John Woo

Paper Summary:

This paper provides a brief biography of John Woo who is considered to be one of the most successful directors in the Hong Kong film industry, which ranks behind those of India and the United States as the third largest in the world. It examines how he left Hong Kong to settle in Los Angeles in 1992, hoping, on the basis of his very strong critical and professional reputation, to make the transition to directing Hollywood films. It analyzes his success, given the xenophobia and racism of Hollywood, and looks at the inherent style of some of his films.

From the Paper:

"After his first big hit Woo's success as a director fluctuated, but he wanted most to make movies that drew on Melville and the exciting new work that was coming out of Hollywood. He had not had a hit in several years when, in 1984, producer and director Tsui Hark and his wife Nansun Shi formed their own production company, Film Workshop. They agreed to back the film Woo had talked about for so long. It was a gangster film called A Better Tomorrow that featured three central roles: a gangster named Ho who is betrayed by his triad and comes out of jail determined to reform; Ho's younger brother Kit who, ignorant of his brother's line of work, is an idealistic and ambitious police officer; and Ho's partner and friend Mark. For the important role of Mark, Woo was "looking for a Chinese version of the suave French actor Alain Delon" who had starred in Melville's Un Flic (1972) and, most memorably, as the weary assassin in that director's Le Samourai (1967) (Dannen 41). He found Chow Yun-fat, who had been typecast as a romantic lead in soap operas and welcomed the change. The combination of director and star proved irresistible."

More papers on John Woo:

• Essay # 15510 : "John Woo"
• Essay # 31768 : "Chinese Film and Folklore Mythology"
• Essay # 37341 : "Hong Kong Action Cinema"

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