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Hard Boiled Reviews

1992 Certificate 18
  • Rated:
  • 70
  • from 8020 members

When a tough police officer's (Chow Yun-Fat) partner is brutally murdered, he joins forces with another loose-cannon cop (Tony Leung) to exact his own bloody revenge on the gun-smuggling gangsters responsible for his friend's death. A lot of action, guns, and violence, all masterfully rendered by action maestro John Woo (THE .. Read more

Starring Tony Leung, Chow Yun-Fat, Philip Chan, Bowie Lam
Director John Woo
Genres Action/Adventure, Thriller, World Cinema

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  • Critics' reviews (5) of Hard Boiled

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  • 1 stars out of 4

    Spectacularly violent gangster movie, with a body-count in the hundreds and stylishly choreographed, slow-motion deaths and stunts; possibly the best example of John Woo's particular talents for large-scale mayhem.

    • Halliwell's Film Guide
  • In essence, John Woo's characteristic take on movies like Die Hard: a supercharged thriller in which a renegade cop and... read more on Time Out

    • Time Out
  • "...[Woo is] a very brisk, talented director with a gift for the flashy effect and the bizarre confrontation..."

    • New York Times
  • Most helpful members' reviews (3) of Hard Boiled

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  • 35 out of 39 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 5 stars

    Hard Boiled Hardcore

    Want to see one of the greatest action films of all tme? Then watch this. Woo's greatest film. Ok its getting on a bit now, but the action is just on another level to any you have seen before. It takes the no reload rule to a new level. So yes its completely ott but just enjoy! Even after the PUB! if you need to. Duh! Hint. Its the best time to.

    There is a lightly better transfer of it from Tartan films i think. Its not the best but apperently its the best we'll get.

      • Nigel Hannah from Ashby De La Zouch
  • 27 out of 29 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    No house of flying daggers....just bullets!!!

    Awesome, Nothing beats a good blood bath once in a while! Frantic gun action all the way, great cinematography in one word brilliant if you want to watch a film without having to think too hard this is it. The film is subtitled since its based in Hongkong but you dont really need to pay much attention! Action none stop all the way!! - try counting the amount of people that get shot - you kind of lose count after 2 minutes - you get the picture!

    Great music, great triad ganster warfare all the way. A cracker of a movie you simply must have in your collection!

      • Kian from Whitley Bay, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear, UK
  • 22 out of 25 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 1 star

    Dubbed!

    Might be a great film, might not be, but I'm not going to find out from this disk. Dubbed into English, no chance to get the original dialogue, no subtitles. Not good enough.

      • Martin Adamson from Edinburgh, UK
  • Most recent members' reviews (2) of Hard Boiled

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  • 1 out of 1 person found this review helpful

    Rated - 5 stars

    Bang

    A true action movie the slightest incling of getting bored and you know someone's going to get shot

    • Fluff
      • Fluff from Rickmansworth
  • 27 out of 29 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    No house of flying daggers....just bullets!!!

    Awesome, Nothing beats a good blood bath once in a while! Frantic gun action all the way, great cinematography in one word brilliant if you want to watch a film without having to think too hard this is it. The film is subtitled since its based in Hongkong but you dont really need to pay much attention! Action none stop all the way!! - try counting the amount of people that get shot - you kind of lose count after 2 minutes - you get the picture!

    Great music, great triad ganster warfare all the way. A cracker of a movie you simply must have in your collection!

      • Kian from Whitley Bay, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear, UK
  • 35 out of 39 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 5 stars

    Hard Boiled Hardcore

    Want to see one of the greatest action films of all tme? Then watch this. Woo's greatest film. Ok its getting on a bit now, but the action is just on another level to any you have seen before. It takes the no reload rule to a new level. So yes its completely ott but just enjoy! Even after the PUB! if you need to. Duh! Hint. Its the best time to.

    There is a lightly better transfer of it from Tartan films i think. Its not the best but apperently its the best we'll get.

      • Nigel Hannah from Ashby De La Zouch
  • 27 out of 29 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    No house of flying daggers....just bullets!!!

    Awesome, Nothing beats a good blood bath once in a while! Frantic gun action all the way, great cinematography in one word brilliant if you want to watch a film without having to think too hard this is it. The film is subtitled since its based in Hongkong but you dont really need to pay much attention! Action none stop all the way!! - try counting the amount of people that get shot - you kind of lose count after 2 minutes - you get the picture!

    Great music, great triad ganster warfare all the way. A cracker of a movie you simply must have in your collection!

      • Kian from Whitley Bay, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear, UK
  • 22 out of 25 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 1 star

    Dubbed!

    Might be a great film, might not be, but I'm not going to find out from this disk. Dubbed into English, no chance to get the original dialogue, no subtitles. Not good enough.

