| 1 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1452266899092104700 |
| 2 | %% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread. |
| 3 | %% |
| 4 | [[quoteright:350:[[Film/TheKiller1989 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/john_woo_s_the_killer.png]]]] |
| 5 | [[caption-width-right:350:Two [[SwornBrothers blood brothers]] about to spill some more blood; both their own and their enemies'.]] |
| 6 | |
| 7 | ->''"Honor is his code. Vengeance is his mission. Bloodshed is his only option."'' |
| 8 | -->-- '''{{Tagline}}''' for ''Creator/JohnWoo Presents: VideoGame/{{Stranglehold}}'' |
| 9 | |
| 10 | Also known as {{Hong Kong|Films}} Blood Opera, this is a genre of Hong Kong [[ActionGenre Action]] Cinema made popular by directors like Creator/JohnWoo and Ringo Lam and actors such as Creator/ChowYunFat. Heroic Bloodshed plots are primarily modern-day crime action pieces that focus on revenge, redemption or some kind of conflict between rivals or enemies on both sides of the law, with a special focus on gunplay. There's a very strong theme of honor, loyalty and betrayal in these movies, particularly those made by John Woo. |
| 11 | |
| 12 | Characters spin, [[UnnecessaryCombatRoll roll]], and [[LeapAndFire dive]] across the room while blasting away during shootouts, often with [[GunsAkimbo two guns at once]]. Often, a good dose of kung fu or other martial arts is also mixed in, especially when actors synonomous with that genre appear. Heroic Bloodshed films (as per the name) are also incredibly violent with lots of blood and high body counts before it's all over. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | Protagonists are usually [[NobleDemon honorable criminals]] or hard-boiled enforcers of either the police or the criminal variety, resulting in [[GrayAndGrayMorality very morally ambiguous plots]], which makes for some interesting parallels with FilmNoir. |
| 15 | |
| 16 | Not to be confused with old-style [[MartialArtsMovie martial arts]] films, nor {{Wuxia}} which is Chinese classical {{fantasy}} about feuding [[KnightErrant knights errant]] using MagicalMartialArts. These films instead prefer the modern cop and [[DamnItFeelsGoodToBeAGangster gangster]] milieu, and the martial art of choice is GunFu. Except when it's a TabletopGame/FengShui game, then it's pretty much the same. |
| 17 | |
| 18 | For more information about the genre, see Website/TheOtherWiki's [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroic_bloodshed article]]. |
| 19 | |
| 20 | ---- |
| 21 | !!Common subtropes and related tropes: |
| 22 | |
| 23 | * BackToBackBadasses: If two heroes (or even a hero and a rival) feature in a film, count on at least one instance where they cover each other this way against a horde of mooks. |
| 24 | * BadassInANiceSuit: The attire of choice for many assassins, heroic and villainous gangsters, high ranking cops and the like. |
| 25 | * BadassLongcoat: The other major attire of choice for characters, usually open like the wings of an angel of death. |
| 26 | * BashBrothers |
| 27 | * BloodlessCarnage: Often averted -- this genre is called "Blood Opera" for a ''reason!'' |
| 28 | * BloodstainedGlassWindows: Ever since ''The Killer'', church shootouts have shown up on occasion in these movies. |
| 29 | * BlownAcrossTheRoom |
| 30 | * BottomlessMagazines: no one ever needs to reload, unless drama demands it for a moment. |
| 31 | * [[UsefulNotes/{{Christianity}} Christian themes and imagery]], largely due to the influence of Creator/JohnWoo's Lutheran faith, which he worked into his own films. |
| 32 | * CoolShades: Heroes and villains alike tend to wear these. |
| 33 | * CowboyCop: If a cop appears in one of these films as one of the heroes, he's more likely than not to be one of these. |
| 34 | * DamnItFeelsGoodToBeAGangster: A lot of Hong Kong gangster movies, particularly the likes of ''The Young and the Dangerous'', tend to glorify the triad lifestyle. |
| 35 | * DisturbedDoves: John Woo loved this motif, and ever since ''The Killer'', he's incorporated them into many an action sequence. |
| 36 | * FacelessGoons / {{Mooks}} |
| 37 | * GunFu / GunKata: The action in Heroic Bloodshed is incredibly stylized, and often has the feel of martial arts battles carried out with guns. |
| 38 | * GunsAkimbo: Though characters often use single guns, wielding a pistol in each hand has become an iconic aspect of the genre. |
| 39 | * TheGunslinger: Characters are defined by their proficiency with firearms. |
| 40 | * HitmanWithAHeart: If an assassin isn't on the side of evil in one of these movies, he's likely to be one of these where it counts. |
| 41 | * HonorBeforeReason: Not a few characters in these movies have a sense of honor which often leads them into dramatic situations. In general, "good" gangsters and assassins believe in honor, but the bad guys most emphatically do ''not''. |
