Criterion Year Week 6: Hard Boiled

The Criterion Collection, the last vestige of truly collectible DVD and Blu-Ray movies in existence. These are well produced, fancy pants editions of important and interesting films for the discerning film lover. We continue our journey through Jim's collection of movies with... Week 6: Hard Boiled Spine Number: 9 Director: John Woo Genre: Hong Kong Action John Woo defined Hong Kong cinema in the late 80's and early 90's. His over the top action scenes and hyper cool protagonists set the tone for much of what modern action movies have evolved into. The Killer, in many respects, is the most artistic film he made, as we discussed last week. But Hard Boiled... damn. No action move comes close to what Woo achieves here. It's more than just violence, it's poetry in motion. In a genre known as "bullet ballet," and "heroic bloodshed," Woo was somehow able to reach a completely different level than anyone was accustomed to. So join us in the beautiful violence that is Hard Boiled. Next week: Spine Number 13: The Silence of the Lambs Also, check this out. http://fantasymovieleague.com/ Looks like Summer Movie League has officially become Fantasy Movie League. It looks quite fun. Here's how it works. You have an 8 screen theater. Every week you pick movies and have a budget/salary cap you have to stay under. Then you compete against other theaters in your league. It's fantasy football for movie people. Our league is Film Thugs 2015 and the password is Porterhouse. And remember, you can be a part of the show any time you wild like. How's that? All you have to do is call or e-mail us. If you live in the US, or any place that makes calling the US easy, just dial 512-666-RANT and leave us a voicemail. We will read the Google Voice transcript and play your message. It's both funny AND informative. If you live outside the US you can call us on Skype at The_Film_Thugs. You can leave a message, or someone might actually answer. E-mail us at [email protected] and we will read/play whatever you send us, or you can e-mail [email protected] to be part of  an upcoming "Ask the Film Thugs" show, where we answer questions on any subject without having heard them first. Also, we are on twitter @thefilmthugs and on Facebook and Vine. You can also click on one of our sponsor links below and THEY will pay us. That's right. You won't have to pay a PENNY extra, and Amazon/Onnit/Teefury will give us a little taste. Also, be sure to check back often for our new endeavor The Life Masters, where we answer questions to other advice columnists. Thanks for listening, and until next week... Jim out.