The Killer (1989)

The Killer (1989)

8/10

Starring

Chow Yun-fat

Danny Lee

Sally Yeh

Chu Kong

Directed by John Woo

The Killer has powerful action scenes, with guns blaring left, right and center. Plus, the story is so well fleshed up that it is almost impossible to look away.

After seeing A Better Tomorrow (1986) I was moved to see another John Woo movie of the 80s. If you think A Better Tomorrow (1986) is fantastic, then there are no English words left to describe The Killer. The movie takes you on every turn you can think of and when you think it is done you are turned once more.

What I enjoyed is the dynamic way the plot builds. Chow Yun-fat was so good in this movie I cannot imagine another person able to give such a powerful performance.

An assassin with compassion, that is the whole premise to which this movie is built and John Woo made sure the action is not over shadowed by the drama, nor the drama the action. The movie is well balanced and the pacing is so well done that you will not be able to look away.

The movie plot is about an assassin Ah Jong (Chow Yun-fat) who was sent to kill a man. While performing his duties he met a lady. His actions at the club where she worked and where he killed that man affected her permanently. Feeling guilty for what he has caused he took it upon himself to care for her, which led to them developing a relationship.

Now Ah Jong wants out of the triad and wants to do one more job to get enough money to leave. As you would expect things did not go as planned.

The shootout at the ending is just a classic and I like the way the movie ended, not trying to over do it or make a mockery of all the work it has done building the viewer up.

The movie is a critical success, one movie that helped stamp the name of John Woo as a creative genius when it comes to action movies. Woo borrowed plot elements from the french film Le Samouraï and developed the screenplay as the film was shooting. The main reason we are getting to see this movie is because Chow Yun-fat agreed to play the main role, and convinced the production company he was tied to, to fund the film.

The movie has the same feel like Léon The Professional (1994) which was the child of French director Luc Besson.

This is my first time seeing this movie and I cannot believe how fantastic it is.