| 42 | * ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy: Many mooks tend to be lousy shots, though they do sometimes land hits. |
| 43 | * LeapAndFire[=/=]UnnecessaryCombatRoll: Not a few heroes and villains are quite fond of high-flying acrobatics with their gunplay, which when combined with Slow Mo below leads to balletic displays of blood and bullets. |
| 44 | * ManlyTears: Heroes in Blood Opera are not shy about letting their emotions show. |
| 45 | * MexicanStandOff: Most often between two people at point blank range, though three or even more-way standoffs are common. |
| 46 | * MultipleGunshotDeath: Good guys and bad guys alike in these movies seldom go down with just one bullet, and sometimes people will get absolutely ''riddled'' with bullets, to make sure that they go down and ''stay'' down. |
| 47 | * NoHonorAmongThieves: Villains in Heroic Bloodshed movies do ''not'' believe in honor or any other human virtues, caring only about money and power. In more cynical fare, even the syndicates the more heroic characters are in will turn on their own when the chips are down. |
| 48 | * {{Overcrank}}: Particularly violent moments, particularly in John Woo movies, tend to take place in slow motion, and sequences like these are part of the genre's style. |
| 49 | * RedOniBlueOni: Count on at least one relationship along these lines, particularly between heroes and villains. |
| 50 | * RoaringRampageOfRevenge: At least one movie of the genre has at least one hero on one of these. |
| 51 | * SmokingIsCool: This genre started back in the [=80s=], when smoking was still a thing, and even now, some movies still have their heroes and villains smoke. |
| 52 | * StarCrossedLovers: If romance features in a Heroic Bloodshed flick, it is more than likely going to end in tragedy, with one or both of the lovers dying before it's over. |
| 53 | * SwornBrothers: A holdover from the Chinese cinematic and literary tradition -- two men who are sworn to each other and will go through hell and high water for each other. Actual blood relation optional. |
| 54 | * SympathyForTheDevil |
| 55 | * TheSyndicate |
| 56 | * TheTriadsAndTheTongs: They're both heroes and villains in these movies. |
| 57 | * ThrowAwayGuns: Many characters in these films, upon emptying their guns, will often dump them and draw new ones instead of reloading them. |
| 58 | * VillainousEthicsDecay: A recurring theme in many of these movies is how criminals who believe in honor, loyalty and family are being threatened and pushed out by newer, more vicious criminals who believe in none of these things and are willing to do anything for money and power. |
| 59 | * VillainInAWhiteSuit: White-suited mob bosses are common villains, though sometimes the hero may wear a white suit as well. |
| 60 | * WhiteShirtOfDeath: Count on the white suit to get covered in blood. |
| 61 | * {{Yakuza}} and related tropes: The Japanese are no strangers to the genre either. |
| 62 | ---- |
| 63 | !!Examples of this trope: |
| 64 | |
| 65 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 66 | |
| 67 | [[folder: Anime and Manga ]] |
| 68 | |
| 69 | * ''Manga/{{Hellsing}}'', while not explicitly falling into this category, draws strongly from it, with cool gunfighting and heavy moral ambiguity. |
| 70 | * ''Manga/BlackLagoon'' may ''seem'' to be this genre at first, but on closer observation, it plays the cynical subtropes straight while ''mercilessly'' demolishing the idealistic ones. Unlike true Heroic Bloodshed, the series holds absolutely no faith in honor, hope or fundamental human decency. Downplayed in the English dub, where TheWestern aesthetics are played up instead. |
| 71 | * ''Anime/{{Noir}}'' and ''Anime/{{Madlax}}'' are Creator/BeeTrain studio's loving, if distinctly [[GenderFlip feminine]], tribute to a once distinctly masculine genre. |
| 72 | * ''Anime/CowboyBebop'', has plenty of bounty hunting, wacky hijinks and sci-fi action. But when the focus switches to Spike's clashes with the Red Dragon syndicate he was once part of and his former best friend/deadliest rival Vicious, this genre comes straight to the fore, with plenty of shootouts, bloodshed and tragic love abounding. |
| 73 | * ''Manga/{{Sanctuary}}'' |
| 74 | * Although short on gunplay, the extreme balletic violence and perversely honourable moral element of the blood opera was part and parcel of ''Manga/CryingFreeman'' -- for the superpowered leader of a vastly powerful criminal conspiracy, Freeman Yoh spends a lot more time battling criminals and indirectly aiding the downtrodden than actually committing the kind of deeds which keep a crime syndicate afloat -- it's like a mafia film which [[TheFamilyForTheWholeFamily is all 'doing favours' and no 'collecting on debts']]. |
