07-22-2019, 03:06 AM
Bullet in the Head (1990)
Director John Woo originally wrote 'Bullet in the Head' as a Vietnam-set prequel to 'A Better Tomorrow' but he fell out with Producer Tsui Hark, so Woo's script was re-tooled and Hark went off and made his own prequel. Four Hong Kong gang members and childhood friends seek their fortunes in war ravaged Vietnam but the horrors they witness tear them apart. Michael Cimino's 'The Deer Hunter' is unmistakably the inspiration for this film, except Woo uses the political turmoil of the 1960s to unpack his anger about the then very recent Tiananmen Square Massacre. I found the juxtaposition of intentionally shocking realistic violence, with the usual OTT brand of fun Hong Kong action violence to be an awkward one at times. Blood squibs explode everywhere and everything else just explodes in a never ending gun battle.
This fan on youtube recently edited together a killcount/supercut for just the four main characters (NSFW obviously):
(Spoilers, it's 177 total)
Director John Woo originally wrote 'Bullet in the Head' as a Vietnam-set prequel to 'A Better Tomorrow' but he fell out with Producer Tsui Hark, so Woo's script was re-tooled and Hark went off and made his own prequel. Four Hong Kong gang members and childhood friends seek their fortunes in war ravaged Vietnam but the horrors they witness tear them apart. Michael Cimino's 'The Deer Hunter' is unmistakably the inspiration for this film, except Woo uses the political turmoil of the 1960s to unpack his anger about the then very recent Tiananmen Square Massacre. I found the juxtaposition of intentionally shocking realistic violence, with the usual OTT brand of fun Hong Kong action violence to be an awkward one at times. Blood squibs explode everywhere and everything else just explodes in a never ending gun battle.
This fan on youtube recently edited together a killcount/supercut for just the four main characters (NSFW obviously):
(Spoilers, it's 177 total)
![[+]](https://forums.fanedit.org/images/focus/collapse_collapsed.png)