      • Martin Adamson from Edinburgh, UK
  • 13 out of 13 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    Wild!

    Perhaps the greatest gunplay movie ever (only the killer (again John Woo & Chow Yun Fat) comes close, its a better movie but not as much action(Can you GET more action?!))

    I spent £40 importing a uncut VHS of this almost 10 years ago, its a great movie, funny,action packed,emotional. Chow Yun Fats a hard boiled cop. Watch out for the 30 min finale...Wow! How many bullets does John Woo go through?

      • TheElz from Durham
  • 7 out of 7 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    A great Action romp

    First of all, John Woo was far better when he was in Hong Kong than any of his modern day hollywood blockbusters. I saw Paycheck, one of his latest films, the other day and at the time it was average at best i thought. But after seeing Hard Boiled Paycheck simply pails into insignificance compared to it. It manages to combine stunning chorreography, a complex plot and deepens the characters believability. It acheives what most other films do by adding touches of beauty to the film, and as i mentioned earlier the choreography is stunning. It also contains some of the most spectacular fight scences i've ever scene, (the warehouse and hospital battles), and to put it in the words of Empire when the film origional came out- 'Hard Boiled is worth 10 Die Hards'

      • A customer from England, London
  • 4 out of 4 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 5 stars

    One of John Woo's finest moments

    One of the most violent films ever to grace our screens: the first scene, the tea-house shoot out alone produces more dead bodies than a dozen horror flicks. We are talking body counts of double, almost triple figures. In the hospital scene there's so much shooting going on, one cop accidentally ends up shooting a colleague - how's that for backup support?

    Tony Leung plays a hitman with a sinister secret and Chow Yun Fat plays an angry police officer who likes to get his own way. Basically Chow's character Tequila is angry because his friend was killed by a Triad gang and wants revenge. Also the fact that there is a huge amount of illegal arms in circulation doesn't help his cause. He tries to uncover where they are all stored. The last 45 minutes of this movie is non-stop action, and believe me no other film has action of this calibre. This is one of those rare films where you watch the beginning bit and get drawn into watching the whole movie. Philip Kwok and Anthony Wong also deserve a mention for their good performances.

      • Ivan from ESSEX
  • 4 out of 6 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 5 stars

    wow

    only can say watch this movie, not to be missed.

      • M.A from London, England
  • 3 out of 3 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 1 star

    call this action

    from all the reviews i have heard this is is action all the time but its not.it opened up realy well with the teahouse shootout but then no action atall.in the end i turned it off dont listen to the reviews. this is a thriller not action

      • theforsters from Waterlooville
  • 2 out of 2 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    Woo Yay!

    John Woo at his best.

    Forget any of his cringemaking HollyWierd excusions - this is the sh*t! Heroic gunplay at it's finest.

    Chow Yun Fat is fabulous - action sequences are stunning, the humour translates across the language barrier and the final scene is a near hour long gun battle in a hospital....

    What else do you want?

      • Catchag from Whyteleafe
  • 2 out of 2 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 5 stars

    One of the best action films ever

    This film, probably John Woo's best, comes very highly recommended. Not only does the film contain what are probably the greatest action scenes ever (the huge hospital shoot-out at the end being the stand-out), but Chow-Yun Fat is a good enough actor to give the film an emotional kick as well. Plus, the immense style from Woo's direction makes the whole thing enjoyable as hell. Damn violent, but very, very good

      • A.T. from London, England
  • Critics' reviews (5)

  • 1 stars out of 4

    Spectacularly violent gangster movie, with a body-count in the hundreds and stylishly choreographed, slow-motion deaths and stunts; possibly the best example of John Woo's particular talents for large-scale mayhem.

    • Halliwell's Film Guide
  • In essence, John Woo's characteristic take on movies like Die Hard: a supercharged thriller in which a renegade cop and... read more on Time Out

    • Time Out
  • "...[Woo is] a very brisk, talented director with a gift for the flashy effect and the bizarre confrontation..."

    • New York Times
  • "...From Hong Kong with a bullet, an action classic..."

    • Premiere
  • "...A ballet of violence..."

    • Variety

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    • Hard Boiled
      When a tough police officer's (Chow Yun-Fat) partner is brutally murdered, he joins forces with another loose-cannon cop (Tony Leung) to exact his own bloody revenge on the gun-smuggling gangsters responsible for his friend's death. A lot of action, guns, and violence, all masterfully rendered by ...

Rating breakdown

8,020 Member ratings
  • 100
994
  • 90
788
  • 80
1,571
  • 70
1,406
  • 60
1,294
  • 50
691
  • 40
468
  • 30
311
  • 20
324
  • 10
173

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