| 75 | * ''VideoGame/{{Gungrave}}'', particularly the part that takes place in the past, is a quintessential Heroic Bloodshed anime (the present-day part is similar story-wise, but its style changes to account for various hypertech wonders). |
| 76 | |
| 77 | [[/folder]] |
| 78 | |
| 79 | [[folder: Comic Books ]] |
| 80 | |
| 81 | * ''ComicBook/TheCouriers'' |
| 82 | * ''ComicBook/{{Planetary}}'' has an issue about the genre. |
| 83 | |
| 84 | |
| 85 | [[/folder]] |
| 86 | |
| 87 | [[folder: Film ]] |
| 88 | |
| 89 | * ''Film/ABetterTomorrow'' - directed by Creator/JohnWoo. Stars Ti Lung, Creator/LeslieCheung and Chow Yun-Fat in his breakout role. |
| 90 | ** ''A Better Tomorrow II'' - directed by John Woo. Stars Ti Lung, Leslie Cheung, Chow Yun-Fat and Dean Shek. |
| 91 | ** ''A Better Tomorrow III: Love and Death in Saigon'' - directed by Tsui Hark. Stars Chow Yun-Fat, Anita Mui and Tony Leung Ka-fai. |
| 92 | * ''A Better Tomorrow'' - the 2010 Korean remake of the Hong Kong film. |
| 93 | * Yet another remake of ''A Better Tomorrow'', this time from its native Hong Kong, premiered in 2018. |
| 94 | * ''Film/BallisticKiss'' is a more "artistic" take on this genre, starring Creator/DonnieYen. |
| 95 | * ''Bangkok Dangerous'': Applies to both [[Film/BangkokDangerous1999 the original]] and the Creator/NicolasCage Film/BangkokDangerous2008 remake]]. Appropriate, since both movies actually have the same director, Oxide Pang. |
| 96 | * ''Film/BellyOfTheBeast'' is the closest Creator/StevenSeagal would get to this genre. Understandable, since the movie is directed by Hong Kong action veteran Ching Siu-tong. |
| 97 | * ''Film/TheBigHeat1988'', not to be confused with the Hollywood movie below, is one of Creator/JohnnieTo's earliest attempts at making a HeroicBloodshed film influenced by Woo, but combined with To's usual trademarks of thriller and dramatic elements. The movie is known for its unusually infamous TroubledProduction, which took 3 years for filming to be concluded. |
| 98 | * ''Film/TheBigHit'' - Mixes several of the usual Heroic Bloodshed tropes with wacky comedy. |
| 99 | %%* The ''Film/BlackAndWhite'' trilogy. |
| 100 | * ''Film/BlackButler'' |
| 101 | * ''Film/BloodBrothers2007'' starring Daniel Wu. John Woo serves as a producer of this film, and suffice to say several Heroic Bloodshed elements do show up. |
| 102 | * ''Film/BloodyBrothers'', another tale of brotherhood and triads. |
| 103 | * ''Film/BloodStainedTradewinds'' starring Waise Lee from ''A Better Tomorrow'', but as the protagonist instead of main villain. |
| 104 | * ''Film/TheBodyguardFromBeijing'' starring Creator/JetLi have shades of this, including over-the-top gunplay, intense shootouts, and a massive body count. |
| 105 | * ''Film/Blackjack1998'', another one of John Woo's American films, starring Creator/DolphLundgren. Not the Dolphster's first foray into Heroic Bloodshed cinema. |
| 106 | * ''Film/BloodyHero'' starring Creator/AlexMan. |
| 107 | * ''Film/TheBloodRules'' is an (honestly rather weak, but at least admirable) attempt to revive the genre in the year 2000. The main characters are a trio of thieves bound by a personal code of honor, and the leader (Creator/MichaelWong, another mainstay of the genre) uses dual pistols in both the shootouts he found himself in. |
| 108 | * ''Film/TheBodyguardThai'' is a Thai comedy-action film that spoofs this genre. |
| 109 | * ''Film/TheBrothers1979'' - the Creator/ShawBrothers film that inspired John Woo. |
| 110 | * ''Film/BrokenArrow1996'' - directed by Creator/JohnWoo, starring Creator/JohnTravolta and Creator/ChristianSlater. |
| 111 | * ''Film/BulletInTheHead'' - directed by Creator/JohnWoo, and featuring Creator/TonyLeungChiuWai, Jacky Cheung, and Creator/SimonYam. |
| 112 | ** Simon Yam is probably the second most reoccurring name in this list, after Chow Yun-fat, as you’ll see below. |
| 113 | * ''Film/BulletForHire'' starring Simon Yam and Jacky Cheung is a quasi-remake of ''Film/{{Scarface}}'' with elements heavily influenced by heroic bloodshed. |
| 114 | * ''Film/TheButcher'' starring Creator/EricRoberts as an aging ex-hitman dragged back into the mob. The film climaxes with a nightclub shootout scene that pays homage to old-school John Woo films. |
| 115 | * ''Film/ChinaWhite'' starring Andy Lau, Alex Man and Carina Lau. It's interesting to note that this movie was produced by the triads, who back in the early 90s had a degree of control over the Hong Kong film industry through financing and producing films. In fact, Andy Lau was allegedly forced to act in this movie at gunpoint! |
| 116 | * ''Film/CityOnFire1988'' - directed by Ringo Lam, starring Chow Yun-Fat and Danny Lee, noted for inspiring Creator/QuentinTarantino's ''Film/ReservoirDogs''. |
| 117 | * ''Film/TheCityOfViolence'' is a Korean film that follows this genre with themes of brotherhood, gangsters, and honor. |
