John Woo is a legendary director originally from Hong Kong who has directed some of the best action films in the region. Considering that Hong Kong cinema is known for producing great action films (in addition to other genres of course), it’s safe to say that Wu has directed some of the greatest action films of all time, most notably films such as Better tomorrow, MurdererAnd Hard brewed. His films are often characterized by lots of explosions, tons of slow motion, tragic characters caught up in melodramatic stories, and, of course, flocks of pigeons flying around for dramatic effect.
However, between 1993 and 2003, John Woo made half a dozen feature films in Hollywood, all of which carried his visual signature to varying degrees, but also featured a predominantly American cast and sometimes superior production values. The resulting Hollywood John Woo films are certainly a mixed bag when it comes to quality, but there’s certainly some gold in them, and the best of his American films aren’t much inferior to the best of his Hong Kong films. His seventh American film is Quiet night - was released in late 2023 after a 20-year hiatus, so now is the perfect time to revisit his English/American films and rank them from worst to best.
7 “Windtalkers” (2002)
Despite a large budget and several talented actors, WindtalkersUnfortunately, in the end, this is not the best war film. Windtalkers the box office gross ended up being significantly lower, likely due to mediocre reviews. It’s a shame because the premise here is by no means bad, considering how Navajo soldiers were used by the US Army during the fighting in the Pacific to relay messages since Japanese troops couldn’t decipher their language.
Windtalkers however, doesn’t use this premise very well, as the main windtalkers themselves get lost in the large castand over-the-top action scenes that have spectacle but come at a price. It comes down to Windtalkers brutal action that nonetheless feels thrilling, creating a certain dissonance between the horrors of war and the glee of action with John Woo’s fingerprints all over it. Some may enjoy what’s on offer here, but it’s seriously flawed and few would call it one of the best WWII films.
Windtalkers
- Date of issue
- June 14, 2002
- Director
- John Woo
- Throw
- Nicolas Cage, Adam Beach, Peter Stormare, Noah Emmerich, Mark Ruffalo, Brian Van Holt
- Rating
- R
- lead time
- 134
Watch on Amazon Prime
6 “Salary” (2003)
One year later WindtalkersJohn Woo somewhat bounced back in 2003. salary earning enough box office receipts to be a commercial success (salary received people’s salaries), although in general their quality is slightly higher. The emphasis here is on “a little” because salary is still far from perfect, and while it combines complex storytelling with multiple genres and features a decent cast, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who would list it among their favorite sci-fi films of all time.
Essentially, it’s about a vast conspiracy revolving around technology that allows people to see into the future and follows a man as he tries to uncover the secrets behind it all after most of his memory is erased. salary too confusing and quite stupid, and not always in a good way…but John Woo’s style comes through more and more as it goes on, so much so that the overblown action towards the end is a lot of fun (even if it’s unfortunately somewhat neutralized by the PG-13 rating).
salary
- Date of issue
- December 25, 2003
- Director
- John Woo
- Throw
- Ben Affleck, Aaron Eckhart, Uma Thurman, Paul Giamatti, Colm Feore, Joe Morton
- Rating
- PG-13
- lead time
- 120
Watch on Max
5 “Silent Night” (2023)
Even despite the shortcomings (and there are many of them), ambition Quiet night, at least to some extent. The story centers on a man who was injured so much that he could not speak, but he expresses his anger and desire for revenge on those responsible for the death of his son in other ways. Such methods often involve violence and/or shooting people. This is not only an action movie based on the desire for revenge, Quiet night also manages to be a Christmas movie.
In the entire “silence” department, the situation is taken to extremes considering this film plays out without any dialogue. A modern silent film that belongs to the action genre and has a Christmas flavor, it sounds like it could have been great or at least innovative, but unfortunately Quiet night it’s not as exciting or fun as it could be. Of course, worse could have been done in American films about John Woo, but it’s also hard to imagine. Quiet night ever achieving classic status or even surprising many.
