). "PBS's POV, New York Times Pact on Digital Documentary Series". Archived from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
- ^ Mallya, Harish (9 August 2022). "Fantasia 2022 round-up". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 10 August 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
Further reading
In English
- Bliss, Michael. Between the Bullets: The Spiritual Cinema of John Woo. Filmmakers series, no. 92. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2002. ISBN 0-8108-4110-X.
- Brown, Andrew M. J. Directing Hong Kong: The Political Cinema of John Woo and Wong Kar-Wai. Political Communications in Greater China: the Construction and Reflection of Identity. London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2001. ISBN 0-7007-1734-X.
- Crawford, Kevin R. "Mixing violence and religion in 'The Reckoning' : The Scripting of a Postmodern Action Thriller inside the John Woo-film noir Paradigm". Digital Dissertation/Theses, 2007. [1] Archived 12 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
- Fang, Karen Y. John Woo's A Better Tomorrow. The New Hong Kong Cinema. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2004. ISBN 962-209-652-2.
- Hall, Kenneth E. John Woo: The Films. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 1999. ISBN 0-7864-0619-4.
- Heard, Christopher. Ten Thousand Bullets: The Cinematic Journey of John Woo. Los Angeles: Lone Eagle Publishing Co., 2000. ISBN 1-58065-021-X.
- Woo, John (2005). Elder, Robert K. (ed.). John Woo:Interviews;Conversations with Filmmakers Series. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-57806-776-3.
Other languages
- Berruezo, Pedro J. John Woo y el cine de acción de Hong Kong. Biblioteca Dr. Vértigo, 23. [Barcelona]: Ediciones Glénat, 2000. ISBN 84-8449-043-2. (in Spanish)
- Bertolino, Marco, and Ettore Ridola. John Woo: la violenza come redenzione. Recco, Genova: Le mani, 1998. ISBN 88-8012-098-0. (in Italian)
- Gaschler, Thomas, and Ralph Umard. Woo Leben und Werk. München: Belleville, 2005. ISBN 3-933510-48-1. (in German)
- Nazzaro, Giona A., and Andrea Tagliacozzo. John Woo: la nuova leggenda del cinema d'azione. Contatti, 199. Roma: Castelvecchi, 2000. ISBN 88-8210-203-3. (in Italian)
- Spanu, Massimiliano. John Woo. Il castoro cinema, 203. Milano: Castoro, 2001. ISBN 88-8033-192-2. (in Italian)
- Vié-Toussaint, Caroline. John Woo. Paris: Dark star, 2001. ISBN 2-914680-01-5. (in French)
External links
- John Woo at IMDb
- A John Woo Retrospective Archived 21 November 2019 at the Wayback Machine
- Ten HARD BOILED Moments – The Best of John Woo Archived 23 December 2019 at the Wayback Machine
- Allegory and symbolism in John Woo's cinematic arts : themes and aesthetics
- John Woo interview with Underground Republik at the Wayback Machine (archived 12 June 2010)
- Interview by Aynne Kokas Archived 26 August 2017 at the Wayback Machine Asia Pacific Arts, 19 November 2009
- 1946 births
- Living people
- Action film directors
- Hong Kong film producers
- Hong Kong screenwriters
- Hong Kong expatriates in the United States
- Hong Kong people with disabilities
- Hong Kong Protestants
- Hong Kong film directors
- Artists from Guangzhou
- Writers from Guangzhou
- Chinese Civil War refugees
- Recipients of the Silver Bauhinia Star
- Screenwriters from Guangdong
- Film directors from Guangdong
- Writers with disabilities
- Artists with disabilities
- Film directors with disabilities
- Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement recipients