| 118 | * ''Film/CityWar'' reunites Chow Yun-fat and Ti Lung from ''A Better Tomorrow'', and this time they are a pair of CowboyCop policemen and BashBrothers forced to take the law into their own hands to avenge the murders of their loved ones. |
| 119 | * ''Film/CityWarriors'' is about a soldier who is on a quest to rescue his sister from HumanTraffickers. |
| 120 | * ''Film/ColourOfTheTruth'', starring Anthony Wong and Raymond Wong, is a thriller similar to ''Infernal Affairs'' also on this list, but with more shootouts, double-crossings, and action. |
| 121 | ** Has two sequels titled ''Colour of the Loyalty'' and ''Colour of the Game''. With different directors and cast though. |
| 122 | * ''Film/CoolieKiller'' may be the UrExample of HeroicBloodshed, being a John Woo-style film that comes out 3 years ''before'' Woo’s iconic ''Film/ABetterTomorrow''. |
| 123 | * ''Film/CopOnAMission'' starring Daniel Wu. |
| 124 | * ''Film/TheCorruptor'' is Hollywood's attempt to recreate a heroic bloodshed drama with Chow Yun-fat as the titular role. |
| 125 | * ''Film/TheCrow'' - This movie has many elements of Heroic Bloodshed, particularly in the boardroom and church shootouts. Brandon Lee's final movie. |
| 126 | * Takashi Miike's ''Film/DeadOrAlive'' trilogy, set in the Yakuza. |
| 127 | * ''Film/DogBiteDog'' starring Edison Chen. Possibly the most depressing and gut-wrenching examples of this genre |
| 128 | * ''Film/DoubleImpact'' starring Jean Claude Van Damme, as a pair of twins who takes on Hong Kong's biggest crime syndicate to avenge their parents. |
| 129 | * ''Film/TheDragonFamily'' - directed by Lau Kar Leung and starring Creator/AlanTam, Creator/AndyLau and Max Mok. |
| 130 | * ''Film/DragonFromRussia'', a Hong Kong adaption of the ''Crying Freeman'' manga, which is incidentally released a few months after ''Killer's Romance''. |
| 131 | * ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_f-Jp70rNF0 Drive (1997)]]'' - Directed by Steve Wang, and starring Creator/MarkDacascos and Kadeem Hardison. The movie takes influences from the genre, Hong Kong Cinema, and Jackie Chan films, and is a [[BuddyCopShow Buddy Cop Movie]]. |
| 132 | * ''Film/DrugWar'' by Creator/JohnnieTo [[ZigZaggedTrope zig-zags]] this trope. The influence is obvious: At first glance it features many of the usual themes around loyalty, betrayal, family honour and DueToTheDead. However, it eschews the operatic style in favour of a far more gritty and realistic approach, both in regards to the gunplay and to the story in general. Prior to the last third of the movie, there are very few action scenes at all, and many of the main character's actions are motivated primarily by self-preservation rather than any higher ideals. |
| 133 | * ''Film/TheDuelOfTheBrothers'', much like ''Blood Brothers'', ''Shanghai Grand'' and ''The Game Changer'', is an installment set in 1940s Shanghai dealing with protagonists being screwed for rising in power with the triads. |
| 134 | * ''Film/ElGringo'' starring Creator/ScottAdkins pays homage to Woo in an action scene where Adkins wastes 40-odd mooks in a 5-minute shootout. |
| 135 | * The ''Film/ElMariachi'' trilogy is Creator/RobertRodriguez's personal love letter to the genre (as well as Westerns), with its titular protagonist being a wandering Mariachi caught in a gang war. |
| 136 | ** The sequel, ''Film/{{Desperado}}'' further ups the ante, with the Mariachi, now being played by Creator/AntonioBanderas, kicking ass with dual pistols and leaping while firing every shot. |
| 137 | ** The third installment, ''Film/OnceUponATimeInMexico'' also applies here. |
| 138 | * ''Film/EnterTheEagles'', starring Michael Wong and Shannon Lee. Both of them are thieves and assassins with a code of honor, and the former is an expert in using dual pistols. |
| 139 | * ''Film/{{Equilibrium}}'' - Kurt Wimmer pays homage to the genre by means of inventing a [[GunKata new gunplay-based martial art]]. |
| 140 | * ''Film/{{Exiled}}'' directed by Johnnie To, starring Anthony Wong, Francis Ng, Roy Cheung, Lam Suet and Simon Yam. |
| 141 | * ''Film/FaceOff'' - Creator/JohnWoo's best American flick, starring Creator/JohnTravolta and Creator/NicolasCage as both hero and villain. |
| 142 | * ''Film/FallenAngels'' features Leon Lai as a heroic bloodshed-esque hitman with a code of honor, who kicks ass in a nice suit and wastes several people with dual pistols. |
| 143 | * ''Family Honor'', directed by Norman Law. Pretty much a rehash of A Better Tomorrow, complete with a shootout in a dock at night as its ending. |
| 144 | * ''The Fatalist'' starring Ben Ng. |
| 145 | * ''Film/TheFifthCommandment'' starring Rick Yune. |
| 146 | * ''Film/FlamingBrothers'' - starring Alan Tang and Chow Yun-fat (for once, in a supporting role). |
| 147 | * ''Film/FullContact'' - directed by Ringo Lam, starring Chow Yun-Fat, Simon Yam and Anthony Wong. |
