November 7, 2005.

They look so cool, don't they? What with their two-fisted guns blasting as they leap sideways, backwards, forward, or even out of a window. Yes, it's true, boys and girls, "The Matrix" wasn't the first movie to invent the ol "falling down and shooting" move. I know it's hard for some of you to believe, but hear me out.

It's a Hong Kong thing.

Or at least, the Hong Kongers were the first ones to do it so well that everyone decided to follow suit.

For those unsure what this "Hong Kong action thing" is, you're in luck, because this is a guide to some of the best Hong Kong action movies that not only defined Hong Kong action, but set the ground rules for a lot of the action movies you are currently seeing, be it in the West or the East, but just never knew it.

Here, then, are Hong Kong action films that made the genre what it is:

THE KILLER (1989)

Quite possibly the seminal work in Hong Kong "heroic bloodshed", directed by the man that used to be the first name in Hong Kong action, John Woo. A film about brotherhood, trust, loyalty, and the idea that all men are brothers if only they'd stop shooting each other in the face already, "The Killer" made international stars out of Woo and star Chow Yun-Fat.

Three years earlier, the star and director gained international acclaim with the gangster film "A Better Tomorrow", but it's here with "The Killer" that Woo refined the style he would become known for -- that is, hyperkinetic violence on a grand scale. The church shoot-out alone is worth the price of admission.

It isn't hyperbole to say that you can trace almost every trope of the Hitman genre back to Woo's classic. It's here that the ground rules were set in stone, from the killer with a heart of gold, to the good cop who would later learn that the criminal he was pursuing was less dangerous than he first believed. A brilliantly violent film, "The Killer" also embraced the notion that killers, even a saint of killers, do not have happy endings.

A BETTER TOMORROW (1986)

Without a doubt one of the most pivotal motion pictures in Hong Kong cinema history. "A Better Tomorrow" created Hong Kong film fans around the world, and made the names Chow Yun Fat and John Woo famous worldwide. Even more importantly, it revitalized a film industry that had been depending on schlock kung fu films for much too long, and re-introduced a genre that would go on to become one of the Hong Kong film industry's most durable genre.

The film follows two Hong Kong counterfeiters living the high life until one is captured and sentenced to prison. Released form jail, the gangster decides to go straight, if only to appease his younger brother, who has become a cop. The rest of the film details the struggles of one gangster to go straight, the gangster's cop brother as he tries to emerge out of the shadow of his brother's notorious past, and Chow Yun Fat's character, a tragically crippled gangster trying to reclaim his lost glory.

A bloody, violent, and at times poignant film about the bonds of brotherhood, both blood and criminal, "A Better Tomorrow" created a slew of imitators. Curiously, Chow Yun Fat was actually a co-star in the film, and it was longtime kung fu star Ti Lung who was the movie's actual star. Realizing the immense popularity of a second banana character, filmmakers rectify the situation by making Chow Yun Fat the star in the sequel, also directed by John Woo.

HARDBOILED (1992)

Yet another John Woo film, once again starring Woo muse Chow Yun Fat as a vengeful cop determined to exact bloody revenge on the gun dealer who had a hand in killing his partner during a botched operation inside, of all things, a restaurant that doubles as a sort of bird kennel.

Without a doubt one of John Woo's most bloody and violent films (and that's saying lots, considering Woo's filmography), "Hardboiled" was the director's swan song to Hong Kong cinema before making the jump to Hollywood, the first big name Hong Kong filmmaker to defect to the West. This time around, the budget is higher, the action quotient jacked up to never before seen levels, and the mayhem on a scale that has to be seen to be believed. How does Woo go out? In style, baby. The demotion of an entire hospital in the film's third act says it all.

The film is not to be taken seriously despite the huge pile of bodies left in its wake; if anything, it's little more than an exercise in extreme style for director John Woo. There is a sequence in the hospital, shot in one long take that rivals Orson Welles' opening scene in "Touch of Evil". A lengthy, carnage-filled trek from one hospital floor to the next, littered with bad guys popping out of doors, rooms, and from behind walls, as our two heroes -- supercop Chow Yun Fat and undercover cop Tony Leung -- marches down forth, chatting all the way, netting the kind of bodycount that would make Stalin blush with envy.

Quite possibly the most stylishly directed film of Woo's career, not to mention the one movie where he was clearly allowed to do just about everything he wanted (including tossing babies out of a window!). "Hardboiled" represents the pinnacle of the John Woo style of action, and for action junkies, it doesn't get any better than this.

THE MISSION (1999)

If John Woo invented the tropes of the Hong Kong action/gangster film, then Johnnie To was determined to come up with new ones with "The Mission", arguably the best "pure" gangster film of the '90s. Infused with To's highly stylish brand of minimalist filmmaking, "The Mission" barely runs 80 minutes soaking wet, but packs enough punch in those limited minutes to make repeat viewing a must.

