You can instantly recognize the same spirit as the _John Wick_ movies in this, some very cool use of dramatic lighting and inventive set pieces. I just wish John Woo had a better sense of taste when it comes to acting, dialogue and particularly editing. I'm glad he toned the kitsch factor down just a little bit for _Hard Boiled_, because I couldn't take much of this movie seriously. Just take a look at the extreme cross cutting, sentimental score, excessive slow motion, clumsy drum machines and sound effects; I like some cheesy action movies from around this time (e.g. films by John McTiernan or James Cameron) but this is way too tacky for my liking. The earnest direction doesn't help either; the story is so dumb that it probably would've benefitted from more ironic direction. I honestly don't see what's supposed to separate this from the overly cheesy Hollywood movies people love to shit on, unless we're merely judging this by the set pieces. Let's be honest with ourselves: what's the difference between Michael Bay and John Woo besides the latter being better at staging a shoot out? I understand that it's cool to like relatively obscure Hong Kong cinema, but maybe it's time to reassess some of this stuff.

4/10