| 148 | * ''Film/FulltimeKiller'' starring Andy Lau and Takeshi Sorimachi as opposing hitmen trying to out-gambit each other. Also featuring Simon Yam as a police investigator caught in between their standoff. |
| 149 | * ''Film/TheGameChanger'', set in the triad underworld of 1930s Shanghai, with plenty of shootouts as its poster implies. |
| 150 | * ''Film/GanglandOdyssey'' starring Michael Chan, Andy Lau and Alex Man have shades of this. |
| 151 | * ''Film/GhostDogTheWayOfTheSamurai'' - Creator/ForestWhitaker plays a hitman with his own code of honour, following the rules of bushido, clearly paying homage to this genre. |
| 152 | * ''Film/GodfathersOfHongKong'' starring Andy Lau. |
| 153 | * ''Film/GunNRose'' reunites Alan Tang, Andy Lau and Simon Yam after their prior collaboration in ''Film/ReturnEngagement''. |
| 154 | * ''Film/HardBoiled'' - directed by Creator/JohnWoo, featuring Chow Yun-Fat and Tony Leung Chiu-Wai. |
| 155 | * ''Hard Justice'', starring David Bradley, complete with plenty of Leap-and-Fire and dual-wielding action. |
| 156 | * ''Film/HardTarget'' - Creator/JohnWoo's first American movie, starring the "Muscles from Brussels," Creator/JeanClaudeVanDamme. |
| 157 | * ''Film/Hero1997'', a 1997 remake of the Shaw Brothers martial arts film, ''Boxer From Shantung'', starring Creator/TakeshiKaneshiro and long-time Jackie Chan collaborator Creator/YuenBiao. |
| 158 | * ''Film/AHeroNeverDies'', directed by Johnnie To, starring Leon Lai and Lau Ching-wan. |
| 159 | * ''Film/HeroOfTomorrow'' - directed by Poon Man Kit starring Max Mok. |
| 160 | * ''Film/HeroicBrothers'' starring Alex Man and Lam Wai. The title is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. |
| 161 | * ''Film/HeroicTrio'' follows this genre to the letter with the possible exception of gunplay. Only one of the girls uses guns. |
| 162 | * ''Film/HeroesShedNoTears'' - the first gunplay movie directed by Creator/JohnWoo, released after ''A Better Tomorrow''. |
| 163 | * ''Film/{{Hitman}}'', besides being an adaptation of the [[Franchise/{{Hitman}}video game]], also have elements inspired by Heroic Bloodshed cinema. |
| 164 | * ''Film/HitmanAgent47'' uses heroic bloodshed elements just like the original adaptation of the video game. |
| 165 | * ''Film/HitTeam'' starring Creator/DanielWu. |
| 166 | * ''Film/HongKongGodfather'' follows this genre down to a T, with the exception that guns are almost ''never'' featured in its action scenes save for the final confrontation. Instead, what we have is every character DualWielding machetes, hatchets and axes slicing up hordes and hordes of extras, en masse, with bloody effects. |
| 167 | * ''Film/HuntingList'' is a subversion of the genre; despite sharing elements in its action scenes, the story being in a triad setting, the close bond between protagonists and having plenty of extras in slick black suits, ''both'' its main characters are anything BUT heroic. |
| 168 | * ''Film/TheInfernalAffairsTrilogy'' - directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak, starring Tony Leung Chiu-Wai and Creator/AndyLau. One of the more cynical series. |
| 169 | * ''[[Film/IronAngels The Iron Angels trilogy]]'', a series of action films starring Moon Lee and Elaine Lui. Imagine heroic bloodshed with all action babes. |
| 170 | * ''[[Film/IronButterfly1989 Iron Butterfly III: Tomorrow]]'', a low budget film starring Tony Leung from ''Hard Boiled'', where Leung is a reformed hitman wanted by his triad. Complete with the iconic corridor scene from ''Hard Boiled'' recreated in this movie. |
| 171 | * ''Film/IslandOfFire'' starring Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Andy Lau. Its a prison movie that suddenly becomes a full-blown John Woo flick in a brutal shootout in the last 15 minutes of the movie. |
| 172 | * ''Franchise/JohnWick'' - starring Creator/KeanuReeves, a retired hitman takes down those who have wronged him, while wearing a nice suit, feats of gun fu and jujitsu? Definitely. It is something of a {{Reconstruction}} in that the movies show HeroicBloodshed tropes work just as well on top of a more grounded (though still stylized) choreography. |
| 173 | * ''[[Film/ArmyOfOne Joshua Tree]]'', or more popularly known from its international title ''Film/ArmyOfOne'' starring Creator/DolphLundgren as a morally-ambiguous protagonist who gets to kick ass with dual guns in a massive shootout scene lifted straight from John Woo's library. Director Vic Armstrong is clearly inspired by John Woo while making this film. |
| 174 | * ''Film/JustHeroes'', also directed by John Woo, but for once ''not'' starring Chow Yun-fat. Instead Chow's co-star from ''The Killer'' Danny Lee Sau-yin would play the lead role. |
| 175 | * ''Film/TheKiller1989'' - directed by Creator/JohnWoo, and starring Chow Yun-Fat and Danny Lee, the quintessential example of HeroicBloodshed cinema. Provides the page image. |