Quiet night
- Date of issue
- December 1, 2023
- Director
- John Woo
- Throw
- Joel Kinnaman, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Kid Cudi, Harold Torres
- Rating
- R
- lead time
- 104 minutes
Watch in cinemas
4 “Broken Arrow” (1996)
Those who like action films as bombastic and funny as possible will surely enjoy this film. Broken Arrow, which may be John Woo’s silliest American film (although it has some stiff competition). It’s about a stealth fighter pilot who goes rogue and steals two nuclear warheads from the Air Force, after which his co-pilot is enlisted to find his former colleague since he has the best chance when it comes to recovering the weapons.
Although this was only John Woo’s second film while working in America, the director really goes for broke here., giving viewers plenty of explosions, car chases and ridiculous fights to keep them entertained and/or mystified. It’s an uneven and somewhat unwieldy film, but it works just as well as silly entertainment if you approach it and watch it with the right frame of mind (chewing the scenery). John Travolta after all, the main villain always helps too).
Broken Arrow
- Date of issue
- February 9, 1996
- Director
- John Woo
- Throw
- John Travolta, Christian Slater, Samantha Mathis, Delroy Lindo, Bob Gunton, Frank Whaley
- Rating
- R
- lead time
- 108
Rent on Apple TV
3 “Mission: Impossible 2” (2000)
Second movie in a long time The task is impossible series, this installment is often considered - perhaps not unfairly - the weakest of the seven to date. What, as they say, it’s far from bad and will satisfy those who want to see Woo’s sense of action mixed with spy-themed adventure.. The stakes here are particularly high: the series’ protagonist Ethan Hunt must stop a former Mission: Impossible agent from unleashing a biological weapon on the world.
Everyone is expected The task is impossible the film will require some suspension of disbelief, but Mission: Impossible 2 goes especially far. It’s very corny and over-the-top, but these are the things that are hardest to forget, and a lot can be forgiven if you witness two men riding motorcycles straight at each other at top speed and jumping. switches off when they both cross paths and collide in the air before the fight. Then, of course, the motorcycles explode. Movie Magic.
Mission: Impossible 2
- Date of issue
- May 24, 2000
- Director
- John Woo
- Throw
- Tom Cruise, Dougray Scott, Thandiwi Newton, Ving Rhames
- Rating
- PG-13
- lead time
- 123 minutes
Watch on Paramount+
2 “Hard Target” (1993)
Hardcore action moviegoers may have known John Woo’s name before 1993, but those who weren’t aware of his sensibilities before he (briefly) left the Hong Kong film industry certainly became aware of it thanks to Difficult target. In many ways, it was the perfect film for Woo to announce his arrival in Hollywood, and American action films (especially the bombastic and wild ones) were never the same again.
John Woo directs Jean-Claude Van Damme It has great effect here: the carefully crafted action - courtesy of the former - pairs surprisingly well with the stoicism of the latter. In the film, Van Damme’s character fights against a group of comically evil people who hunt homeless people for fun. It takes time to get started, but once Difficult target reaches the second half, it presents ridiculous action scene after ridiculous action scene and becomes extremely entertaining to watch..
Rent on Apple TV
1 “No Face/No Face” (1997)
One of the funniest action movies of all time. Face/Off this is the greatest John Woo film ever made in America, and it doesn’t even come close. This is an iconic 1990s action/sci-fi/thriller that asks the age-old question: what if Nicolas Cage was the bad guy and John Travolta was the good guy, and then the plot unfolded in such a way that they switched faces and so Cage and Travolta actually had to play each other?
Yes, it’s stupid, but Face/Off also works surprisingly well as a really great action movie, somehow immersing you in its ridiculous world, cartoonish characters, and incredible sci-fi technology. Cage and Travolta are committed wholeheartedly and make everything work much better than it should., and Woo’s clever action scenes are as good here as in his classic Hong Kong films. As far as big and amazingly stupid action movies go, Face/Off essentially close to ideal.
Face / Off
- Date of issue
- June 27, 1997
- Director
- John Woo
- Throw
- John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Joan Allen, Alessandro Nivola, Gina Gershon, Dominique Swain
- Rating
- R
- lead time
- 138
Watch on Showtime
Source: Collider
I have worked as a journalist for over 7 years and have written for many different publications. I currently work as an author at Daily News Hack, where I mostly cover entertainment news. I have a great deal of experience in the industry and am always looking to learn more. I am a highly motivated individual who is always looking to improve my skills. I am also a very friendly and personable person, which makes me easy to work with.