The genius of a "pure Johnnie To film" is its complexity dressed up in overt simplicity. But a closer look reveals that not all is what it seems, and although To's films seem to lack exposition, this is not the case. If nothing else, To proves that dialogue need not be necessary when you have good actors who can deliver reams of exposition and intent with a single sharp look in the right direction.

If John Woo made gun battles balletic and exciting, Johnnie To went out of his way to make them silent, deadly, and almost completely devoid of adrenaline. His gun battles may be highly choreographed, but there is a muteness about them that belies their danger. Death is not shot in slow-motion and heroes do not fall in heroic poses. Death comes fast, violent, and men die like men -- silently, fast, and without fanfare.

Johnnie To would go on to display his unique brand of Hong Kong crime films in later offerings like "PTU" with Simon Yam, "Breaking News" with Richie Ren, and even in the judo film "Throwdown", where To curiously breaks away from his nihilistic crime world for something more wistful.

INFERNAL AFFAIRS (2002)

Of the current batch of action movies to come out of Hong Kong in recent years, none has made as much of an impact on the local film industry, as well as the international market, as Andrew Lau and Alan Mak's "Infernal Affairs" trilogy. The original surfaced in 2002 and proved so successful that it spawned two quickie sequels -- in the space of one year, with a Hollywood remake by heavyweight Martin Scorsese on the way.

The film itself borrows liberally from past Hong Kong actioners, in particular John Woo's "Hardboiled". In fact, the film's undercover cop is played by Tony Leung, who played a similar undercover cop in "Hardboiled". The film's ingenious twist is that the good guys and the bad guys have inserted moles into each other's organization without the other knowing. It's only years later that the respective factions begin to suspect a mole, leading to the moles themselves desperately attempting to uncover each other's identities before their true identities can be exposed by the other.

Although light on action, "Infernal Affairs" nevertheless represents the best work Hong Kong has done in the gangster/action genre in a long while. It's an incredibly suspenseful film with excellent performances from the two male leads (Hong Kong superstar Andy Lau and the aforementioned Tony Leung), as well as above average work by a supporting cast that includes Hong Kong stalwart Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang, and newcomer Kelly Chen.

SO CLOSE (2002)

Long time action choreographer Corey Yuen's "So Close" is the film that proves once and for all that the girls of McG's "Charlie's Angels" are actually nothing more than overweight housewives with a week of Tae Bo under their belt.

One of the more inventive "Chicks Kick Ass" movies out there, "So Close" stars Qi Shu, Vicki Zhao, and Karen Mok, and it's been called the "Asian Charlie's Angels", but that's doing the film a great disservice. While the storyline is not anything to crow about (you'll find that Hong Kong action films rarely have storylines that are above serviceable), the action is nothing short of outstanding. From elaborate gun battles to swordfights, "So Close" lets the blood flow on a regular basis, and even manages to leave room for some romance.

Essentially an incoherent film about two sisters who kills people for a living using their father's super duper satellite system (don't ask) and the cop that chases them only to fall into friendship with them, "So Close" has nothing new to offer the genre. What it does have are some of the most perfectly choreographed action scenes involving beautiful women you'll liable to find anywhere. A fight in a garage basement between killer Qi Shu and cop Karen Mok is the film's highlight, involving little more than a series of kicks, punches, and the threatening of one another's significant other -- Shu's sister, and Mok's partner.

NOTABLE RECOMMENDATIONS

2000 A.D. (2000)

Gordon Chan merged Western narrative with Hong Kong action for this above average action film known primarily for its realistic use of gun battles that is reminiscent of Michael Mann's "Heat". Stars Aaron Kwok as a computer geek who becomes embroiled in International intrigue when his brother is killed while in police custody.

HIT TEAM (2001)

Dante Lam's take on cops, robbers, and cops who are robbers who only rob from the criminals. Another above average action film that successfully merged gritty action with familiar Hong Kong crime film tropes. Stars Daniel Wu as the head of a vigilante SWAT-like unit who takes matters into his own hands after a comrade is crippled in the line of duty.

THE LONGEST NITE (1997)

Patrick Yau's crime film is described by reviewer James as "a bleak, nihilistic and brutal thriller which pulls no punches and whose complex plot shows an intelligence that is both ruthless and vicious." Stars Hong Kong favorites Lau Ching-Wan and Tony Leung, and is an uncompromising look at crime films gone dark.

NAKED WEAPON (2002)

Hong Kong exploitation king Wong Jing's attempt to cash in on the success of Corey Yuen's "So Close" is an inferior, but nevertheless fun clone. Stars the beautiful Maggie Q. as an orphan trained to be an assassin, with Daniel Wu's CIA agent hot on her tail. Predictably, they fall in love.

RUNNING OUT OF TIME (1999)

A playful Johnnie To effort that proves the master of bleak crime films can't be pigeonholed. Stars Lau Ching-Wan as a brilliant cop chasing an equally brilliant, and dying, criminal in Andy Lau, who involves the cop in his scheme to get even with some bad guys. A sequel returned Lau Ching-Wan in the starring role and Ekin Cheng as an Andy Lau clone.

(c) 2005 by Nix and BeyondHollywood.com