| 176 | * ''Film/KillerAngels'' and its sequel, ''Devil Hunters'', starring Moon Lee. Even moreso for the latter with a subplot involving triads and shootouts using double guns. |
| 177 | * ''Film/AKillersBlues'' starring Ti Lung. After the success of ''The Killer'' above, plenty of movies in this genre would find a way to cram the word "killer" in its title, though to be fair the protagonists are indeed hitmen and assassins. |
| 178 | * ''Film/KillersRomance'' - directed by Phillip Ko Fei and starring Simon Yam. Based on ''Manga/CryingFreeman''. |
| 179 | * ''Film/KingOfGambler'' reunites Alex Man and Lam Wai, with its second half being a non-stop shootout with enough deaths to rival ''Hard Boiled''. |
| 180 | * ''Film/LastManStanding'' starring Creator/BruceWillis is a Heroic Bloodshed film set in 1930s Prohibition-era America. |
| 181 | * ''Film/TheLastTycoon'' also starring Chow Yun-fat, pays homage to the genre, complete with a massive church shootout. |
| 182 | * ''Film/LegacyOfRage'' - directed by Ronny Yu, starring Brandon Lee in his film debut. Contains similar elements to ''A Better Tomorrow'', coincidentally released a few months prior. |
| 183 | * The ''Long Arm of the Law'' series, a franchise of four films featuring gangsters, brotherhood, and triads. |
| 184 | * ''Film/LoveGunsAndGlass'' starring Simon Yam is a [[GenreMashup heroic bloodshed romance]] movie. Yes, such a thing exists. |
| 185 | * ''Film/TheManFromNowhere'' |
| 186 | * ''Film/ManWanted'' - Simon Yam is at it again, in a Cat-and-Mouse chase action film where Yam plays an undercover cop who must take down drug dealer and super-criminal Yu Rongguang. |
| 187 | * ''Film/TheMatrix'' - Creator/TheWachowskis pay homage to the genre in a big way, particularly in the first movie. |
| 188 | * Albert Pyun's ''Film/MeanGuns'', starring the Highlander among a group of professional killers, aiming to execute each other until only one survivor remains. |
| 189 | * ''Merchant Of Death'' starring Michael Paré as the titular merchant, an arms dealer, who gets to use dual pistols against enemy mooks in several shootouts. |
| 190 | * ''Film/TheMission1999'' directed by Johnnie To. Notable for its extremely low budget and miniscule shooting period of 18 days. |
| 191 | * ''Film/MissionImpossibleII'' - directed by Creator/JohnWoo, starring Creator/TomCruise. |
| 192 | * ''Film/MrAndMrsSmith2005'', starring Creator/BradPitt and Creator/AngelinaJolie, takes this concept and asks the question, "What if the hitmen characters are a married couple?" |
| 193 | * ''Film/TheMummyTrilogy'' - Creator/StephenSommers just loves to pay homage to this genre, in particular the [[GunsAkimbo ranged combat style]] of the O'Connell family's men. |
| 194 | * ''Film/MyHeartIsThatEternalRose'' starring Kenny Bee as an expert hitman and assassin, also co-starring Tony Leung as Bee's best friend reluctantly dragged into a triad war. |
| 195 | * ''Film/TheNightComesForUs'', another Indonesian film in this genre, co-incidentally also starring the cast from ''Film/TheRaid''. |
| 196 | * ''Film/NoTearsForTheDead'' starring Creator/JangDongGun. |
| 197 | * ''Film/OnceAThief'' - directed by Creator/JohnWoo, starring Chow Yun-Fat, Creator/LeslieCheung and Cheri Chung. |
| 198 | * ''Film/OneInTheChamber'' starring Dolph Lundgren, who had to contend with rival hitman Creator/CubaGoodingJr. Both hitmen uses dual pistols and become [[SwornBrothers blood brothers]] who had to face a common enemy. |
| 199 | * ''Film/PowerfulFour'' is a Hong Kong police drama mixed with an EnsembleCast and Heroic Bloodshed elements, especially in the final shootout where the four heroes takes down a whole triad syndicate. |
| 200 | * ''Film/PrincessMadam'' starring Moon Lee and Sharon Yeung, with an ending shootout clearly inspired by John Woo. Complete with both ladies kicking ass in BadassLongcoat and GunsAkimbo. |
| 201 | * ''Film/TheRaid'' directed by Creator/GarethEvans. Set in Indonesia the story focuses on a DwindlingParty of cops that are whittled down to a handful after a police raid gone horribly wrong, now having to fight for their lives in an apartment that has criminal tenants. In recent years, probably one of the best-known films of this genre, at least for Western audiences. |
| 202 | ** The sequel to ''The Raid'', ''[[Film/TheRaid2Berandal Berandal]]'' featuring the same director and a few actors returning. |
| 203 | * ''Film/TheReplacementKillers'' - directed by Antoine Fuqua and produced by John Woo. Stars Chow Yun-Fat and Mira Sorvino. |
| 204 | * ''Red Pirate'', a mid-90s film of this genre starring Jonathan Ke Quan (Yes, Short Round and Data) where he teams up with a super-cop to take down legions of South-East Asian pirates. One scene even had Ke Quan sliding down a set of staircase railings while firing two guns simultaneously, ripping off ''Hard Boiled'' from 4 years ago. |
| 205 | * ''Film/ReturnEngagement'' starring Creator/AlanTang from the aforementioned ''Flaming Brothers'', Creator/AndyLau and Simon Yam. |
| 206 | * ''Film/ReturnToABetterTomorrow'' - Wong Jing's attempt to revive the franchise created by John Woo. Wong Jing being Wong Jing, however, he's not too successful. |
| 207 | * ''Film/RichAndFamous'' - directed by Taylor Wong and starring Chow Yun-Fat and Andy Lau. |
| 208 | ** ''Film/TragicHero'' - directed by Taylor Wong and starring Chow Yun-Fat, Andy Lau and Alan Tam. Was intended as a sequel to Rich and Famous, but ended up getting released first. |
| 209 | * ''Film/RomancingBullet'' starring Max Mok as a Chow Yun-fat {{Expy}} who wears trench coats, CoolShades, and dual-wield pistols and takes on massive numbers of triads. Co-starring Danny Lee. |
| 210 | * ''Film/Safe2012'' have Creator/JasonStatham playing a former cage fighter-turned-sharpshooter, and a BadassInANiceSuit, taking on the triads and mafia single-handedly. |
| 211 | * ''Film/ShanghaiGrand'' starring Andy Lau and Leslie Cheung, itself a remake of the drama series ''Shanghai Bund'', but with Tsui Hark's more fantastical elements peppered throughout. |
| 212 | * ''Film/ShootEmUp'', with Mr. Smith dual-wielding pistols constantly and being a badass with a DarkAndTroubledPast while carrying a baby with him. According to WordOfGod, the very premise of the movie is inspired directly by ''Hard Boiled''. |
| 213 | * ''Film/SkinTraffik'' is a British DTV flick with various action scenes and plot elements lifted from John Woo's movies, including the protagonist being a HitmanWithAHeart and TheAtoner, characters diving aside while firing guns, scenes of the hero and villains in slick tuxedos and suits, and plenty of faceless mooks to be shot and killed in several action scenes. To hit the nail even deeper, an early scene in the movie have the protagonist making a confession in church, much like ''Film/TheKiller1989'', before carrying out his first onscreen hit. |
| 214 | * ''Film/SlaughterInXiAn'' directed by Shaw Brother's Chang Cheh, one of his last movies, which combines Wuxia with Heroic Bloodshed elements. The protagonist is a police officer framed by the mob, and ends up wielding a belt-fed heavy machine gun and single-handedly killing loads and loads of white-clad extras (so yes, there’s a lot of red squibs going off throughout the last 5 minutes of the film). |
| 215 | * ''Film/SpyGear'', where a reformed hitman goes on a killing spree to avenge his wife's murder. |
| 216 | * ''Film/ThunderCop'', a SpiritualSuccessor to ''Film/TheKiller1989'', about a reckless super-cop befriending a triad mobster who wants out of the triad syndicate only to have mobsters coming all over their tails. |
| 217 | * ''Film/TianDi'', also known as ''Chinese Untouchables'', starring Andy Lau. |
| 218 | * ''Film/TripleThreat2019'' centres on an Indonesian man who wants to avenge his village's destruction at the hands of a band of mercenaries, while two defectors fight for their own survival alongside a Chinese heiress targeted by the mercenaries. There is an assortment of stylized gun, melee, and close-quarters-combat violence and virtually every named character is a capable combatant. |
| 219 | * ''Film/UndercoverVsUndercover'' is a more lighthearted take on the genre, on par with ''Once A Thief''. Still contains the usual elements, though. |
| 220 | * ''Film/{{Vengeance2009}}'' starring Creator/JohnnyHallyday, who is on a quest for vengeance (what else) after his daughter, son-in-law and grandsons are attacked by triad hitmen in a FamilyExtermination, and forms an alliance with three Hong Kong hitmen (led by Creator/AnthonyWong) to find out the reason behind the massacre and avenge their deaths. |
| 221 | * ''Viper'' a.k.a ''Bad Blood'' is a B-movie starring Lorenzo Lamas which also have a big shootout complete with Lamas dual-wiielding pistols, jumping and firing, and the main villain clad in a white suit. |
| 222 | * ''Film/{{Wanted}}'', the main character being recruited by a shady organization of assassins, learns how to bend bullets and uses dual pistols throughout the film, is clearly influenced by this genre. |
| 223 | * ''Film/AWarNamedDesire'' starring Francis Ng and Daniel Chan. |
| 224 | * ''Film/War2007'' starring Jet Li and Jason Statham, directly inspired by ''Crying Freeman''. |
| 225 | * ''Film/TheWhiteStorm'' and its sequel. |
| 226 | * ''Film/AmericanYakuza'', directed by Frank Cappello and starring Creator/ViggoMortensen, Ryo Ishibashi and Michael Nouri. |
| 227 | * ''Film/YakuzaGraveyard''. |
| 228 | |
| 229 | |
| 230 | [[/folder]] |
| 231 | |
| 232 | [[folder: Tabletop Games ]] |
| 233 | |
| 234 | * If a game in the modern juncture of ''TabletopGame/FengShui'' doesn't focus on Martial Arts, it's most likely this. |
| 235 | * The Gunplay genre from ''TabletopGame/HongKongActionTheatre!'' covers both the Heroic Bloodshed genre and other movies that have their characters using guns a lot. |
| 236 | * The German indie TRPG ''[[http://www.newhongkongstory.de/ New Hong Kong Story]]'' covers several cinematic genres, with Heroic Bloodshed being the most prominent (after {{Wuxia}}, modern martial arts film, and UsefulNotes/VietnamWar drama). In a twist, the player characters are not framed as actual, in-story characters, but as ''actors'' playing roles in a movie of the particular genre, while the GameMaster is framed as the director, making the game in many ways a SpiritualSuccessor to ''TabletopGame/HongKongActionTheatre''. While this invites large amounts of RailRoading, it is completely justified by the FramingDevice, and allows the players to focus on fluidly choreographed action scenes and stunts instead of trying to direct out the story. |
| 237 | |
| 238 | [[/folder]] |
| 239 | |
| 240 | [[folder: Video Games ]] |
| 241 | |
| 242 | * ''VideoGame/{{Stranglehold}}'', which was produced by John Woo and is a sequel to ''Hard Boiled''. |
| 243 | * The ''VideoGame/MaxPayne'' series mixes the tropes of this genre with elements of FilmNoir and ConspiracyThriller. By the third game however, there's little trace of this beyond Max's gunfighting antics. |
| 244 | * Several [[GameMod modifications]] for ''VideoGame/HalfLife1'', including ''The Opera'', ''VideoGame/TheSpecialists'', and ''Action Half-Life''. |
| 245 | * The ''VideoGame/LikeADragon'' series, like ''Manga/CryingFreeman'', uses many of the same story-related tropes as a lot of Heroic Bloodshed films, only it's more of a brawler than a shooter. |
| 246 | * ''VideoGame/TrueCrimeStreetsOfLA'' stars an Asian-American CowboyCop and features stylish gunplay and martial arts. |
| 247 | * ''VideoGame/DeadToRights'' borrows the gunfighting tropes of the genre with a FilmNoir story. |
| 248 | * Heroic Bloodshed is one of two main sources of inspiration for ''VideoGame/{{Wet}}''. |
| 249 | * ''VideoGame/ShadowWarrior1997'' riffs on Heroic Bloodshed as part of its send-up of Hong Kong action films. "Be proud Mr. Woo!" |
| 250 | * ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs2012'' uses many of the genre's story elements in a WideOpenSandbox setting, though its combat is more focused on MMA-style brawling. |
| 251 | * ''VideoGame/DrakeOfThe99Dragons'' was obviously made with this genre in mind, with its Eastern motif and heavily stylized gunplay. |
| 252 | * ''VideoGame/JustCause'' thanks to the acrobatics and dual wielding. |
| 253 | * ''VideoGame/FistOfTheNorthStarLostParadise'' |
| 254 | * ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'' and its sequel, due to its fast-paced shootouts, moral ambiguity and excessive violence. |
| 255 | * ''VideoGame/TheHongKongMassacre'' is a ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami''-style {{Homage}} to Heroic Bloodshed films, with a maverick cop out for revenge against the triads for the murder of his partner in 1990s Hong Kong. |
| 256 | * The ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' game series has some elements of this with its focus on stylish gunplay and the rivalry between Dante and his brother Vergil. [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry3DantesAwakening The third game]] is the most heavy on this trope with Lady's revenge-driven arc and having Dante's rivalry with his brother as the main focus of the game's plot. |
| 257 | * ''VideoGame/{{Loopmancer}}'' combines Heroic Bloodshed with {{Metroidvania}}. You're a private eye investigating the crime-infested streets of a futuristic version of Hong Kong and taking down triads left and right. The latter half sees you playing as a BadassInANiceSuit. |
| 258 | * ''VideoGame/{{Gungrave}}'': These mainly show up as brief flashbacks in the first game, but becomes the crux of the story in the [[WholeEpisodeFlashback anime]] adaptation. Due to Brandon's fighting style, it still counts. There are themes of honor, code, family, and redemption in the games too. |
| 259 | [[/index]] |
| 260 | |
| 261 | [[/folder]] |
| 262 | |
| 263 | [[folder: Web Original ]] |
| 264 | |
| 265 | * Back in 2007, as part of the promotion for his new game ''{{VideoGame/Stranglehold}}'', Creator/JohnWoo held a "True To John Woo" Short Film Contest in which he invited amateur filmmakers to make a short film in the Heroic Bloodshed style. [[http://www.myspace.com/strangleholdgame Here's the link.]] |
| 266 | |
| 267 | [[/folder]] |
| 268 | |
| 269 | [[folder: Western Animation ]] |
| 270 | |
| 271 | * The ''WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack'' episode "Tale of X9" draws heavily from this and FilmNoir. |
| 272 | |
| 273 | [[/folder]] |
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